Australia's fastest roads have hit the brakes.
The newly-elected Northern Territory government has confirmed open speed limits will be taken away from stretches of the Stuart Highway in the coming months, undoing the work of a two-year evidence-based trial brought in by the previous Country Liberal party.
Following a landslide victory to the Labor party at the Territory election at the weekend, a spokesman for chief minister Michael Gunner confirmed the speed-limit about-face to motoring.com.au, citing a pre-election promise.
“The zones that are now open we are now bringing back a 130km/h speed limit,” the spokesman said.
“It’s been Labor policy for four elections. We brought in 130km/h and now we are doing the same again.
Open speed limits were abolished by the former Territory Labor government in 2006 and replaced by a maximum limit of 130km/h. More people died on Territory roads (307) in the six years after than in the six years before the change (292).
The spokesman rejected research which suggested higher speed limits helped to improve road safety by reducing fatigue. He argued that major stakeholders had been calling for speed limits to be re-enforced.
“The police association, police, medical association and the like have all been calling for this,” he said.
“The roads affected will be 130km/h and will still be the fastest in the country -- we’re not planning on going any lower than that.”
The previous government had derestricted nearly 300km worth of Stuart Highway in the Top End, with a view to opening more unlimited-speed stretches following evidence-based trials. It’s understood there were no speed-related fatalities on the road during the time it was derestricted.