The New South Wales Government has introduced legislation to remove temporary speed limits in road work zones when outside of construction times.
Rather than forcing drivers to always slow down through road works – regardless of whether workers are on site or not – the new proposal will allow speeds to be raised when construction isn’t taking place.
However, in some cases, reduced speed limits will remain to ensure driver safety.
The NSW Government says it expects the change to be implemented next year following consultation with stakeholders this year.
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In late 2018, the Victorian Government announced it would push forward with similar legislation, designed to restore speed limits through “empty” road works zones.
While the Victorian proposal was never put forward as legislation, under 2010 laws, crews are required to restore speed limits to be “no more than 20km/h below the permanent speed limit, unless the hazard assessment of the worksite indicates otherwise”.
But despite the rule, road work zones in Victoria typically remain at a significantly reduced speed at all hours – and sometimes for months at a time.
Under the latest move, the NSW Government has plans to introduce standards for contractors to abide by, which are designed to ensure speed limits in construction zones are restored when workers are absent.
“Protecting workers and road users around worksites is critical and we will never weaken rules around safety,” NSW Minister for Roads, Jenny Aitchison, said in a written statement.
“However, leaving speed restrictions in place outside construction hours often needlessly slows down traffic movement.”