Outback Australia Gets Speed Limits

[hkskyline]

Speed limits introduced on outback Australian highways

SYDNEY, Jan 1, 2007 (AFP) - Motorists in outback Australia will no longer be able to drive as fast as they like after the Northern Territory government Monday introduced speed limits on open highways for the first time.

Under the new laws, drivers must keep within the limit of 130 kilometres (80 miles) an hour on the Stuart, Arnhem, Victoria and Barkly highways.

All other rural roads will have a limit of 110 kilometres unless signposted otherwise.

The Northern Territory, home to one of the country's biggest tourist attractions Uluru, was previously one of the few places in the world where there were no enforced speed limits on some roads.

The terrority has introduced the speed limit in a bid to lower its annual road toll which is three times the national average.

[LtBk]

Its going to be hard to follow those speed limits in middle of nowhere.

[hkskyline]

... and enforcing these speed limits.

[Brendan]

Hahaha, that's funny.

[Reverse thrust]

bah you wont get caught coz you're in the middle of absolute nowhere!

[Captain Chaos]

Ah but you will. I saw cop cars in outback NT, but thankfully not when I was doing 210kmh in a rented Commodore on the way to Kings Canyon. (Didn't keep it up for long - too scary).

Seriously though, it's a good idea. Understandably at such speeds people don't have a hope in hell of walking away from a crash.

Here in WA on trips up North, where you can drive on a dead straight road for over 100kms with no sign of civilisation, I saw two separate incidents of speeders being caught by the cops!

[cartez]

crap! so they hang out in the middle of nowhere aswell

I ws driving to Mildrua and I spotted a cop hiding behind bushes on a relatively remote section of the Calder highway

[FM 2258]

Wow that sucks.

[LtBk]

They are doing this just to collect revenue in shithole towns in middle of nowhere.

[newyorkrunaway1]

^^
just like the speed trap cities in the US

[hkskyline]

I thought the German autobahn was able to show accident rates don't skyrocket if there are no speed limits.

[SM247]

There's a tad of difference between autobahn grade roads and outback highways. :)

[cartez]

although outback highways have practically no traffic

[TheCat]

wow, never knew there are other places outside Germany without speedlimits.
but really, what's there to complain, 130km/h is a great speed limit.
in North America we don't get more than 100km/h in most places (some
US states I believe allow 70 or even 80mph but overall it's rare).

[hkskyline]

The Trans-Canada along the Rockies has sections that are over 100km/h. I remember they were 110km/h.

[Breakwood]

Highways in New Brunswick are 110 km/h.

[ChrisZwolle]

I thought the German autobahn was able to show accident rates don't skyrocket if there are no speed limits.

They are generally not higher than other countries with speed limits.

But the drivers education in Germany learns people to handle high speeds and Germans are used to higher speeds.

And, ofcourse, as mentioned before, there is a hell of a difference between a German Autobahn, and some NT road.

[aussiescraperman]

^^ take that back lol....do not mess with the mighty Stuart Highway!:

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a211/aussiehuskie/stuarthighway1.jpg

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a211/aussiehuskie/stuarthighway2.jpg

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a211/aussiehuskie/stuarthighway3.jpg

but overall, i think the speed limit is a good thing, at least till they have the highways duplicated, if that ever happens.

[invincible]

although outback highways have practically no traffic

But when there is traffic, you get vehicles like this:

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/df/Road_Train_Australia.jpg/900px-Road_Train_Australia.jpg

Wouldn't want to have one of them coming at me in the opposite direction.

[oz.fil]

Speed limits introduced on outback Australian highways

SYDNEY, Jan 1, 2007 (AFP) - Motorists in outback Australia will no longer be able to drive as fast as they like after the Northern Territory government Monday introduced speed limits on open highways for the first time.

Under the new laws, drivers must keep within the limit of 130 kilometres (80 miles) an hour on the Stuart, Arnhem, Victoria and Barkly highways.

All other rural roads will have a limit of 110 kilometres unless signposted otherwise.

The Northern Territory, home to one of the country's biggest tourist attractions Uluru, was previously one of the few places in the world where there were no enforced speed limits on some roads.

The terrority has introduced the speed limit in a bid to lower its annual road toll which is three times the national average.

thats weird... i never hear of accidents in nt on the news

[invincible]

Unless it's a major accident, it probably won't make the news in other states.

[Malt]

Just cover ur number plates, and hit the gas... and make sure u have a better car than the cops

[cartez]

But when there is traffic, you get vehicles like this:

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/df/Road_Train_Australia.jpg/900px-Road_Train_Australia.jpg

Wouldn't want to have one of them coming at me in the opposite direction.

that is fuckn cool!

it has a total of 86 wheels and I'm pretty sure a 36-speed transmission :eek2:

[Falc_hoon]

Just cover ur number plates, and hit the gas... and make sure u have a better car than the cops
the cops can just radio ahead, there's not many side roads

[Jean Luc]

but overall, i think the speed limit is a good thing, at least till they have the highways duplicated, if that ever happens.
Outback highways will never be duplicated. There will never be sufficient traffic to justify the expense, as there will never be populations large enough to generate such traffic volumes. The exceptions are places like Alice Springs and Darwin, which already have dual carriageway sections of the Stuart Highway, so I believe.