Massive road rule change that could cost drivers $1,684 in one state: what you need to know
South Australians will be charged a hefty fine if they fail to slow down while passing a roadside assistance van.
Drivers have been limited to 25 km/h when passing stationary emergency services and school buses, but a new law from the state government has extended the rule.
The law, changed on Monday, now includes breakdown service patrols, tow trucks and other road service vehicles that have stopped with their amber lights flashing.
People ignoring the limit could be fined $202 and two demerit points if going less than 10km/h over the limit.
This jumps up to $1,684 and seven demerit points if they are caught driving more than 30km/h above the limit.
The law has also been extended to cover when drivers pass bollards or cones set up around a vehicle by a breakdown services worker.
'This is a new era of safety for frontline workers and the hundreds of stranded drivers who need their help every day,' Royal Automobile Association of South Australia senior manager safety and infrastructure Charles Mountain said.
'This new measure will help keep our patrols, members and the vulnerable community members we assist safe.'
RAA has recorded 23 reportable safety incidents or near misses between 2019 and February 2025 involving vehicles failing to slow down near breakdowns
This included eight incidents where patrol vehicles were struck, and five where traffic cones were hit or dragged down the road.
The change to South Australia's law brings the state in line with similar rules in New South Wales, Queensland, Tasmania, and Western Australia.
SA drivers already have to travel at 25 km/h when the speed is displayed on a sign and when driving through an emergency service speed zone.
The limit also applies while driving in school zones when children are present or passing a school bus that has stopped to set down or pick up children.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
14 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Horror as car plunges off cliff near coastal landmark with man 'recovered' from the water
A car plunged hundreds of feet off a cliff near a coastal landmark in the Isle of Wight. It is understood a man was 'recovered' from the water by a lifeboat volunteer. The silver vehicle fell into the water below the cliff on Friday evening and was left wrecked. Emergency services were called at around 7.20pm to Alum Bay in the Isle of Wight. Police, firefighters, paramedics and coastguards all attended the scene following reports of a 'serious incident'. In a statement, the police said: 'We're currently at the scene of a serious incident in Totland. 'We were called at 7.21pm this evening (Friday, June 6) after a car, which was being driven along Alum Bay New Road, left the road, came off the cliff top and came to rest in the water below.' The cliff sits near the world-famous Isle of Wight Needles, which is a row of three stacks of chalk that rise about 30 metres above the water. Despite the incident, a one-day yacht race around the Isle of Wight, named The Round the Island Race, still went ahead yesterday. Yachts passed Alum Bay, where the car fell. The race attracts more than 1,200 boats and around 10,000 sailors a year. It is one of the largest yacht races in the world.
Auto Blog
a day ago
- Auto Blog
You Can't Skip the Latest Step in Florida's Driver's License Process
Young Florida drivers seeking a permit have a new hoop to jump through Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has signed a new law requiring anyone at least 15 years old to complete a driver's education course to receive a learner's permit. Students had previously faced less stringent mandates by only needing to complete traffic law and substance abuse education classes. Florida's new law, taking effect July 1, also requires teens seeking a license to receive parental approval, complete a Traffic Law and Substance Abuse Education course, and pass a vision and hearing test along with a written driver's exam, according to NBC. Drivers can apply for a license after driving with a permit for one year or when reaching 18, whichever comes first, if they receive no moving violations and log 50 hours of driving experience with an adult 21 or older, 10 hours of which must be at night. 0:08 / 0:09 Thinking about buying a Toyota RAV4? These 5 rivals might change your mind Watch More Florida surf license plate — Source: Getty Some schools, including Florida Virtual, already offer driver education for permits, but many dialed back the program years ago to save money, according to the Tampa Bay Times. Debbie Adams, Principal of Driver's Education at Florida Virtual School, said: 'The legislators really got this right. They really took the time talking with each other and [are] really taking a look at the dangers that we are facing in the state of Florida along our roads,' The Mirror US reports. Many Florida high schools offer driver's education, but there isn't enough space for every student. Florida Virtual School offers driver's education for free and is the state's largest driver's education provider, with 55,000 enrolled students, many of whom can't find a spot in their local school. Defensive driving and hazard prevention are among the program's core skills. Florida teen driver crashes in recent years by the numbers In May 2024, 205,000 Florida teens aged 15-19 were driving with a learner's permit, according to The Florida Teen Safe Driving Coalition. In 2022, Florida teen drivers were involved in 56,091 crashes, resulting in 345 fatalities and 1,945 serious injuries. Nationally, teen drivers in 2022 were involved in 1,477,694 crashes, resulting in 7,639 deaths and 439,271 serious injuries. The Florida Teen Safe Driving Coalition cites an NHTSA study highlighting how teens are two and a half times more likely to engage in potentially risky behavior when driving with another teenager vs. alone, and this likelihood increases to three times with multiple teen passengers. Seat belts weren't worn in one-third of the fatalities and serious injuries involving these drivers. In 2023, Florida Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles (FLHSMV) noted a 1.93% decline in 15-19-year-old driver crashes in the state but a 0.92% increase in this age group's traffic fatalities. Incapacitating injuries for 15-19-year-old drivers decreased 8.05%, and other injuries went down 2.92%. Autoblog Newsletter Autoblog brings you car news; expert reviews and exciting pictures and video. Research and compare vehicles, too. Sign up or sign in with Google Facebook Microsoft Apple By signing up I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy . You may unsubscribe from email communication at anytime. Florida license plate — Source: Getty Images Final thoughts While some states, such as Kentucky, have been loosening certain requirements for young drivers, the general trend in recent years has been toward stricter laws. On March 11, a new Kentucky law lowered the state's age to obtain a learner's permit from 16 to 15. Additionally, young Kentucky drivers only need to hold a permit for six months before applying for an intermediate license. However, since February, New Jersey has implemented a 50-hour supervised driving requirement for permit holders until age 21, after previously having no policy. North Carolina is even stricter with a 60-hour supervised driving requirement. Florida's law, which took effect on July 1, is the most recent example of the U.S. states tightening young driver laws. About the Author Cody Carlson View Profile
The Guardian
2 days ago
- The Guardian
China has a stranglehold on the world's rare-earths supply chain. Can Australia break it?
