Speed limits in Australia
Encyclopedia
Speed limits in Australia range from 10 kilometres per hour (6.2 mph) Shared Zone
s to 130 kilometres per hour (80.8 mph). Speed limit signage is in km/h since metrication on 1 July 1974. All speed limits (with the sole exception of the South Australian school and roadworks zones which are signposted at 25 km/h) are multiples of 10 km/h – the last digit in all speed signs is zero. Advisory speed signs for curves or other road obstacles generally end in the digit five.
Australian states and territories use two "default" speed limits. These apply automatically in the absence of 'posted' speed restriction signage. The two default speed limits are:
Common speed zones below the default built up area 50 km/h limit are:
Common speed zones above the default limits are:
The "END" speed limit sign is increasingly used throughout Australia to signal the end of a posted speed restriction, or built-up area 'default' speed-limit leading to the jurisdiction's 'rural' default speed limit. It contains the word "END" and a number in a circle beneath this, representing the ceasing speed-limit. It is typically used where, according to AS1742.4 the road beyond has certain hazards such as hidden driveways, poor camber, soft edges and other hazards where the road authority feels a posted speed limit sign might be too dangerous or otherwise unwarranted. It is intended therefore to invoke particular caution. This sign is used as a direct replacement for the slash-through speed derestriction signs common in Europe and elsewhere.
Speed limits are enforced in almost all areas of the country including the Northern Territory. Tolerance is from 8% to 10% in most states but only 3 km/h in Victoria
, an issue that has caused much controversy in that state, especially in light of the fact that the Australian Design Rules specify that vehicle speedometers may have up to 10% leeway in accuracy. Detection measures used are radar
, LIDAR
, fixed and mobile speed cameras (using various detection technologies), Vascar
, pacing and aircraft.
by the states in 1999, Western Australia and the Northern Territory retain different default speed limits. The table below indicates the default speed limits along with typical school zone limits and the highest zone in each locality.
Historically, Australia operated a simple speed limit system of urban and rural default limits, denoted in miles per hour
. The urban default, which prior to the 1930s was 30 miles per hour (48.3 km/h), applied to any "built up area", usually defined by the presence of street lighting. This limit was progressively increased to 35 miles per hour (56.3 km/h) over the next 30 years by each of the states and territories, with New South Wales being the last to change in May 1964. Outside of built up areas, a prima facie
speed limit applied. In New South Wales and Victoria, the prima facie speed limit was 50 miles per hour (80.5 km/h). In the 1970s however, most state prima facie speed limits were gradually replaced by absolute limits. An absolute speed limit of 70 miles per hour (113 km/h) was introduced to Victoria in 1971. This was subsequently reduced to 60 miles per hour (96.6 km/h) in late 1973. South Australia introduced an absolute speed limit of 60 mph in 1974.
With the onset of metrication
in 1974, speed limits and speed advisories were converted into kilometres per hour
, rounded
to the nearest 10 km/h, leading to small discrepancies in speed limits. The default urban limits of 35 miles per hour (56.3 km/h) were converted to 60 km/h, an increase of 3.7 kilometres per hour (2.3 mph). The rural defaults of 60 miles per hour (96.6 km/h) and 65 miles per hour (104.6 km/h) became 100 kilometres per hour (62.1 mph) and 110 kilometres per hour (68.4 mph) respectively. The prima facie 50 mph limit in New South Wales became a prima facie limit of 80 km/h. Signage changed from a North American-style black and white textual sign to a design based on metric signage in use in New Zealand with black number in red annulus (or circle) on white, itself a derivative of the European standard number in red circle design.
New South Wales introduced an absolute speed limit of 100 km/h in 1979. The Northern Territory introduced an absolute speed limit of 110 km/h in 2007.
In the late 1990s and early 2000s, the 60 km/h urban default limit was progressively lowered to 50 kilometres per hour (31.1 mph) nationally for reasons of road, and especially pedestrian, safety. However, many existing roads, especially subarterial roads in urban areas, have had 60 km/h limits posted on them. Queensland's Manual of Uniform Traffic Control Devices (Speed Controls) states that 60 km/h is the general minimum speed limit for traffic carrying roads. The Northern Territory has retained the 60 km/h limit; however, 50 km/h is also a common speed limit (particularly in residential areas).
There has been a campaign by some organisations, such as the Australian Wheelchair Association, to lower the default urban limit further, to allow wheelchairs to be used on public roads, with most such proposals calling for 40 kilometres per hour (24.9 mph) or 30 kilometres per hour (18.6 mph) limits. Some local government areas have unilaterally applied lower limits, such as the City of Sydney
introducing 30 km/h zones in many areas . In other areas, special 40 km/h zones have been introduced in "high pedestrian activity" areas.
