NSW will trial average speed cameras to assess the road safety benefits of expanding their use from heavy vehicles to all vehicles.
All other mainland Australian states and the ACT already use average speed cameras for light vehicles as part of their speed enforcement programs.
The NSW Government will now explore their merits in protecting lives and addressing speeding as part of a multi-pronged approach to tackling the rising road toll which today stands at 227 - two more than at the same date in 2023.
Speeding is the biggest killer on NSW roads, contributing to 41 per cent of all fatalities over the past decade.
That is 136 families and friend networks every year whose lives are never the same again after losing someone in a road crash where speeding was a contributing factor.
Regional NSW is home to a third of the population but is where two-thirds of all road deaths happen.
Two trials will be conducted on limited stretches of highway in regional NSW to assess whether these measures reduce speeding at these locations, improving safety and preventing injuries and fatalities. The trial areas are:
- Pacific Highway between Kew and Lake Innes (Port Macquarie) - 15kms between cameras
- Hume Highway between Coolac and Gundagai - 16kms between cameras
These two stretches have been chosen based on a number of factors, including known crash history. There were a combined total of six fatalities and 33 serious injuries between 2018 and 2022 at these locations.
Road safety experts called for the use of average speed cameras at the NSW Road Safety Forum held earlier this year and the Government undertook to investigate their use.
Trials are proposed to begin with a 60-day period in which speeding drivers will receive a warning letter rather than a fine before normal enforcement, including fines and demerit points, begin.
Legislation is needed to facilitate a trial phase, or any future decision to use them permanently.
The NRMA will be part of the assessment process to ensure drivers have a voice in the review of the trial led by Transport for NSW and other road safety experts.
A comprehensive communications campaign will be implemented to inform motorists about the trial.
Road signs will alert all drivers that their speed is being monitored by average speed cameras on the trial stretches, giving them the opportunity to adjust their speed as needed.
The average speed camera trial will build on other road safety initiatives introduced by the Minns Labor Government, including:
- Seatbelt enforcement by the existing mobile phone camera detection network
- Removing a loophole to force all motorists driving on a foreign licence to convert to a NSW licence within six months
- The demerit return trial that rewarded more than 1.2 million drivers for maintaining a demerit-offence-free driving record during the initial 12-month period up to 16 January 2024
- Doubling roadside enforcement sites used for mobile speed cameras, with the addition of 2,700 new locations where a camera can be deployed. Enforcement hours will remain the same
- Hosting the state's first Road Safety Forum of international and local experts
- Signed National Road Safety Data Agreement with the Commonwealth
Minister for Roads John Graham said:
"NSW is the only jurisdiction in the world to use average speed cameras but restrict their use to heavy vehicles only.
"In the context of a rising road toll, now is the time to trial these cameras for light vehicles and understand if we can keep more people safe on the road more of the time.
"All other mainland Australian states and countries like the UK, Norway, Italy and the Netherlands have found average speed cameras to be effective and we aim to be as rigorous as possible to be sure they will also reduce road trauma in NSW.
"Before any trial begins, the NSW Government will conduct a comprehensive awareness campaign to inform the public about average speed cameras and a 60-day warning letter period will give motorists time to adjust to their use in these limited locations.
Minister for Regional Transport and Roads Jenny Aitchison said:
"The trial of the average speed cameras for light vehicles is about encouraging all drivers - regardless of the size of their vehicle - to rethink their attitudes to speeding on our roads and change their behaviour.
"In 2023, speeding contributed to 44 per cent of road deaths in NSW, three-quarters of which were in regional NSW. What's more upsetting is that this behaviour is within drivers' control.
"Our goal is to assess how effective the cameras can be in changing speeding habits and potential trauma benefits.
"Road safety is a shared responsibility - let's all help each other get to our destinations safely."
Safer Roads and Highways (SARAH), President, Peter Frazer said:
"These cameras promote safer driving habits by encouraging drivers and riders to stick to the speed limit. This not only lowers their risk of being involved in a serious crash, but also protects the lives and wellbeing of everyone on the road.
"At SARAH we have been lobbying for the introduction of Point to Point (average speed camera) systems to apply to all vehicles in NSW for more than a decade. We therefore congratulate the NSW Government on announcing this life-saving trial."
