July 1, P-Day

1 Jul, 2007 18 Comments

P-platers state wide in NSW (editors note: QLD drivers are also affected by a new set of laws previously discussed here) will now have to abide by new laws which came into effect as of today. These new laws have been highly debated due to their illogical and strict nature.

1. Licence suspension for any speeding offence for P1 drivers and provisional riders.

There are no longer second chances for P1 (Red) license holders. For their first year of driving, any speeding offense will hold a 4 demerit point penalty and result in the suspension of their driver’s license for a minimum of 3 months. Many say this is a harsh but fair rule, however many P-platers already think they are invincible and this law may create a ‘nothing to lose’ mentality among young driver’s.

2. A ban on all mobile phone use for learner, P1 drivers and provisional riders.

To clarify, this new law prohibits any form of mobile phone use for driver’s, carrying a penalty of 3 points and a fine. Hands-free mobile use does not differ from a conversation with a passenger or singing along with the radio, however for a year, it is understandable to ask of P1 driver’s to pull over to have a conversation.

3. Peer passenger restrictions for P1 drivers.

This is where it begins to become ridiculous, P1 driver’s under the age of 25 may no longer carry more than one passenger under the age of 25 between 11pm and 5am. This completely conflicts with previous campaign’s to arrange for a designated driver or car pool. The only outcome of the enforcement of this law will be more P-plater’s on the road between these most vulnerable hours. Worse still, if caught breaking this new law, the driver will not only be fined but the excess occupants will be required to get out where ever they may happen to be - remember these are people deemed incapable of being a passenger in a vehicle, and now they are expected to find their own way home between the early hours of the morning. Hopefully police will have the common sense not to enforce this law where it would otherwise prove dangerous for the excess occupants.

4. Changes to the display of L and P plates on vehicles.

This is where I get frustrated. P-plate driver’s are now required to display their plates on the outside of the vehicle next to the number plate. What many people don’t understand is how difficult it is to ensure there is always a plate on display. From my own experience even cable-ties fail to prevent these plates from being stolen, and now with these new laws, it is just more of an incentive for the ex-girlfriend to rip of your plates and cross her fingers. The fact that the enforcement of this law can be effected by a guilty third party automatically denies its application in my opinion. It is just too easy for somebody to walk by and help themselves to a plate leaving you with two demerit points and a fine.

5. Increased licence term and supervised driving hours for learner drivers.

The definition of a band-aid solution. The fact is many parents do not want to go through 120 hours of supervised driving, worse still is that when it comes to road rules most parents are just as clueless as their children. Since an adolescent can acquire their license whilst they are still at school, then they should be taught how to drive through school. It seems like the most logical solution.

On a side-note, maximum speed limits for provisional driver’s should be lifted. Forcing a driver to go 90 in a 100 zone is in no way safe for other driver’s on the road or the driver themselves. It only serves to force cars and trucks to overtake which at those speeds is far more dangerous than allowing the provisional driver to travel the posted speed limit.

George Skentzos

Location: Home / New South Wales, Road Rules, Opinion, Car News / ...

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18 Responses to “July 1, P-Day”

Cory Says:
July 1st, 2007 at 7:43 pm
i agree with that last comment on the maximum speed limits of learners and p-platers, i drive on the highway alot and i am on my red p-plates. i don’t feel safe and have almost been rear ended.
most p-platers are punished because other morons don’t know how to drive safely.
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navin Says:
July 1st, 2007 at 8:43 pm
umm isnt it for QLD not NSW??
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tony Says:
July 1st, 2007 at 8:56 pm
that’s interesting Cory - because from what I see driving every day - isnthat P platers are the fastest drivers on the road who are ALWAYS too close to the driver in front of them!
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George Says:
July 1st, 2007 at 9:13 pm
Navin, it is definitely in NSW, not sure which other states they have also introduced it into. They very well could have implemented it in QLD as well so you wouldn’t be wrong.
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Plutonus Says:
July 1st, 2007 at 9:37 pm
Sure, some P platers are idiots, but so are some full license drivers. You can’t sort everyone into one category of driving style.
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alborz Says:
July 1st, 2007 at 9:43 pm
There are also a set of new laws coming into affect for QLD, you can find them at
http://www.caradvice.com.au/13.....july-2007/
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Damo Says:
July 1st, 2007 at 9:50 pm
I agree with Cory here. But seriously, going form past experience, from when a particular someone was on their L plates with their father in the car on the freeway, he just told them to go with the speed limit, so I think most people would ignore this law regardless. And the father of the person was literally one of the best drivers I know. Probably not as good as the ex-rally driver from Sweden but good enough.
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Plutonus Says:
July 1st, 2007 at 10:41 pm
I wish I could ignore this law, but speeding is not worth 3 months with no license.
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Mitchell Oke Says:
July 2nd, 2007 at 9:10 am
Excellent article!! This is exactly how I feel about this situation. I am a red P plater and I have the window P plates (the water-adhesive ones) clearly visible both front and back and a Bluetooth carkit installed for safe driving, and now they are telling me these can’t be used? It is absurd and will do nothing to fix the problem with the few P platers that cause problems.

Making us put the P plate on the outside of the car is silly. With the crap plastic ones the RTA supply all you can do is stuff them under a number plate which is far less visible than the one in the back window of my car. Yesterday I used the ones I have in my mums car for the occasions that I drive it (the magnetic ones), and on the on-ramp to the M4 the front one flew off. They don’t lend themselves well to some bonnet shapes. I stuck my window sticker P plate back on and have only the back magnetic one on atm. BUT, I need to take that off every time I get out of the car, because it will get stolen so fast.