Often the start of rural default 'limits' or prima facie allowances were signalled by use of the speed derestriction sign, catalogued R4-2 in AS1742.4. (2009 edition has dropped from reference the R4-2 speed derestriction). The speed derestriction sign (//) had developed 'different meaning' over time at state and territory level, although its contract-meaning under "The United Nations Convention on Road Traffic, Signs & Signals" where the sign is catalogued "C,17a", is; "End of all local prohibitions imposed on moving vehicles" and has never changed. In the Northern Territory, they designated the end of speed restrictions. In Victoria they meant that the rural default speed limit applied, whilst in New South Wales, they indicated that the prima facie 50 miles per hour (80.5 km/h) limit applied.
New South Wales's prima facie 50 mph limit, often signed by derestriction signs, was only enforced in cases where a driver's speed could be demonstrated to be excessive or dangerous in the context of prevailing road conditions. This was somewhat similar in principle to "reasonable and prudent" limits in other jurisdictions. This led to the widespread but misleading belief that no limit applied, and that derestriction signs indicated an "unlimited" limit. This belief, coupled with repeated studies showing 85th percentile speeds in excess of 120 km/h on major routes, comparatively high road tolls, difficulty in prosecuting speeding offences, and the variance in meaning of the derestriction sign across states, led New South Wales to harmonise its rural default limit to 100 kilometres per hour (62.1 mph) in 1978. The use of derestriction signs in New South Wales was officially discouraged, and on state controlled routes, 100 km/h signs were progressively used instead.
By the 1990s, most states had discontinued use of the derestriction sign, mainly for reasons of disambiguity. In most cases, these have either been replaced with definite specific limits, or "END limit" signs on roads where a specific limit is inappropriate or otherwise impractical. However, in some areas, local governments have continued to use the deprecated signs on locally controlled rural roads.
The Northern Territory continued to use derestriction signs to indicate unlimited limits until 2007, when an open road default limit of 110 kilometres per hour (68.4 mph) was introduced, along with 130 kilometres per hour (80.8 mph) limits on the Territory's four major highways.
Shared Zone
A shared zone refers to a section of street in Australia and New Zealand where pedestrians, cyclists and motorised traffic share the same road space. Special rules and speed limits apply for shared zones...
s to 130 kilometres per hour (80.8 mph). Speed limit signage is in km/h since metrication on 1 July 1974. All speed limits (with the sole exception of the South Australian school and roadworks zones which are signposted at 25 km/h) are multiples of 10 km/h – the last digit in all speed signs is zero. Advisory speed signs for curves or other road obstacles generally end in the digit five.
Common limits
- within built-up areas, 50 kilometres per hour (31.1 mph), except for the Northern Territory which remains at 60 kilometres per hour (37.3 mph)
- outside built-up areas, 100 kilometres per hour (62.1 mph); two exceptions are Western Australia and the Northern Territory at 110 kilometres per hour (68.4 mph)
Common speed zones below the default built up area 50 km/h limit are:
- Shared zones (signposted areas where pedestrians and motorised traffic share the same space) are 10 kilometres per hour (6.2 mph)
- School zoneSchool zoneA school zone refers to an area on a street near a school or near a crosswalk leading to a school that has a likely presence of younger pedestrians. School zones generally have a reduced speed limit during certain hours.-Fines:...
s are variable speed zones, with a 40 kilometres per hour (24.9 mph) limit applying during gazetteGazetteA gazette is a public journal, a newspaper of record, or simply a newspaper.In English- and French-speaking countries, newspaper publishers have applied the name Gazette since the 17th century; today, numerous weekly and daily newspapers bear the name The Gazette.Gazette is a loanword from the...
d school terms (which may include pupil-free days) and at specific times of the day when children are expected to be present. In South Australia, the limit is 25 kilometres per hour (15.5 mph). A minority of school zones have flashing lights to indicate when the lower speed limit applies. - 40 km/h zones. A number of local governments have implemented lower speed limits, typically 40 km/h, in certain areas, such as shopping precincts, or even in whole suburbs such as Balmain and Rozelle in Sydney.
Common speed zones above the default limits are:
- Many sub-arterial roads are zoned 60 kilometres per hour (37.3 mph)
- Major connector roads and smaller highways are zoned 70 kilometres per hour (43.5 mph), 80 kilometres per hour (49.7 mph) or 90 kilometres per hour (55.9 mph).
- Some highways and freeways are zoned 110 kilometres per hour (68.4 mph)
- The StuartStuart HighwayThe Stuart Highway is one of Australia's major highways. It is a segment of Australia's Highway 1 extending from Darwin, Northern Territory, in the north, via Tennant Creek and Alice Springs, to Port Augusta, South Australia, in the south—a distance of...
