Monarto South, South Australia facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Monarto South South Australia
Monarto South Location in South Australia
Established	1973
Postcode(s)	5254
Time zone	ACST (UTC+9:30)
• Summer (DST)	ACDT (UTC+10:30)
Location	67 km (42 mi) ESE of Adelaide
LGA(s)	Rural City of Murray Bridge
State electorate(s)	Kavel
Federal Division(s)	Barker
Localities around Monarto South: Callington Monarto Rocky Gully Callington, Hartley Monarto South White Hill, Gifford Hill Hartley Langhorne Creek Brinkley

Monarto South is a small area, also known as a locality, in South Australia. It is located about 16 kilometers (10 miles) west of the famous Murray River. If you travel by road from Adelaide, it's about 65 kilometers (40 miles) to the southeast.

The Monarto South railway station is found north of the South Eastern Freeway. This area stretches south of the freeway all the way to Chaunceys Line Road and the Ferries McDonald Conservation Park.

In the late 1970s, there was a big idea to build a new city near here. It was going to be called Monarto Junction, or sometimes "New Murray Town." This new city was planned to be a "satellite city" for Adelaide, meaning a smaller city connected to a larger one. However, by the early 2000s, the plan was completely stopped.

Monarto South got its name from an older land division called the Hundred of Monarto. This area was officially named in 1847. The "Hundred of Monarto" was named after "Queen Monarto." She was an Aboriginal woman and the wife of a tribal leader who lived in the area a long time ago.

Getting Around Monarto South

Monarto South is right next to a very important train track. This track is the main Adelaide to Wolseley line. The Monarto South station used to be a place where another train line branched off. This branch line, called the Sedan branch line, went north across the flat land between the Murray River and the Mount Lofty Ranges.

Road Upgrades and Wildlife Protection

In the 2010s, a local government project started to improve Ferries McDonald Road in Monarto South. This project included paving the road with bitumen, making it smoother and safer for driving.

However, there was a special challenge! There are unique birds called mallee fowl that live nearby. These birds are important, so the project had to be planned very carefully. They made sure to change the plans many times to protect the environment and the mallee fowl. The goal was to make sure the road work caused as little harm as possible to nature.

When this project is finished, it will create an important route for large trucks. This route will connect Langhorne Creek to the Barossa Valley.

Nature Parks in Monarto South

There are several important nature parks that are either inside Monarto South or partly overlap with it. These parks help protect the local plants and animals.

• Monarto Conservation Park (also known as Braendler Scrub)
• Loomooloo Sanctuary
• Ferries McDonald Conservation Park
• Monarto Woodlands Conservation Park