Page 3493 - Week 12 - Tuesday, 23 November 2021
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road toll come down for motorists over time because of the range of things that we have undertaken as part of our commitment to Vision Zero, which means zero serious injuries and zero deaths on our roads.
That is what our government has committed to do. That is why, under the road safety action plan, we committed to undertake changes to introduce 40-kilometre speed zones in the city and town centre and group centres around Canberra. We were very clear about that. We consulted on the strategy and then we implemented the actions that came out of that strategy. It was also a key part of the city and urban gateway design framework to have places, particularly in our city centre and also in Braddon, that are people-focused—that actually put people first, not cars, and that is what we have implemented, particularly on Northbourne Avenue, and in the design guide that was provided for Northbourne Avenue. We have reduced the speeds in those areas and in other town centres around Canberra. The changes were announced in March 2021. There was a grace period which we used to educate the community about these changes. There was very clear signage put up—variable message signs, changes to the speed signs—in accordance with Australian standards. There was a significant social media campaign, with 170,000 impressions for that campaign. Significant changes have been made— (Time expired.)
MADAM SPEAKER: Mr Milligan, your supplementary.
MR MILLIGAN: Minister, do you care more about road safety or filling Treasury’s coffers with millions of dollars every year from speeding fines?
MR STEEL: I reject the premise of the question. We are committed to Vision Zero. It appears that the opposition would be the only government in the country, if they ever came into power, that would not.
MADAM SPEAKER: A supplementary, Mr Parton.
MR PARTON: Minister, has there been any discussion at any level of government about just how much extra revenue you could get from Canberrans if you reduced the speed limit in that zone down to 30 kilometres an hour, or even 20?
MR STEEL: I thank the member for his question. He is quite right to point out that many jurisdictions around the world have actually reduced their speed limits to 30k an hour in urban areas. We have a consistent speed limit of 40k an hour. We have made sure that we apply that to areas where there is high pedestrian activity, particularly in areas like Northbourne Avenue, where we have people crossing the street to get to the Alinga Street station. We are seeing people cross from the western side to the eastern side of the city across Northbourne Avenue. We are seeing people cross from the ANU to the inner north in Turner. This is an area of high pedestrian activity and it is appropriate that we have lower speeds in place to protect pedestrians and encourage the vibrant city that we want to build, a place where we have outdoor dining where people feel like they can go and frequent businesses—
Mr Parton: A point of order—
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