, ArnhemArnhem HighwayThe Arnhem Highway is a 230 kilometre highway in the Northern Territory of Australia. It links the mining town of Jabiru, in Kakadu National Park, to the Stuart Highway 35 kilometres south of Darwin....
, BarklyBarkly HighwayThe Barkly Highway is a national highway of both Queensland and the Northern Territory.-Description:It runs westward from Cloncurry and the junctions of the Flinders and Landsborough highways to the junction with the Stuart Highway north of Tennant Creek...
and VictoriaVictoria HighwayThe Victoria Highway is a 524 kilometre highway linking the Great Northern Highway in Western Australia with the Stuart Highway in the Northern Territory. It is a part of the Perth - Darwin National Highway link. It is signed as National Highway 1 and is also a part of the Highway 1 network. It is...
highways in the Northern Territory are zoned 130 kilometres per hour (80.8 mph).
The "END" speed limit sign is increasingly used throughout Australia to signal the end of a posted speed restriction, or built-up area 'default' speed-limit leading to the jurisdiction's 'rural' default speed limit. It contains the word "END" and a number in a circle beneath this, representing the ceasing speed-limit. It is typically used where, according to AS1742.4 the road beyond has certain hazards such as hidden driveways, poor camber, soft edges and other hazards where the road authority feels a posted speed limit sign might be too dangerous or otherwise unwarranted. It is intended therefore to invoke particular caution. This sign is used as a direct replacement for the slash-through speed derestriction signs common in Europe and elsewhere.
Speed limits are enforced in almost all areas of the country including the Northern Territory. Tolerance is from 8% to 10% in most states but only 3 km/h in Victoria
Victoria (Australia)
Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....
, an issue that has caused much controversy in that state, especially in light of the fact that the Australian Design Rules specify that vehicle speedometers may have up to 10% leeway in accuracy. Detection measures used are radar
Radar gun
A radar speed gun is a small doppler radar unit used to measure the speed of moving objects, including vehicles, pitched baseballs, runners and other moving objects. Radar speed guns may be hand-held, vehicle-mounted or static...
, LIDAR
LIDAR
LIDAR is an optical remote sensing technology that can measure the distance to, or other properties of a target by illuminating the target with light, often using pulses from a laser...
, fixed and mobile speed cameras (using various detection technologies), Vascar
VASCAR
VASCAR is a type of device for calculating the speed of a moving vehicle. The first VASCAR device was created in 1966 by Arthur Marshall...
, pacing and aircraft.
Default Speed Limits by Australian State and Territory
Despite introduction of model national road rulesAustralian Road Rules
The Australian Road Rules are a set of model road rules developed by the National Road Transport Commission which form the platform for State and Territory road rules across Australia...
by the states in 1999, Western Australia and the Northern Territory retain different default speed limits. The table below indicates the default speed limits along with typical school zone limits and the highest zone in each locality.
| State / Territory | School zone | Built-up area | Rural area | Highest speed zone |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australian Road Rules Australian Road Rules The Australian Road Rules are a set of model road rules developed by the National Road Transport Commission which form the platform for State and Territory road rules across Australia... |
number on school zone sign | 50 | 100 | number on speed-limit sign |
| Australian Capital Territory Australian Capital Territory The Australian Capital Territory, often abbreviated ACT, is the capital territory of the Commonwealth of Australia and is the smallest self-governing internal territory... |
40 | 50 | 100 | 100 |
| New South Wales New South Wales New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales... |
40 on all roads | 50 | 100 | 110 |
| Northern Territory Northern Territory The Northern Territory is a federal territory of Australia, occupying much of the centre of the mainland continent, as well as the central northern regions... |
40 | 60 | 110 | 130 |
| Queensland Queensland Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean... |
40 on roads 70 km/h or less 60 on roads 80 km/h and some 90/100 km/h 80 on roads 110 km/h and some 90/100 km/h |
50 | 100 | 110 |
| South Australia | 25 on roads 60 km/h or less | 50 | 100 | 110 |
| Tasmania Tasmania Tasmania is an Australian island and state. It is south of the continent, separated by Bass Strait. The state includes the island of Tasmania—the 26th largest island in the world—and the surrounding islands. The state has a population of 507,626 , of whom almost half reside in the greater Hobart... |
40 on roads 70 km/h or less 60 on roads 80 km/h or more |
50 | 100 | 110 |
| Victoria Victoria (Australia) Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively.... |
40 on roads 70 km/h or less 60 on roads 80 km/h or more |
50 | 100 | 110 |
| Western Australia | 40 on roads 70 km/h or less 60 on roads with 80 km/h or 90 km/h |
50 | 110 | 110 |
Historical limits
Miles per hour
Miles per hour is an imperial unit of speed expressing the number of statute miles covered in one hour. It is currently the standard unit used for speed limits, and to express speeds generally, on roads in the United Kingdom and the United States. It is also often used to express the speed of...
