Geographical Names Board proposal system for road naming
Find out how to propose and manage road names if you're from a road naming authority.
Key information
- Local Government councils and Transport for NSW are the road naming authorities. Other government agencies can propose names for private roads.
- The Geographical Names Board (GNB) must be notified of all proposals to name, or alter the name of, a road.
- The NSW Place and Road Naming Proposal System was established by the GNB to support road naming authorities to meet its obligations for creating new road names or renaming roads in NSW.
- The road naming process is governed under the Roads Act 1993, Roads Regulation 2018, and the NSW Address Policy and User Manual.
- Approved road name applications generally take around 4 to 5 weeks from proposal to gazette.
Eligibility
Who can propose road names
Only road naming authorities can name roads, that is local councils and Transport for NSW. Other government agencies can propose names for private roads.
Who cannot propose road names
Anyone who is not an employee of a road naming authority, including members of the public, must speak to the relevant local council if they want to propose a road name.
How to propose a new road name
What you need
Before you propose road names, make sure you:
- check if the names are suitable using our road name evaluation tool
- ensure they follow section 6.7 of the NSW Address Policy and User Manual, which includes:
- getting approval from a local Aboriginal Land Council or relevant entity, if needed
- spelling the names exactly as the names they are based on
- using either a given name or a surname, but not both
- avoiding the names of living people
- not using active commercial or business names
- not using abbreviations or acronyms (except “St” for “Saint”).
Before you begin your proposal, make sure you've gathered the documents you need:
- information about the origin of the name
- information about any multicultural or Aboriginal dimensions
- a map of the roads and their extent (where they start and end)
For commemorative names:
- date of birth and death for people being commemorated, if known
- contact details for any organisation associated with a person being commemorated
- any other source of information about a person being commemorated.
Propose a road name using the proposal system
Log in to the proposal system
If you already have an account, select the ‘propose a road name now’ link below. Note: We recommend Chrome or Microsoft Edge browsers.
It will take you to the GNB online ‘proposal system’ login page.
Your proposal will take around 30 minutes to complete.
Propose a road name now. Note: Use the polygon tool to draw around a subdivision extent when proposing bulk road names.
Watch the videos below for tips on using the system. Visit our contact us page if you need help applying online.
How to create an account for authenticated users
How to login as an authenticated user
How to recover your account password
How to edit contact details and update password
What happens after you've submitted a proposal
- The GNB Secretariat will review the proposal within 2 weeks, on behalf of the NSW Surveyor-General.
- You can see real-time status updates at any time in the ‘manage proposals’ dashboard.
Then one of the following will happen:
- we will email you to tell you your proposal is approved (relevant parties are notified via the proposal system and given 15 days to submit an objection), or
- we will reject the proposed name on behalf of the NSW Surveyor-General. The applicant can appeal this decision. See Rejected proposals, or
- we will contact you by email if we need further clarification. You can provide clarification in the proposal system by clicking on manage proposal/view proposal/respond to query.
Approved proposals and gazettals
If the GNB approves your road names, you need to take the following steps.
Once the name is approved, the proposal system automatically alerts all road naming authorities – and other relevant authorities such as Australia Post and emergency services – via email.
Only when your road names have been approved by the GNB, should road naming authorities advertise the names (in a relevant local newspaper or on the road naming authority’s website) to invite community feedback. There is no defined length for this consultation period.
Visit the NSW Address Policy and User Manual, section 7.1.4 Advertising and Public Notices.
Once your road name has been approved by the GNB you'll receive an email.
There is a mandatory wait of 15 business days to allow objections from relevant parties such as emergency services or Australia Post.
Once the 15 days have elapsed, if the GNB receives no objections, you'll receive an email stating that the name is ready to be gazetted.
Create a gazettal
A gazette is an official publication that documents the actions and decisions of the government.
Create a single gazettal
Go to your 'manage road name proposals' dashboard/view proposal/create gazettal.
Note: Gazettal is not required for private roads, these will automatically appear as endorsed in the system.
The GNB will review and submit your gazette notice for publication.
Create a bulk gazettal
If you've had more than one name approved, you can create a bulk gazettal notice if no changes are being made to the original proposal.
Select the 'bulk gazette' option from the toolbar on the left-hand side of the proposal system.
Select each road you wish to gazette.
The GNB will review and submit your gazette notice for publication.
Viewing gazettal dates
A gazettal date is when a government notice has been officially published.
You can view the gazettal date in the proposal system by clicking on 'manage proposals' then 'view proposal' on the desired proposal.
A road naming authority is able to log into the system at any time to check on the status of a proposal.
Amending existing road names
Searching for existing road names
Use the 'road name search report' in the toolbar on the left-hand side of the system, to find road names that are currently in use.
The 'road name proposal summary' shows road names that have been proposed since 2015 and gazetted road names.
If you'd like to search for road names on a map, visit SIX (Spatial Information Exchange) Maps, an online mapping tool for NSW.
Changing existing road names
The proposal system works for changing or amending existing gazetted road names. Use it the same as you would for proposing a name for a new road.
Updating the extent description for gazetted road names can be managed by re-gazettal.
Creating a re-gazette through the proposal system
Use the re-gazette function to update the extent of an existing road, common in developing areas.
Fixing an error in a gazette notice
You can also click on 'create erratum gazette' to correct minor errors, such as spelling.
Rejected proposals
The road naming authority can appeal to the Surveyor-General to have a rejection overturned if you can demonstrate that the principles in the NSW Address Policy and User Manual have been incorrectly interpreted.
If the objection is upheld by the Surveyor-General, the road naming authority can seek the approval of the Minister that administers the Roads Act 1993 to proceed with the name.
An appeal involves going to 'manage road name proposals/view proposal/option to appeal'.
You can provide further reasoning and documentation.
You cannot appeal proposals for pre-approvals that have been rejected. Contact us for more information.
Further information
A private road is also known as a non-dedicated road. These roads are not maintained by council, and do not have to be gazetted, but may be named for addressing purposes and signposted. The GNB assesses names for private roads using the same criteria we use for public roads.
You can submit multiple road names in one proposal. Click on the 'get bulk upload template' button and enter the names and other details into the Excel document.
Alternatively, if all your names aren't ready, you can enter road names one by one within one proposal. Click on 'save as draft' so you can come back to it.
You'll need to provide individual extents, maps and other information for every road.
Select metropolitan, regional urban, or rural, depending on where your roads are located.
They’ll be evaluated for duplication within a 10km, 20km or 30km radius, depending on your answer.
Pre-approval is not required for every road name, it is only required where councils need to reserve a large number of names in advance, for example, for a new development.
For road name pre-approvals, we need the origin of the names and locality (or suburb), but don't yet need the road types, extent descriptions or maps.
Note: Use the polygon tool to draw around a subdivision extent when proposing bulk road names.
Note: A pre-approval isn’t a formal approval. The name will still need a final evaluation by the GNB
In NSW, there are thousands of road names that have been in use since before the Roads Act 1993 was established.
These road names have not been officially gazetted and are recorded as 'names in use' by the GNB.
If you identify an error with a name in use, please contact us, so Spatial Services maps and databases can be updated.
Contact the Geographical Names Board
Visit our contact us page.
Freecall: 1800 025 700 Monday to Friday 9am to 4pm.
The Secretary
Geographical Names Board
346 Panorama Ave
Bathurst NSW 2795
Media enquiries
For media enquiries, email media@customerservice.nsw.gov.au