What’s the point?

The connection between excessive speed and trauma on our roads is well established. Study after study indicates that if motorists would just travel at a reasonable speed at all times, if we all just calmed down a little bit, our roads would be a much more pleasant place for all road users.

So why do so many people continue to believe that speed limits and speed cameras are for nothing but government revenue? Where has the implementation of road safety policy gone so wrong?

It is my belief that motorists continue to exceed speed limits and drive too fast for the conditions in Canberra, as the A.C.T Government does not appear to have any set policies when it comes to building self enforcing roads, implementing appropriate speed limits, or installing overt speed limit signs. If a motorist is to believe that exceeding a speed limit by even the slightest amount is dangerous for any given stretch of road, then that speed limit needs to be well established, it needs to be well signposted, and it needs to reflect a reasonable speed for the road in free flowing conditions.

Despite this shortfall, the A.C.T. has the most fixed speed cameras per capita in Australia. Prior to spending so many million dollars on speed cameras, should we not have established that all speed limits in the A.C.T are appropriate, as well as appropriately signposted? To fix inadequate and inappropriate signposting throughout Canberra would have been significantly cheaper for the A.C.T Government, would not have been considered revenue raising by the community, and may have been just enough to start getting motorists to slow down.

Road design also plays an exponentially huge part in encouraging motorists to travel at an appropriate speed for the area. A road in a residential area with a carriageway wider than that which can be found on a freeway (Namatjira Drive through parts of Weston Creek for example) is nothing short of a failure by all authorities concerned.

What am I trying to achieve?

Australian Standard 1742.4: Speed Controls is a 30 page document providing a set of best practice guidelines for authorities when implementing speed limits, and speed limit zones. This website intends to highlight specific situations where the A.C.T. falls well short of this important Australian Standard, in a hope to change policy at the top, and have things fixed in the A.C.T permanently.

Picture says it all. Smallest possible speed limit sign used immediately before speed camera. Too small for an 80km/h road according to Australian Standards. When it comes to speed limit signs in the ACT, there are hundreds of examples of signs apparently not compliant with Australian Standards.

From the point of view of the motorist, when it comes to speed limit zones in Canberra and the Australian Capital Territory, Australian Standard 1742.4 is not adhered to. Fixed speed cameras have been installed in the ACT, with absolute bare minimum speed limit signage prior. (Example 1, Example 2) In some cases, no legible speed limit signage prior.

Note that I am not trying to stop the use of speed cameras on roads in the ACT.  There is nothing wrong with a well placed speed camera on an appropriately designed road, with a properly thought out and signposted speed limit.

actroads.org does not condone exceeding posted speed limits, regardless of speed limit signage quality.

A default 50km/h speed limit applies in urban areas of the A.C.T unless signposted otherwise.

Australian Standards are copyrighted by Standards Australia Limited. They are published by SAI Global. Portions of Australian Standard 1742.4 have been reproduced with permission from SAI Global under Licence 1108-c117.