. The urban default, which prior to the 1930s was 30 miles per hour (48.3 km/h), applied to any "built up area", usually defined by the presence of street lighting. This limit was progressively increased to 35 miles per hour (56.3 km/h) over the next 30 years by each of the states and territories, with New South Wales being the last to change in May 1964. Outside of built up areas, a prima facie
Prima facie
Prima facie is a Latin expression meaning on its first encounter, first blush, or at first sight. The literal translation would be "at first face", from the feminine form of primus and facies , both in the ablative case. It is used in modern legal English to signify that on first examination, a...
speed limit applied. In New South Wales and Victoria, the prima facie speed limit was 50 miles per hour (80.5 km/h). In the 1970s however, most state prima facie speed limits were gradually replaced by absolute limits. An absolute speed limit of 70 miles per hour (113 km/h) was introduced to Victoria in 1971. This was subsequently reduced to 60 miles per hour (96.6 km/h) in late 1973. South Australia introduced an absolute speed limit of 60 mph in 1974.
With the onset of metrication
Metrication in Australia
Metrication in Australia took place between 1970 and 1988. Before then, Australia mostly used the imperial system for measurement, which the Australian colonies had inherited from the United Kingdom. Between 1970 and 1988, imperial units were withdrawn from general legal use and replaced with SI...
in 1974, speed limits and speed advisories were converted into kilometres per hour
Kilometres per hour
The kilometre per hour is a unit of speed, expressing the number of kilometres traveled in one hour. The unit symbol is km/h or km·h−1....
, rounded
Round number
A round number is mathematically defined as the product of a considerable number of comparatively small factors as compared to its neighbouring numbers, such as 24 = 2*2*2*3 .However, a round number is informally considered to be an integer that ends with one or more zeroes , such...
to the nearest 10 km/h, leading to small discrepancies in speed limits. The default urban limits of 35 miles per hour (56.3 km/h) were converted to 60 km/h, an increase of 3.7 kilometres per hour (2.3 mph). The rural defaults of 60 miles per hour (96.6 km/h) and 65 miles per hour (104.6 km/h) became 100 kilometres per hour (62.1 mph) and 110 kilometres per hour (68.4 mph) respectively. The prima facie 50 mph limit in New South Wales became a prima facie limit of 80 km/h. Signage changed from a North American-style black and white textual sign to a design based on metric signage in use in New Zealand with black number in red annulus (or circle) on white, itself a derivative of the European standard number in red circle design.
New South Wales introduced an absolute speed limit of 100 km/h in 1979. The Northern Territory introduced an absolute speed limit of 110 km/h in 2007.
In the late 1990s and early 2000s, the 60 km/h urban default limit was progressively lowered to 50 kilometres per hour (31.1 mph) nationally for reasons of road, and especially pedestrian, safety. However, many existing roads, especially subarterial roads in urban areas, have had 60 km/h limits posted on them. Queensland's Manual of Uniform Traffic Control Devices (Speed Controls) states that 60 km/h is the general minimum speed limit for traffic carrying roads. The Northern Territory has retained the 60 km/h limit; however, 50 km/h is also a common speed limit (particularly in residential areas).
There has been a campaign by some organisations, such as the Australian Wheelchair Association, to lower the default urban limit further, to allow wheelchairs to be used on public roads, with most such proposals calling for 40 kilometres per hour (24.9 mph) or 30 kilometres per hour (18.6 mph) limits. Some local government areas have unilaterally applied lower limits, such as the City of Sydney
City of Sydney
The City of Sydney is the Local Government Area covering the Sydney central business district and surrounding inner city suburbs of the greater metropolitan area of Sydney, Australia...
introducing 30 km/h zones in many areas . In other areas, special 40 km/h zones have been introduced in "high pedestrian activity" areas.
Derestriction Signs
By the 1990s, most states had discontinued use of the derestriction sign, mainly for reasons of disambiguity. In most cases, these have either been replaced with definite specific limits, or "END limit" signs on roads where a specific limit is inappropriate or otherwise impractical. However, in some areas, local governments have continued to use the deprecated signs on locally controlled rural roads.
The Northern Territory continued to use derestriction signs to indicate unlimited limits until 2007, when an open road default limit of 110 kilometres per hour (68.4 mph) was introduced, along with 130 kilometres per hour (80.8 mph) limits on the Territory's four major highways.
External links
- Metric Motoring (1973) – Original television advertisements explaining the conversion to metric speed limits. From the National Film and Sound ArchiveNational Film and Sound ArchiveThe National Film and Sound Archive is Australia’s audiovisual archive, responsible for developing, preserving, maintaining, promoting and providing access to a national collection of audiovisual materials and related items...
.