Sydney council planning 30km/h city speed limit to discourage driving

The City of Sydney council has put forward plans to reduce parts of the city to 30km/h, according to a draft proposal.

As first reported by The Daily Telegraph newspaper, the document named Access Strategy and Action Plan: Continuing the Vision, seeks to place a maximum speed within Sydney's Central Business District (CBD) of 40km/h, with certain areas of high activity reduced to just 30km/h "or lower".

"The City will continue to work with the NSW Government to implement lower speed limits on roads across the City of Sydney," the draft proposal reads.

"The priority is to have maximum 40km/h limits on all City of Sydney streets as soon as possible. In the city centre and other areas of high people activity, we would seek to reduce vehicle speeds to 30km/h or lower."

While the draft document lists a number of benefits to lowering speed in the state capital – including encouraging walking and cycling – it also says the slower speeds "reduces the attractiveness of driving" in those areas.

Safety was also a factor, with the council seeking to reduce the number and severity of car accidents within the city.

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Three quarters all local and regional streets in the City of Sydney area are already 40km/h speed zones, which it claims resulted in "a clear reduction in crashes in the city centre once the speed limit was reduced".

The council has outlined funding these changes – as well as 15 other initiatives – by increasing the cost of parking in Sydney, while also "reducing the number of exemptions to the levy to make its application fairer".

Public consultation for the proposals was open between 10 July and 7 August 2023, with contributions currently under review by the council.

Let us know what you think about the proposed changes in the comments section below.