Regulatory Impact Analysis – Reducing default speed limits outside of built-up areas

Livestock SA welcomes the goal of improving road safety but raises concerns about the proposal to reduce default speed limits on unsigned rural roads from 100 km/h to 70–80 km/h. While supporting efforts to reduce fatalities, Livestock SA warns that blanket speed reductions could increase freight costs, extend travel times, and compromise animal welfare by prolonging livestock journeys. The RIS lacks location specific crash data, ignores road condition and investment gaps, and fails to consider South Australia’s unique exposure with over 10,000 km of remote roads. Livestock SA advocates for a targeted, evidence-based approach that prioritises infrastructure upgrades alongside safety reforms.

Key Recommendations

• Invest in upgrading and maintaining key freight corridors and regional roads.
• Apply speed reductions only in proven high-risk zones using local crash data.
• Link any speed reforms to funded road improvements (signage, shoulders, sealing).
• Increase regional road maintenance budgets to address the $2 billion backlog.