Weeks after China retaliated against Donald Trump's tariffs by suspending exports of a range of rare-earth elements and related high-powered magnets, Ford was forced to pause a production line in Chicago. Days later, executives from other major carmakers, including General Motors and Toyota, told the White House their suppliers faced an impending shortage of necessary materials that could shut assembly lines. The speed of the fallout shows just how reliant the world has become on China's mineral supply chain and its production of rare-earth magnets , used in everything from wind turbines and medical devices to combustion and electric motors, and ballistic missile guidance systems. The Albanese government believes it can help break China's dominance, but experts say the challenge is enormous. Prof John Mavrogenes, from the Australian National University's research school of earth sciences, says the government needs to dramatically boost its investment in skills, education and technology if it wants to develop the domestic capability to manufacture rare-earth products, namely magnets. 'The question over who can deal with the processing and the making of magnets is a really big one, and quite hard to get your head around because we've let China just take that business over,' says Mavrogenes. 'The question is capability. Who's ready to ramp up if we need to? One country that I know isn't ready is Australia. 'We need so many metallurgists and chemical engineers, and we need them tomorrow. We probably need 10, 20, 50 times more than we're producing.' China is a large producer of rare earths and has near-complete control over the refining processes needed to make the minerals useful. It produces about 90% of rare-earth magnets, completing its control of the supply chain. It has become a very efficient, cost-effective provider of rare-earth materials, although given some of the historical environmental damage caused by their extraction and processing, it has paid a price. Sign up for a weekly email featuring our best reads Economies around the world have benefited from China's rare earths industry. The system seemed to work, until it didn't. In 2010, China starved Japan's hi-tech manufacturing industries by halting shipments of rare earths for about two months, after a dispute over a detained Chinese fishing trawler captain. In late 2023, China formalised a ban on the export of rare-earth separation technologies. Two months ago, China placed export restrictions on seven strategically chosen rare earths and the end product, magnets. While the recent curbs were sparked by Trump's tariffs, Beijing applied the export controls to all countries. It has implemented a new export permit system, choking the world of supply. Rare-earth magnets need a lot of two light rare-earth elements, neodymium and praseodymium, which are not subject to China's export curbs. But more powerful, heat-resistant magnets used in automotive and defence industries tend to require dysprosium or terbium, which are called heavy rare earths because of their atomic weights. Dysprosium and terbium are on China's list of suspended rare earths, as is samarium, which is also used in hi-tech applications. Until recently, the desire to develop a rare earths sector has been pitched by governments as a means to fuel the transition to clean energy technology and electric vehicles. Sign up to Five Great Reads Each week our editors select five of the most interesting, entertaining and thoughtful reads published by Guardian Australia and our international colleagues. Sign up to receive it in your inbox every Saturday morning after newsletter promotion But now, it's also taken on the pressing aim of shoring up supplies of materials required for national interests, including defence. Australia, rich in resources, is seen as a natural competitor to China that could break into its rare-earths supply chain. The Albanese government has openly discussed this desire for well over two years, and officials have crisscrossed the country, from Dubbo in New South Wales to Western Australia and Northern Territory, offering grants, funding and other assistance in order to develop bona fide domestic processing capabilities. Notably, the government has backed the development of Iluka's Eneabba project in WA, which is designed to come online in 2027 and produce several rare-earth oxides, including dysprosium and terbium. Iluka's chief executive, Tom O'Leary, told shareholders last month the 'current industry is unsustainable, owing to China's monopoly position and approach'. 'It is a fact that rare earths are among very few metals where China has demonstrated a preparedness to withhold supply to achieve political or strategic objectives,' O'Leary said. Another Australian company, Lynas, is a step ahead, given it has some rare-earths processing capabilities out of Kalgoorlie. It relies on further refining at its factory in Malaysia, which recently became the first to separate heavy rare-earth elements, primarily dysprosium and terbium, outside China. The Labor government has also proposed setting up a strategic stockpile of critical minerals. While the details of this plan are scant, such a stockpile, by building up supplies, could provide pricing certainty for projects affected by the current monopoly market. The government's various funding announcements show that Australia is focusing on the initial extraction and refining of rare earths, but not on the process of turning that material into metals and, in turn, manufacturing magnets. There are mixed views on whether that is the right approach, given the strategy falls short of developing an end-to-end rare-earths supply chain in Australia, independent of China, as some had hoped for. There has also been limited discussion of the potential for magnet recycling in Australia. Rowena Smith, the chief executive of Australian Strategic Materials, says it is more realistic for Australia to partner with overseas magnet producers outside China than to quickly develop capabilities to produce magnets. 'The opportunity for Australia is to play to our strengths upstream and integrate with allied partners into those emerging magnet manufacturers,' says Smith. 'It would be ambitious to get this supply chain up rapidly in Australia, because you need every piece of the supply chain to come online simultaneously.'