Come to think of it, I forgot to take it off last night when I got home. It’s probably gone already…
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DeathByPizza Says:
July 2nd, 2007 at 9:12 am
Living on the side of a Major Highway in Victoria the 90K maximum for P-plate drivers has to be the most moronic of the restrictions.
A driver travelling that slowly only manages to:

A) Cause traffic congestion as people (sometimes dangerously) merge into a single lane to bypass them;
B) Attract tail-gating as people get frustrated.

If anything this is likely to cause nervous P-plate drivers to take their eyes off the road and spend more time watching their rear view mirror (and speedo) while a truck is sitting up their ares.
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Jeff Says:
July 2nd, 2007 at 1:40 pm
Mitchell Oke tyre one of these http://autoonecai.cart.net.au/details/171951.html

I used them when i was on my P’s and never had a problem with them flying off. How are is it to take 10sec to check the plates are on the car ???
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CJ Says:
July 2nd, 2007 at 1:46 pm
start rant

I have to say that it looks like NSW has lost the plot! Here are a few reasons why:

1) Forcing vulnerable young teenagers out of a vehicle in the middle of the morning is the most moronic idea you could think of. Do the NSW police call the parents of the people they intend on removing from the car and then wait with them until the parents pick them up? Remember these words and check your purse string Mr Premier, “DUTY OF CARE”.

2) Maximum speed limits; this is simply not going to work UNLESS you educate all drivers about this rule. There is going to be a number of issues whereby a P plater has their ass ridden by some complete DH of a driver that doesn’t understand that new rules.

3)Ban on mobile phone use; Okay this really does bemuse me, explain to me why I can use the indicator, increase the volume of my radio, turn on the A/C adjust where the air is coming from, open my sunroof, scratch my ass, BUT I cannot have a conversation on the phone. I agree that sending an sms is very distracting but having a conversation is very much normal.

So to sum it up here is my warning to all P platers.

1) If you have a family emergency between 11pm - 5am call a taxi, or make sure you have a tandem bike with a milk crate on the front handle bars. That will get 3 of you around

2) If you’re on a road that has a speed limit of 100 and you have to drive 90 get 5 or so single mattresses and strap them to the rear of your bumper, just to absorb the truck kissing your rear end.

3) If you get in a car DON’T under any circumstances touch anything but the steering wheel, the handbrake and the gear stick, because the government of NSW does not believe for a minute that you have enough brain power to do more than one thing at a time.

end rant!
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Jeff Says:
July 2nd, 2007 at 1:53 pm
Hey CJ

If you had that P plate displayed properly then the truck would know you could only drive 90 and leave you alone.
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CJ Says:
July 2nd, 2007 at 5:06 pm
Hey Jeff,

You completely missed the point, unless you educate all drivers then you will still have cars and trucks tailing your rear end.
If you think that just because your displaying P plates (in the most visible spot of course) that a car or truck that wants to get passed you on a single lane road or is in a hurry is not going to ride your tail end your dreaming! Seriously! Regardless of whether you are on P plates or not, if you on certain roads and not driving the limit people will sit up your ass. I challange you to try it a number of times and let us all know what the result is.
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Jay Shankar Says:
August 5th, 2007 at 10:13 pm
I was stopped for a RBT and then pulled over as my back P plate wasnt there anymore while the front was clearly visible. While i am running late for work they copper strings me for 25 minutes laughing, then going forward and backwards then staring at my car as it is a red sports car then comming back to give me a fine of 179 dollars. Now i believe that is crazy i had always had my stick on plates in the front and back of my car but because of these stupid rules i have had my P plates stolen 5 times now. When explaining to the policeman this he said it is my responsibility and for my safety and for everyone elses safetly. I drive 680 kms a week to and from work including delivering pizzas and notice that the menaces on the roads are the full licenced drivers who get annoyed when they see P plate drivers. I believe that these laws need to be fixed as without it P platers will and should rise up to the beurocrats and screw em over.
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cozza Says:
December 8th, 2007 at 2:22 pm
i am wondering if there isa power restriction to qld p-platers? if there is what is it. i am really woried about this because ive been given a car from a family member who has done a few mods to it but not too many.
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luko Says:
December 23rd, 2007 at 11:42 am
hey everyone,

i live in QLD brisbane and yesterday passed the test and got my licence. The amount of rules you must follow are hard to stick to but i agree they are for the best. The main thing that worries me is the fact that many “experienced” drivers obtained there licence a long time ago before the testing got so strict. On the way home i was watching all the cars outside my window and just about every driver was doing something wrong, whether it be speeding or some other illegal thing. Yet whenever i looked at the P plate and L plate drivers they were all doing the correct speed. i dunno about u guys but in my opinion if everyone who has an open licence had to resit the licecne test about 98% of them would fail it. many dont know simple things like the fact that when turning left from and intersection using the ” turn anytime with care” section u must be doing a maximum of 20k.

I am moving down to canberra on the 23rd of jan as i am a officer recruit of the Australian Defence Force Academy and am worried about the NSW laws as they seem to be evebn more strict then the QLD ones. Just before i go i must say that if this rule where p plate drivers can only go 90k is true you dont need to be isac newton to see that it is be one of the most stupid rules ever created.

Thanks everyone for putting up with my bitching :P
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jason Says:
January 22nd, 2008 at 4:02 pm
I am from QLD and am a learner. I am allowed to do the speed limit and when the limit drops to 80 on the highway for road works you would not believe the amount of people that try to a$$ end you. But i do agree with the learners and p-platers of NSW that speed limiting is very dangerous. If this can happen to me while it is the speed limit i really feel sorry for you guys who have to do it in a 100 zone. also i must say that i am sick of AH that give it a boot full and fly past you when you are sitting on 101 in a 100 zone just because you have a yellow sign in the back of your car.

to the people who think about doing that to me next time, i have a brake and rear end collisions are your fault.
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