Auburn Street, Goulburn: New 40km/h speed limit by Goulburn Mulwaree Council

A contentious decision to reduce the speed limit on Auburn St, Goulburn, will come into effect soon. Tell us your thoughts in our poll.

The change in speed limit on a main street of Goulburn is gearing up to happen, following Goulburn Mulwaree Council’s widely contested decision in October last year to reduce the speed.

Soon, drivers will now have to slow down from 50km/h to 40km/h along Auburn St, between Bradley and Clinton Streets, due to high pedestrian activity.

The permanent speed change is expected to come into effect on February 8, after completion of work involving signage and line marking changes, which is due to start from January 31.

The orange line shows the area on Auburn Street where the new 40km/h limit will be, and the blue line indicates where vehicles over 15 tonnes can pass through.

As part of the change, heavy vehicles will be diverted onto Sloan St, but buses and small single axle delivery trucks to continue on Auburn St.

Vehicles exceeding 15 tonnes are allowed to use Lagoon and Auburn streets to conduct business if there is no alternate route or access.

The contested decision had the community divided in a “50/50 split” according to the council.

They received 106 submissions from residents, with a number of people concerned directing heavy vehicles to other streets would cause additional traffic.

“No to a 40km/h speed limit, it’s both pointless and unnecessary,” one submission read.

“This is both painful to both parties and makes the road much slower to use,” another read.

“Better off closing the road to traffic than doing that. Or don’t do it at all and put in pedestrian crossings.”

Goulburn Chamber of Commerce president, Darrell Weekes, previously told The Bowral News he thought the reduction in speed was “absolutely overdue.”

“In a confined space like the main street, 50km/h with pedestrians and kids can be deadly,” Mr Weekes said.

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“It also reduces the chance of people backing out (their car) and getting hit by another car.

“From a business perspective, it makes it a calmer and much more pleasant place to be for shoppers.

“It means that drivers are going slower and that they can actually see the shops, and think ‘oh, I better pop in and pick something up’.”

Mr Weekes said the 40km/h speed limit, as well as the 15-tonne limit, would mean non-shoppers would be less likely to travel on Auburn St.

“People who are driving down the main street just to get from one point to another are not shopping,” Mr Weekes said.

“They will go down Bourke St or Sloane St instead and the main street will become a place where people are actually shopping.”