Reforms, welcomed by Noosa MP Sandy Bolton were introduced into Queensland Parliament last month in the form of the Transport and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2023 intended to improve the safety of riders, drivers and pedestrians alike, including harsher penalties and new offences for riders who ride without due care and attention.
This was following the Independent Member for Noosa’s advocacy for safety improvements and better enforcement in shared spaces such as pathways, and also for better compliance monitoring of regulations by users of electric bikes and scooters.
“The devil is always in the detail and we look forward to researching this as we do with every Bill that comes before Parliament to ensure it covers the concerns raised by our community,” she said.
“We have also requested clarification if these efforts include increased enforcement to ensure electric bike and scooters on Queensland roads and footpaths meet Australian Design Rules which sets out that electric bike motors have to cut out at 25km/hour. In addition, that accompanying speed limitations will be utilised and enforced on shared pathways for greater safety.“
Transport and Main Roads Minister’s response to Ms Bolton acknowledged the community’s concerns with the current legislation framework for riders and other path users.
In particular, important road safety offences contained within primary legislation that either do not apply to riders or apply inconsistently to riders and other path users.
To address these inconsistencies, the proposed Bill introduces road safety amendments that will make it an offence for the rider of a scooter or bicycle to ride without due care and attention on a road-related area, such as a footpath or shared path. The new laws will also align post-crash obligations for all drivers and riders and will ensure that everyone involved in a crash has the same rights and responsibilities regardless of where the crash occurs.
The Department of Transport and Main Roads (TMR) also advised they were aware that some devices available for purchase in Australia or online can be easily modified to remove speed limiting software that ensures they are compliant with the current 25 km/h maximum speed limit.
TMR has taken steps to ensure that police have appropriate tools available to them to detect and take enforcement action against riders exceeding speed limits.
For further information and updates on this including current speed limits, head to Noosa 360 at sandybolton.com/noosa360. For those who missed the Parliamentary Committee consultation on this bill, contact Sandy’s office on 5319 3100 or via noosa@parliament.qld.gov.au with any feedback, which form part of her debate speech in Parliament.
