Road Transport

In Oz Car is King
Road transport is a very important part of Australian life. In fact, the influence of motoring is disproportionately large compared to other modes of transport such as rail, ship, and air. This is because of the low density of Australia which makes public transportation systems infeasible and encourages people to buy cars for each member of the household. Hence, road transport by car is part and parcel of life for many Australians. Along with the United States, Australia is the most car dependent society in the world, and the per capita consumption of fuel reflects this.

As the governments at various levels in Oz encourage more house building this leads to greater urban sprawl and transport needs increase.  Thus,  dependence on the car due to the lack of other decent alternatives means the use of fuels only adds to greenhouse gases.

Overseas visitors to Oz who intend to drive there should be conversant with the rules and regulations. Thankfully road rules in each of the states and territories tend to be fairly consistent. The Australian Automobile Association is a helpful organization which provides advice on road transport issues such as buying a car, current petrol prices, and road safety ratings.

Take driving and using a mobile phone, for example. Australia has laws against using a hand held mobile phone and driving. The penalty increased in 2010 for illegally using a mobile phone in Tasmania from $110 to $300. This is in addition to the increase in the demerit point penalty, from 2 to 3 points, that came into effect in November 2009.

Remember too that if you a visitor to Australia that driving is on the left hand side of the road, something you might not be used to. Extra care should be taken, especially when leaving a petrol station when it can be easy to exit on to the ‘wrong side’ of the road.

Another statistic that reflects the state of road transport is the fact that the average Australian travels for well over 12,000 kms per year – a number that is higher than any other country except for the US and Canada. Road transport in Australia takes place via different types of roads that reflect the government bodies that are responsible for their development – namely federal, state, and local. This has important implications for transport logistics which are forced to conduct their business mostly by road instead of the perhaps more economical rail system.

Road based vehicles in Australia are subject to many tests and requirements to adhere to safety standards and thus Australia has a fairly high degree of road safety – a very important consideration for road transport planning.