From 1 July 2025 both light and heavy vehicles will receive penalties for speeding at two trial sites in regional NSW, as part of a trial that extends the use of average speed cameras to light vehicles for the first time.
Data from the trial, part of the Minns Labor Government's efforts to improve road safety, shows that speeding at the trial locations decreased significantly during the two-month warning period.
Average speed cameras have been in place and enforcing average speed offences for heavy vehicles since 2011. Now they are also measuring average speeds of light vehicles on a 15km stretch of the Pacific Highway between Kew and Lake Innes (Port Macquarie) and on a 16km stretch of the Hume Highway between Coolac and Gundagai.
In the first week of the two-month warning period, one in every 122 drivers of light vehicles was caught speeding on the Pacific Highway cameras and issued with warning letters. One in every 122 drivers of light vehicles was also detected speeding at the Hume Highway location.
At the end of the seventh week, there was a 48 per cent improvement in behaviour on the Pacific Highway with the number of light vehicle drivers detected speeding dropping to one in every 235. An improvement of 37 per cent was seen on the Hume Highway, where the figure dropped to one in every 194.
During the warning period, light vehicle drivers were only fined if caught exceeding the speed limit by more than 30 km/h. There have been nine fines issued at the Pacific Highway location and three fines issued at the Hume Highway location during the warning period.
All fine revenue from camera-detected speeding, red-light, mobile phone use and seatbelt offences goes into the Community Road Safety Fund, which is used to fund priority road safety programs and initiatives.
The switch from warning letters to enforcement mode at the two locations is the next step in the trial which was committed to following last year's Road Safety Forum. All other average speed cameras around the state continue to only enforce heavy vehicle speeding.
To learn more about the trial, including results, visit: https://www.transport.nsw.gov.au/roadsafety/topics-tips/speeding/enforcement-cameras/average-speed-cameras.
Minister for Roads and Minister for Regional Transport Jenny Aitchison said:
"Speeding contributes to around 42 per cent of road fatalities every year and so far this year, speeding has contributed to 33 per cent of all road fatalities. That's 59 lives lost due to dangerous driving behaviour, just this year.
"Last year we committed to investigate ways to lower road trauma at our Road Safety Forum including trialling the use of average speed cameras for light vehicles.
"While average speed cameras are currently used for heavy vehicle enforcement in NSW, this trial is about investigating whether this technology can help reduce speeding by light vehicle drivers.
"NSW is the only jurisdiction that has limited the use of average speed cameras to heavy vehicles, creating confusion across border communities and establishing a different standard for drivers.
"The initial indicators from the warning period are promising, with a significant reduction in speeding at both trial locations.
"Overall, we've seen a 45 per cent decrease in light vehicles speeding over the first seven weeks of the trial. It's good to see driver behaviour improving before we switch to enforcement mode.
"All drivers caught speeding at the two locations will now receive penalties for the next 12 months while we continue to monitor the effectiveness of the trial.
"Speed limits are set to ensure motorists travel at a safe and appropriate speed for the surrounding road environment. When the unexpected happens on the road, the speed that you're travelling at matters. 'Just a bit over' the speed limit can be the difference between being able to stop in time or not at all."
