Adelaide City Council to consider Cr Robert Simms’ proposed 40km/h speed zone across the CBD
An Adelaide City Councillor will push for changing the CBD speed limit to 40km/h – ideally improving safety but costing motorists a further 20 seconds to cross the city.
City
Don't miss out on the headlines from City. Followed categories will be added to My News.
- Every street should be audited for speed limits: Local Gov experts
- Get the most of your Advertiser subscription
Adelaide City Council will consider lowering speed limits on CBD streets as part of a push to improve road safety.
Elected members will on Tuesday night take part in a workshop looking into current speed limits, whether they are appropriate or whether a city-wide limit should be introduced.
It will also consider the success of 40km/h speed zones on city streets in Melbourne, Sydney, Perth and Brisbane.
“Lower speeds reduce the likelihood and severity of crashes, particularly those involving pedestrians,” a council report said.
Cr Robert Simms has advocated for a 40km/h speed limit across the CBD since he was elected to the council in November last year.
“Adelaide is unique at the moment because it has a speed limit that is higher than 40km/h and if you look at other major cities across Australia and they have lower speed limits – we are the odd one out,” Cr Simms said.
“Ultimately, this is about improving safety and we need to recognise that our roads don’t just belong to cars, but also pedestrians and cyclists who have a right to feel safe.”
A council report showed most motorists in the city and North Adelaide do not reach speeds higher than 50km/h, with about half only hitting 40km/h.
Only a few roads have a 60km/h speed limit, including West Tce, War Memorial Drive and Barton Tce, with most streets enforcing a 50km/h rule.
It said dropping the speed limit from 50km/h to 40km/h would increase the time to travel across the city by 20 seconds.
RAA Safety and Infrastructure senior manager Charles Mountain supported lowering speed limits in areas with high levels of pedestrians and cyclists to reduce crashes.
“Lower speed limits have been successfully applied in other cities across Australia and with the increased levels of activity in Adelaide, it’s timely to look at this,” Mr Mountain said.
Walking SA board member Ian Radbone supported speed limits being dropped.
“Your chances of surviving a crash are twice as good at 40km/h rather than 50km/h, so we would like lower speed limits in the city,” said Mr Radbone, also vice chairman of the Bicycle Institute.
The council will trial a 30km/h speed limit on part of Hindley St in coming months.
After tomorrow night’s workshop, staff will prepare a report on the outcomes.
Any changes would have to go before the council and would then require approval from Transport Minister Stephan Knoll.