New 40km/h speed limits in North Melbourne under final review

The Department of Transport (DoT) is in the final stages of reviewing new 40km/h speed limits for roads in North Melbourne after a request from the City of Melbourne (CoM), but signs have been covered up for around a year according to locals.

Last year, the council made a request to the DoT to reduce speed limits to 40km/hr on Arden, Abbotsford and Victoria streets as part of a push to provide safer roads in North and West Melbourne.

New speed limit signs were erected and new bike lanes were painted on local streets around 12 months ago, according to one local.

“All that needs to be done is to remove the covers on the new speed limit signs,” they said.

 “I estimate 12 months have gone by, but nothing has been announced or done yet.” 

 “Who is responsible for the delay, council officers or contractors? Either the reduction in speed limits is needed or money has been wasted.”

Asked when the new speed limits would come into effect, a CoM spokesperson said it was working closely with the DoT but did not provide a date.

“The City of Melbourne has been working closely with the Department of Transport to provide a safer road environment for pedestrians, cyclists and drivers in West and North Melbourne, including a reduction in speed limits in some areas,” the spokesperson said.

North West City News understands the DoT is ultimately responsible for introducing the new speed restrictions, with design and infrastructure changes to additional traffic signals needed before this can take place.

A DoT spokesperson confirmed that it was in the “final stages” of reviewing the CoM’s request and would continue to work closely with the council to ensure the speed limits were suitable for the area.

“We know speed limits need to be suitable for the specific road environment – that’s why we assess them on a case-by-case basis,” the spokesperson said.

It remains unclear how long the review process will take.

In February last year, the council announced new Abbotsford St bike lanes via its Twitter page.

Online users welcomed the new lanes and offered suggestions including that they needed to be repainted and that similar improvements were needed at the last section at Flemington Rd northbound.

But one user said he was “not feeling it”.

“Not feeling it CoM! The whole road needs to be redesigned or at least drop the speed limit down. Cars are parking on the line, bins are left in the bike lanes and keep clear signs keep getting hit. Car parks are too close to tram stops, maybe ditch a couple of parks.” •