Bills

Road Traffic (Work Area Speed Limit Signs) Amendment Bill

Introduction and First Reading

Mr PISONI (Unley) (10:32): Obtained leave and introduced a bill for an act to amend the Road Traffic Act 1961. Read a first time.

Mr BELL: Deputy Speaker, I draw your attention to the state of the house.

A quorum having been formed:

Second Reading

Mr PISONI (Unley) (10:34): I move:

That this bill be now read a second time.

What I have are some amendments to the Road Traffic Act. Currently, under the Road Traffic Act, there is no compulsion to remove 25 km/h signs when workmen have left the roadwork site, for example, and I am sure that many people in this chamber and I know that many people have contacted my office, people I have spoken to, and people who have contacted me since this was raised in the media on Monday, have also experienced frustration.

As we speak, Frome Street on the weekend had 25 km/h zones at both ends with no activity. On Hawker Street on the weekend, pavers were being laid during the week, but the 25 km/h signs were there on Sunday with no workmen there. Exeter Street, Devon Park at 5 o'clock last night was the same situation: all the work had stopped and 25 km/h signs were left up all night.

I should say at the outset, we all appreciate the importance of restricting speed when roadworkers are present at roadworks and the importance of drivers slowing and obeying signage when work is in process. The point is that the confusion often caused by the fact that these signs are left up when there are no workers in sight can, of course, lead to a devaluing of their importance. People do not tend to obey the signs. I know many times I drive through a 25 km/h road sign when there are no workers there and people overtake me, and I know full well that they are exceeding the 25 km zone. They see there are no workers there; they do not believe the signs should be there, so they ignore the sign, and I think this actually devalues those signs.

This bill would enforce the removal of the 25 km/h signs when workmen have left the site and enables fines to be applied if this is not done. The bill only applies to 25 km/h signs and applies to work sites. It will not affect the 25 km/h zones at school zones, for example. They are very specific: you must reduce your speed to 25 km/h if children are present. This will have no effect on those signs at all. Nor will it have an effect on emergency workers.

If signs are not removed, the responsible officer of the public authority is guilty of an offence. This is aimed at a senior level of authority rather than workers at the site, as with varying layers of supervisors often in place on work sites, it may be difficult to attribute responsibility to one person. The objective is that, if the fines are aimed at a higher level of responsibility, those at that level will be more active in ensuring that the signage is removed. Where a non-government contractor carries out the work, the contractor commits the offence instead.

The bill would allow 25 km/h signs to be left in place only if workers are on site, if workers will be off the site for up to five hours or less, or if there is an unusually high level of hazard for the road. In this case, the minister can then sign off (or obviously the minister's representative as is the standard practice) on the reasons given for the signs to stay up. Remember, there are other signs that road workers can move to. They can move to 40 km/h, 50 km/h or 60 km/h speed signs; there are all sorts of options for them. The 25 km/h signs specifically were designed to protect workers.

There would not be many road users who have not been confronted with the frustration and confusion of the inappropriate use of 25 km/h signs, with some drivers obeying the signage and then others disobeying the signage. From this point of view, it is also a basic road safety problem. I have a personal concern that the lack of enforcement, as it currently stands, of the signs being brought down when there are no workers on site is devaluing the importance of slowing when the road workers are present, which is the very last thing we want to see. After the media coverage of this issue on Monday, I was contacted by a CFS volunteer who sent me this email:

25 km/h restrictions. I sympathise with the frustrations (that I've often shared) regarding 25 km/h limits on roadworks where nothing seems to be happening. I am especially frustrated because, as a CFS volunteer, the public's frustration boils over and impacts on us when we're trying to do our duty without getting bowled over by people who disregard the 25k signs. Please differentiate between poorly-maintained roadworks signage and emergency services activities.

The intention of this bill is exactly that: to emphasise to people that, when these signs are in place, they are in place for a reason; they are there to protect workers, so you must obey them. If people are not frustrated by the fact that these signs are up and there is no work being conducted, it will have the effect of people taking the signs more seriously and obeying them when they see them.

I want to quote from the Safe Roadworks newsletter of August 2013. This is a problem that has been around for a very long time, the department has been aware of it for a long time and the government has been aware of it for a long time. This is a notice to its regular mailing list, and it states:

Please be reminded the 25 km/h speed limit is only to be used where there is a high level of hazard for workers or persons using the road.

Unnecessary use of 25 km/h signing leads to its inefficacy. Please consider the safety of all roadworkers and road users and only use 25 km/h where required.

That memo went out 2½ years ago and we see that that problem still exists. What I am hoping to achieve with this bill, of course, is that it holds people responsible for actually taking action to make sure that traffic keeps flowing after work has stopped and that these signs are treated with the respect they deserve. It is obvious that the minister's department is aware and appreciates the problems associated with not using the signage properly. They are putting memos out to those who conduct this work, and this bill will put some spine into the act for them so it can actually be enforced and the problem dealt with at a management level.

On this occasion, as with so many pieces of legislation proposed by the Liberal Party, the minister has trotted out a now-tired chorus line of, 'Yes, we are going to do that. Yes, we are drafting legislation. I hope the opposition will support us.' Not only are we supporting you, we are actually making it happen, giving you the opportunity to support this bill in the parliament so this can be law. Not only will there be an increased focus on the safety of workers on roadsides but there will also be less frustration with drivers using our roads who feel that they are being taken as mugs occasionally when they are forced to slow down to 25 km/h simply because there is a sign and no other reason. I urge members to support the bill.

Debate adjourned on motion of Mr Bell.