M1 speed limits cut for Commonwealth Games: What motorway is really like at peak hour

A DAY after speed limits on the M1 were reduced ahead of the Commonwealth Games, a time-lapse video has been released showing the peak hour commute from Brisbane to the Gold Coast highlighting how motorists are responding to the change. SEE THE VIDEO

WHILE Queenslanders are wildly debating the government’s decision to reduce speed along the M1 ahead of the Commonwealth Games, The Courier-Mail took a drive and timed how long the journey takes.

The Courier-Mail set up a dash cam and filmed the drive which took 55 minutes from the Clem 7 tunnel to the Southport exit with — for the most part — free flowing traffic.

Driving on the highway, it is obvious extra measures have been taken to get people off the road, including a billboard which says “if you can, work from home during the games.”

Despite hundreds of signs saying “Springwood to Gaven speed reductions” many motorists were exceeding 100k/m speed — with only one speed camera that The Courier-Mail noticed — and others were travelling significantly under the limit.

Many Queenslanders are taking to Facebook to express their thoughts on the speed limitations, which came into full force on Thursday.

The new speed limits came into force on Wednesday but motorists on the M1 only wish they could get to the speed limit in the morning traffic snarls. Picture: Glenn Hampson

Leanne Collins said the speed changes didn’t make the trip any better as hoped.

“Some people were still doing 110 and some weren’t even doing 100 as maybe worried about being caught speeding,” she said.

Another motorist Anne-Marie Wilson said people are going under the 100k/m allocation due to the ‘scaremongering’ of receiving speeding tickets.

Visible still is the 110k/m writing painted on the road where the speed once increased.

The drive home from Southport to the Bowen Hills office took just over one hour, with slight congestion in the 90k/m zones.

Some drivers, like Huhana Waenga, have told The Courier-Mail the speed reductions improved traffic.

“I [have] just come from Ipswich to Gold Coast, left there at 4:33pm got home about 5:50pm no problems at all,” she said.

“Actually fast than last week where it took me over 3 hours.”

The decision to lower the speed was yesterday backed by a University of Queensland senior lecturer of urban planning and transportation Dorina Pojani.

“There have been studies recently that show maintaining a certain distance between cars on the road actually improves traffic flow; people think that riding bumper-to-bumper gives them the advantage of an extra inch,” she said.

“Lower speeds will make people keep more distance, so that’s the science behind it.

“We know that in urban areas where there is a more complicated road pattern that accidents are more likely to happen, but then the reality is that on highways the speeds are higher, so crashes that are fatal are more likely.

“There are lots of minor incidents in urban areas — more than on highways — but in a highway accident, one is more likely to lose their life.”