#77 Safety Around Schools (pt 1)

This week, we commence a new short series of briefs on safety around schools. The series comprises four parts addressing key concerns around school zone safety and amenity, including:

• Vulnerable road users and active transport

• Speed zones and limits

• Traffic flow and congestion

• Crossings and traffic calming

  
  

Austroads released several new publications this year concerning safety around schools, including the Travel to School Guideline and related research reports. The current brief draws on these publications and Victoria’s recently updated Speed Zoning Policy (2025) for an introduction to vulnerable road users and active transport in the school zone context.

Vulnerability and active transport

As stated in Victoria’s Speed Zoning Policy[1] (p.22):

The purpose of a school speed zone is to assist with the safe movement of children by active transport means (walking or cycling) and the local community. As a minimum requirement, every school must have a school speed zone on any road with a school gate, typically up to 200m either side of the gate.

The Victorian policy provides for school zone speed limits of 30 km/h or 40 km/h, depending on local site conditions and circumstances, with the lower limit preferred in most urban settings, including active travel precincts (see next week for more detail on speed zones and limits). Austroads, however, recommends a maximum of 30 km/h for school precincts. The Victorian policy aligns with Austroads’ promotion of both safety and active travel under Safe System principles, as conceptualised in Figure 1 reproduced from the Austroads Guideline[2].

Figure 1: Application of the Safe System approach in travel to school (source: Austroads, 2026)

As previously reported in Brief #18, pedestrians’ chance of death is reduced by 75% for 30km/h versus 50km/h impact speeds. Recognising children as among the most vulnerable of all road users due to their (often) smaller stature and (sometimes) unpredictable movements, there is arguably a tension between the simultaneous promotion of active travel and safety. This tension also relates to the efficiency of the broader transport network, as stated by Austroads (2026, p.35):

Prioritising safety for children’s transport is essential, but when caregivers feel they need to chaperone their children to school, this reduces transport efficiency. Increasing independent travel for children improves the efficiency of the whole transport system.

Austroads also notes a current gap between best practice and implementation across Australia and New Zealand, with time-based limits, short distances and resistance to the 30 km/h limit still seen as frequent weaknesses in practice (p.36):

No jurisdiction has yet embraced the best practice of a consistent 30 km/h limit throughout a school precinct. Victoria and New Zealand's provision for 30 km/h in many urban contexts and South Australia's 25 km/h "when children present" are positive steps, although it is noted that the ‘when children are present’ has limitations and may be difficult to enforce. 

Key references for further reading

• Travel to School Guideline (Austroads, 2026)

• Travel to School: Principles Underpinning the Guidance (Austroads, 2026)  

• Travel to School: Best Practice and Consultation Findings (Austroads, 2026)

• Speed Zoning Policy and Technical Guidelines (Victoria, 2025)

[1] Department of Transport and Planning (2025). Speed Zoning Policy Edition 3 (August 2025). Melbourne, Victoria State Government.

[2] Austroads (2026). Travel to School Guideline. Sydney, Austroads

This technical brief is intended to support your Continuing Professional Development (CPD). If relevant to your area of practice, you are able to record your CPD hours in accordance with the Engineers Australia CPD Policy.