Government is open to 30km/h school zones

A peak safety body claims children are ‘much safer at 30’ after some other states take the plunge to drop school zone limits, and the state government hasn’t dismissed the idea. POLL INSIDE >>

Minister for Transport Eric Abetz and students of Blackmans Bay Primary School on Thursday, January 30, 2025.

The state government is open to considering reducing the speed limit in school zones from 40km/h to 30km/h, Transport Minister Eric Abetz says.

Launching an annual campaign urging scofflaw motorists to slow down to 40km/h near schools and school buses lest they kill or main students, Road Safety Advisory Council chair Scott Tilyard said even-slower speed limits might help.

“There are some states now that are reducing that to 30km/h, children are much safer at 30,” he said.

“I think it’s something that the Road Safety Advisory Council here will discuss in the near future about whether it should be dropped a little bit more.”

Mr Abetz said he was open to hearing the evidence in favour of change.

“I‘d be willing to listen to advice on that and see what keeps our community safe and moving,” he said.

“They’re the two balancing considerations but I think most people would say keeping the community safe, especially our young ones, for those short sections of where there are schools and children moving is of paramount importance.”

Since 2019, the Tasmanian Government’s Love 40 campaign has marked the start of the school year, when 85,000 school students are on the move but too many have failed to heed the message.

“Between 2020 and 2024, 13 pedestrians and cyclists aged 17 and under were involved in crashes in school zones, including one fatality,” Mr Abetz said.

“These are wholly avoidable and a complete tragedy.

“This year the campaign will focus on the common excuses people use after breaking road rules in a move set to dispel the common mindset of ‘it won’t happen to me’.”

The new campaign ‘Grow Up, there’s No Excuse in a School Zone’ features children dressed and acting like adults, delivering familiar excuses that drivers often give for not following the rules in the school zone.

Some of these excuses include: “I was only a bit over and had a Pilates class to get to”; “Ah, c’mon, it was 9.29am, there were no kids around”; “I need to get on site, got a big job on” and “Oops, I wasn’t concentrating”

“As we start another school year, it’s imperative for all drivers to remember that road safety doesn’t just apply during the first week of school, it’s an ongoing, year-round commitment,” Mr Tilyard said.

“We often receive reports from our School Crossing Patrol Officers about incidents where

drivers are either speeding or not paying attention in school zones.

“As well as slowing to 40 kilometres an hour in school zones at certain times of the day, motorists must also remember to slow to 40 kilometres an hour near school buses when their lights are flashing – it’s the law.”