IMPACTS OF LOWER SPEED LIMITS IN SOUTH AUSTRALIA

An evaluation of laws lowering speed limits in parts of Australia extends beyond the traditional measures of speeding violations and the seriousness of crashes. Individual states and territories are free to set their own speed limits, but they were uniform at 60 km/hr until 1997. Public pressure for safer streets led to reductions to 50 km/hr as a general compromise between safety and maintaining efficient flow of traffic, with some roads dropping down to 40 km/hr. This research examines the effects of these speed reductions by viewing the call for lower speeds as a proxy for an overall desire for more amenities in the general environment. Elements examined in this report include traffic volume displacement, the physical characteristics of the road network, community ownership and acceptance, enforcement effectiveness and effect on travel times. Computer modeling, probe vehicles, traffic data analysis and community surveys were part of the techniques to gather data. They focus on a 10-year period during which speed limits were limited to 40 km/hr in the Unley scheme in Adelaide. It was not possible to document significant reduction in crashes because so few typically occur in residential areas that there is not a large enough sample; that should be resolved as the policy extends over a longer period of time. Travel times are not significantly degraded; the Unley experience showed a widespread reduction in speeds and high degree of public acceptance. The new speed limits' effects on emissions and fuel consumption are hard to measure and require more study, but they seem to be affected by the length of the road segments.

• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/issn/03861112
• Corporate Authors:

  International Association of Traffic and Safety Sciences

  6-20, Yaesu 2-chome, Chuo-ku
  Tokyo 104-0028,   Japan 
• Authors:
  • Woolley, J
  • Dyson, C B
  • TAYLOR, MAP
  • Zito, R
  • Stazic, B
• Publication Date: 2002

Language

• English

Media Info

• Features: Figures; References; Tables;
• Pagination: p. 6-17
• Serial:
  • IATSS Research
  • Volume: 26
  • Issue Number: 2
  • Publisher: International Association of Traffic and Safety Sciences
  • ISSN: 0386-1112

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Air pollution; Speed limits; Traffic models; Traffic simulation; Urban areas
• Geographic Terms: Australia
• Subject Areas: Highways; Operations and Traffic Management; Safety and Human Factors;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00935241
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: UC Berkeley Transportation Library
• Files: BTRIS, TRIS, ATRI
• Created Date: Dec 31 2003 12:00AM