Media response - speed limit reductions

Published on 26 February 2025

Response to The Advertiser.

• I'm writing a story on the trend of SA councils reducing speed limits. It will survey all the metro councils on this issue. I understand the speed limits on several roads in the Onkaparinga Council area were reduced after the council asked DIT [the Department for Infrastructure and Transport] to review the speed on these roads. I see community consultation happened on those roads from Oct to Nov 2023. Could you let me know the date the speed limits changed. Can you confirm if the council requested DIT lower the limit on these roads. Any other speed limit changes your council has enacted or requested since 2019. Is your council considering any more speed limit cuts? If so, can you please provide details.

We know speed is the single greatest influence on the forces experienced by the human body in a crash, and therefore speed management is a key factor in a safe road network. Research shows even small decreases in travel speeds lead to significant reductions in crashes and trauma.

Speed limit changes came into effect on a number of roads around Onkaparinga Hills in late 2023 following community engagement and once new speed limit signs had been installed.

The speed limit changes were prompted by discussions with residents who were concerned about road safety in the area. We subsequently undertook a speed review of eight roads in the Onkaparinga Hills, which found that on many of these roads the average speed of vehicles was lower, sometimes substantially lower, than the existing speed limit.

On this basis, and amid a devastating year on SA’s roads (including fatal crashes in Onkaparinga), the council wrote to DIT – which is responsible for setting SA’s speed limits – requesting they conduct their own speed limit assessment. DIT then approved speed limit reductions on the eight roads.

You can see list of recent list of speed limit changes on Onkaparinga’s roads (including the above), following council requests for DIT to review, below.

We’ve begun an internal assessment of speed limits for roads in the broader McLaren Vale network after a petition was presented to Council last year about road safety concerns along Chalk Hill Road. We’ll continue liaising with DIT as this assessment progresses.

ENDS