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The Canberra Times
The Canberra Times
Peter Brewer

Canberra's 'casual speeding' is the worst in Australia

Australia’s most dangerous roads

Canberra had the highest rate of "casual" speeding in the country, with around 66 per cent of drivers reporting they had exceeded the speed limit by 10kmh in the previous six months.

While the number of ACT speeders had declined slightly from the Productivity Commission's previous reporting period, Canberra drivers were above the national average on "casual" speeding and the prevalence was climbing steadily, as it was across the rest of the country.

The national average of drivers who reported speeding 10kmh or more over the limit was 59.2 per cent. Back in 2013-14, 54.5 per cent self-reported the same offence.

The results from an ACT study commissioned from the Queensland Centre for Accident Research and Road Safety and released late last year found drivers had different speed-based "moralities" and for some, conventional speed deterrent measures wouldn't work.

The study "demonstrated that a driver's susceptibility to deterrence depends on their personal speed-relevant morality".

It revealed those with "weak speed-relevant moral rules and emotions" engaged in "significantly more acts of past speeding" and new ideas were needed to target those drivers.

"Morality, both of the person and the setting, significantly influenced the self-reported speeding behaviour and intentions of ACT drivers over and above traditional deterrence-based approaches," the research found.

While speeding remained an issue, the latest Report On Government Services (ROGS) data showed anti-drink-drive messaging was having an impact, with 8.3 per cent of ACT drivers admitting to having driven when possibly over the alcohol limit in the past six months, down from the ACT's worst result - aside from the Northern Territory - of 11 per cent in 2018-29.

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Speed deterrence only works for some drivers, according to research. Picture by Peter Brewer
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