Image: Tim J Keegan.
The signal to slow down to 40km/h has sent everyone frantically looking at their watches and their speedometers when they approach a school zone, but a new push by the Australian Capital Territory government could have motorists depressing the brakes even more.
In what looks to ignite fierce opposition and controversy on talkback radio, ACT Chief Minister Andrew Barr made a radical proposal to lower Canberra’s school zone speed limits to 30km/h.
Such a move won’t be implemented immediately as the government has expressed that it would like to ask the community for its views on reducing the speed limit to 30km/h around high risk schools.
Mr Barr said we are rushed in our daily lives but we need to slow down around schools.
“These new initiatives aren’t about annoying drivers, but rather to reduce the risk of a moment’s inattention that could be costly for everyone,” Mr Barr said.
If the speed limit is lowered, it will mean a number of things for the government and road users alike.
For the ACT government, it will need to procure new signage, which will likely mean new tender processes for signage suppliers and installers to sign up to. If the initiative is eventually adopted in other state jurisdictions across Australia, more signage will be required from suppliers.
Motorists on the other hand will simply need to pay closer attention to their speedometers, which will likely cause frustration among the end-of-school day rush hour commuters hurrying to get from one place to another.
The government’s suggestion to lower the speed limit is part of a wider blitz by the ACT Police on speeding and dangerous parking around schools, where new road marking will be trialled, as well as a review conducted into road signage around schools.
The ‘blitz’ has been motivated by the fact that there have been over 1,372 infringement notices or cautions handed out to Canberrans driving in school zones in 2014.
Although this is an improvement on the 1,567 issued in 2013, Mr Barr reckons “more needs to be done”.
“I have asked the Minister for Police Joy Burch to work with ACT Police to establish a specific blitz targeting speeding and dangerous parking in school zones. The Minister made this a clear priority in the 2015-16 ACT Policing purchase agreement,” Mr Barr said.
According to Mr Barr, the Government will proceed with a range of measures to curb speeding in schools zones, such as utilising higher profile road markings to alert drivers that they are entering a slower speed zone.
The Government will also review and simplify road signage around ACT schools, Mr Barr said
“We need to make sure drivers clearly understand they are entering a school zone. Despite all the current road signage, drivers are still putting children at risk. In some locations this may reflect confusion as a result of too many signs,” he said.
