as part of a network of arterial roads under a metropolitan-wide plan produced for the Western Australian government by Gordon Stephenson and Alastair Hepburn. The road reservation was formally gazetted in the 1963 Metropolitan Region Scheme. It was first named "Beechboro-Gosnells Highway", the name coming from the two suburbs it was originally planned to link. Like most Perth arterial road projects, the highway was built in stages. It was initially constructed as a dual carriageway, from Welshpool Road, Wattle Grove to Hardey Road in Cloverdale, which opened on 16 June 1980. A further , that linked the new highway to Albany Highway in Gosnells, was completed in December 1980. This $6.1 million section, which officially opened on 22 December 1980, was the start of a new route between Gosnells and Bellevue, and reduced traffic volume and congestion on Albany Highway. The third segment to be constructed was a section north of the Swan River, from Railway Parade in Bayswater to Morley Drive, which opened on 11 July 1984. This $3.5 million section was constructed by Thiess Contractors Pty Ltd, with Taylor Woodrow International Ltd responsible for constructing the Broun Avenue bridge. Stage 4 linked Hardey Road and Great Eastern Highway, and included the construction of four bridges over the Forrestfield railway marshalling yards, the first bridges in Australia to be constructed using the incremental launch technique. Upon opening on 1 May 1985, Beechboro-Gosnells Highway was renamed "Tonkin Highway", in honour of former Premier of Western Australia John Tonkin. Tonkin had also been the Minister for Works during the planning and construction of the Narrows Bridge and Kwinana Freeway in the 1950s. A ceremony was held at Redcliffe on 1 May by the Premier of Western Australia Brian Burke, who unveiled a plaque. Tonkin, who at the time was aged 83, cut the ribbon at the ceremony to officially open the new Forrestfield to Redcliffe section of the highway. A grade-separated interchange was constructed at Great Eastern Highway in 1986, which included a six lane road bridge over Tonkin Highway and a pedestrian subway. It was constructed earlier than initially planned, as heavy traffic from Perth Airport was expected during the 1987 America's Cup. Construction on a link between the northern and southern sections of Tonkin Highway began in 1988. Included in this $48 million stage was the Redcliffe Bridge over the Swan River, and an interchange with Guildford Road, north