New 40km/h zone possible for busy retail strip

New 40km/h zone possible for busy North Adelaide strip In short: Adelaide City Council will consider a proposal to cut the speed limit along O'Connell Street from 50km/h to 40km/h after locals raised safety concerns. A councillor says slower speeds means safer roads and quieter traffic. What's next? The motion is expected to go before the council tomorrow to be voted. Commuters passing through North Adelaide could be slowing down through one of its main thoroughfares,if the Adelaide City Council supports a motion to drop the speed limit to 40 kilometres per hour. North Ward councillor Phillip Martin is behind the motion, which he said stems from a petition calling for the speed limit reduction to improve safety along the strip, where the current speed limit is 50km/h. "I'm responding to pressure from residents in North Adelaide who are concerned for their safety," he said. "People who've moved to this area want to see slower speeds and better outcomes for the neighbourhood. "That means less risk of death through collision with vehicles. It also means lower noise levels. "Reduced speeds mean quieter traffic but they also want to make sure that they're safe and that the area is liveable." Cr Martin is expected to put forward the motion at tomorrow's council meeting, and if supported, the council will consult the transport department, who is responsible for approving speed limit changes. The speed limit reduction would form part of the $25 million O'Connell Street Revitalisation Project which is currently underway. It is one of five main streets the council has earmarked for public safety and accessibility improvements. The council says about 34,000 vehicles travel along O'Connell Street each day, which is lined with more than 200 retail stores. According to the National Road Safety Strategy, pedestrians have an estimated 10 per cent chance of being killed if struck at 30km/h, but that increases to 90 per cent if a vehicle is travelling at 50km/h. "There is no question that reducing speeds from 50 to 40 kilometres will reduce the number of serious injuries and fatalities," Cr Martin said. The council has announced it will reduce the speed limit along the full length of Melbourne Street, also in North Adelaide, to 40 km/h in the coming weeks. Traffic volume is an additional sticking point St Georges Bakehouse manager Michael Elmerhev said his customers complained daily. "Doing 40 kilometres was much better than 50," he said. "Lots of people are complaining about it, especially the old people. People speeding past, loud cars. It's kind of dangerous." Local resident Kelley Durham said she was always careful when crossing the road. "I've actually had a near miss here," Ms Durham said. "Someone going through a red light … just concentration, so I think reducing the speed would definitely help. "A lot of kids walk through here after school, [it] definitely would make it safer." But, another local resident, Simon Heuzenroeder, said authorities were sometimes too quick to reduce the speed limit. "People need to get into the city, go to work and I'd just be worried that there'd be backup traffic, people taking alternative routes, which should slow everything else down," he said. Main street speed limit consistent interstate RAA safety and infrastructure senior manager Charles Mountain said the speed limit reduction should be considered, as nature of O'Connell Street has changed in the past year. Those changes include the completion of the $300 million Eighty-Eight O'Connell mixed-use precinct. He said that many main streets in highly populated areas had 40km/h speed limits. "This is particularly important in areas like O'Connell Street and the busier parts of the city where you see a high percentage of pedestrians and cyclists as well," he said. "But also, unfortunately, where we've seen a large number of crashes occurring between cyclists, pedestrians and motorists." Seventeen pedestrians died in 2025, which is 41 per cent increase compared to the previous five-year average, according to Think Road Safety SA. Cr Martin said 85 per cent of cars travelled at about 37km/h during peak hour traffic. "But what the lowered speed limit does is it manages driver expectations as well," he said. The councillor also told 891 ABC Adelaide he wanted to introduce noise cameras to city and North Adelaide streets, which were being trialled elsewhere in Australia as "a way to reduce hoon driving". "Noise cameras … have sound recording devices, microphones that are multi-directional and with an AI algorithm which detects noise which is above the accepted noise limit that is set by EPAs in all states including in South Australia," he said. "The recording of the noise would trigger the camera to snap the number plate." A spokesperson for the Department of Infrastructure and Transport said it has yet to receive "a formal request from Adelaide City Council for a speed review of O'Connell Street". "We will work with them should they seek a formal review in future," they said.