As NSW changes come into force, three approaches exist nationally
New South Wales adjustments to speed rules related to passing stationary emergency vehicles come into force today, with the National Road Transport Association’s (NatRoad’s) blessing but little indication other relevant states will follow suit in a hurry.
NatRoad welcomed the NSW government’s post-trial decision to change the road rule requiring vehicles to slow down to 40km/h when passing stationary emergency vehicles with flashing blue or red lights.
“This is a sensible start,” NatRoad CEO Warren Clark says.
“NatRoad has advocated that the sudden reduction in speed from say 100 km to 40 km has adverse safety consequences, particularly as some vehicles were slowing and other drivers just didn’t know the road rule.
“Light vehicle drivers often don’t understand that heavy vehicles need more time to slow down than light vehicles.
“There will now be changes to the requirements for motorists, depending on the speed limit of the road
From today, drivers in NSW will no longer need to slow down to 40km/h on roads with speed limits of 90km/h or over. But they will continue to be required to slow down to 40 km/h on roads with speed limits of 80km/h or under.
“The absolute requirement to reach 40km/h should be changed so that drivers who are using their best endeavours to slow safely are not penalised,” Clark says.
“Further education about the road rule should be rolled out because the rule will be expanded to include tow trucks and breakdown assistance vehicles, which are displaying yellow flashing lights while stopped on the road.
“In addition, other jurisdictions should make sensible changes to this road rule.”
Read about the initial reaction to the NSW rule change, here
But two states that have instituted a similar rule, Western Australia and Victoria, appear unmoved or even resistant, presenting the country with four differing regimes for what WA dubs the ‘Slow Down, Move Over’ (SLOMO – with NSW adding ‘Give Space’) rule: NSW with adjustments, Victoria, WA, Tasmania and the ACT unadjusted, South Australia with a lower speed of 25km/h and remainder states with no such rule.
“When WA introduced our SLOMO laws in 2017, we led the nation,” a WA Road Safety Commission spokesperson tells ATN.
“We are proud of these measures and the degree of safety that they provide for our roadside workers.
“There is no proposal to water them down.”
The issue is unlikely to raise industry heat as Western Roads Federation (WRF) reports the organisation has fielded no complaints from members.
Victoria is still monitoring its rule’s effectiveness two months after its second anniversary.
Its road rule 79A requires drivers to slow down to 40km/h when passing stationary or slow moving – 10km/h or less – emergency or enforcement vehicles with flashing red and blue or purple lights. The rule does not cover tow trucks or other special purpose vehicles.
The state transport department believes the rule must be well-established and understood among drivers, and its performance appropriately assessed, before any consideration can be given to potential amendment to improve effectiveness.
All drivers in Victoria are urged to use caution when passing any vehicle on the roadside and drive to the conditions.
“This road rule was introduced to protect emergency responders and enforcement workers while on the job and working on the road,” a departmental spokesperson tells ATN.
“The rule requires drivers to slow down safely to 40km/h when there is flashing red and blue or magenta lights.”
“We are continuing to monitor the performance of this road rule and are undertaking a review of its effectiveness.”
NSW’s new rules
In a reminder to drivers, Transport for NSW advises:
- drivers no longer need to slow down to 40km/h on roads with speed limits of 90km/h or over
- drivers continue to be required to slow down to 40km/h on roads with speed limits of 80km/h or under
- the rule is expanded to include tow trucks and breakdown assistance vehicles which are displaying yellow flashing lights while stopped on the road.
On roads with speed limits of 90km/h or over, drivers will need to:
- slow to a speed which is safe and reasonable for the circumstances.
- give sufficient space between their vehicle and the tow truck, breakdown assistance or emergency vehicle, as well as any people on the road.
- on multi-lane roads drivers must change lanes to keep the lane next to the stationary vehicle vacant if it is safe to do so.
“The changes to the rule are the result of feedback from the public and stakeholders during the initial trial,” Centre for Road Safety executive director Bernard Carlon says.
“These changes enhance safety on higher speed roads where greater time and distance is needed to safely reduce speed.
“We want every road user to feel safe on NSW roads – including those working on the roadside, the people they are helping and those who are slowing down as they pass these stopped vehicles.”
More details can be found here.