Victorian Consolidated Legislation

Road Management Act 2004 - SCHEDULE 4

SPECIFIC TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT POWERS OF STATE ROAD AUTHORITIES

1. General power to manage traffic

A State road authority has the power to manage traffic on any road-

   (a)  in respect of which it is the coordinating road authority; or

   (b)  on land managed by the State road authority.

2. Powers concerning parking



(1) A State road authority may with respect to non-arterial State roads fix,
rescind or vary-

   (a)  the days, hours and periods of time for which, and the conditions on
        which, vehicles may stand in a parking area in a non-arterial State
        road or other parking area; and

   (b)  fees for any vehicles standing in a parking area and the manner of
        payment of those fees; and

   (c)  the fee for residents of any area which the State road authority sets
        aside as an area in which a resident parking scheme is to operate that
        allows a vehicle to stand in a parking area in any road in the area
        regardless of the fixed parking periods for that area.

(2) VicRoads may with respect to arterial roads-

   (a)  manage clearways; and

   (b)  make policy decisions in relation to traffic management after
        consultation with any affected municipal councils.

(3) In this clause parking area has the meaning it has in the
Road Safety Act 1986 or any regulations made under that Act.

(4) A municipal council must exercise the powers conferred on a municipal
council under the Local Government Act 1989 in a manner which is consistent
with this clause.

3. Power to issue special parking permits

A State road authority may issue a special parking permit to any disabled
person to enable him or her to leave a vehicle standing on different
conditions from those fixed under any part of clause 2.

4. Power to remove unregistered or abandoned vehicles



(1) A State road authority may-

   (a)  move or impound any unregistered vehicle or vehicle considered by it
        to be abandoned (and anything in, on or attached to, the vehicle);

   (b)  keep the vehicle in the place to which it has been moved or any other
        place;

   (c)  return the vehicle to its owner on payment of a fee;

   (d)  subject to subclause (2), sell, destroy or give away the vehicle (and
        anything in, on or attached to, the vehicle) if the owner of the
        vehicle has not paid the fee within 14 days of a State road authority
        impounding the vehicle.

(2) Before exercising the power conferred by subclause (1)(d), the State road
authority must take reasonable steps to notify the owner of the vehicle that
the vehicle has been impounded and may be sold, destroyed or given away unless
the specified fee is paid within 14 days.

(3) A State road authority and anyone who obtains the vehicle from a State
road authority under subclause (1)(d) is not liable to the owner of the
vehicle or any other person in respect of any action taken under that
subclause.

(4) The fee set for the purposes of subclause (1)(c) must not exceed an amount
that reasonably represents the cost to a State road authority of impounding,
moving, keeping and releasing the vehicle, including any relevant overhead and
other indirect costs.

(5) For the purposes of subclause (1), a State road authority may consider
that a vehicle has been abandoned if the vehicle has not been moved for 2
months.

5. Power to remove vehicles causing obstruction or danger



(1) A State road authority may move or impound any vehicle that-

   (a)  is causing an unlawful obstruction; or

   (b)  is unlawfully parked or left standing in an area designated by the
        Minister; or

   (c)  has been left standing illegally for a period of at least 2 days; or

   (d)  has been left standing in an area in which in the opinion of the State
        road authority the vehicle is obstructing the free movement of traffic
        on a road or from a driveway; or

   (e)  has been left standing in an area in which in the opinion of the State
        road authority the vehicle constitutes a hazard to road safety.





(2) A State road authority may charge the owner of a vehicle a fee of up to
the amount of the fee set for the purposes of clause 4(1)(c).

(3) The powers conferred by this clause and clause 4 are in addition to any
powers under the Road Safety Act 1986.

6. Power to move other obstructions

A State road authority may-

   (a)  move any thing that encroaches or obstructs the free use of a roadway
        or pathway or that reduces the breadth, or confines the limits, of a
        roadway or pathway, including any thing placed on the roadway or
        pathway under clause 11 or 12;

   (b)  require any person responsible for, or in control of, the thing to
        move it.

7. Power to restrict traffic near a construction site

For the purposes of enabling works to be carried out on or over a road, or
land next to a road, a State road authority may-

   (a)  fence off and occupy part of the road;

   (b)  erect a structure or temporary crossing for vehicles on, or over, the
        road;

   (c)  permit a person to do anything the State road authority may do under
        paragraph (a) or (b).

8. Power to close roadway or pathway on seasonal basis

A State road authority may close a roadway or pathway, or part of a roadway or
pathway, for a particular period during the year.



9. Power to erect and remove works and structures

A State road authority may erect and remove any works or structures-

   (a)  to protect passengers, pedestrians, drivers and cyclists on a roadway
        or pathway; or

   (b)  to regulate traffic on a roadway or pathway.

10. Power to place obstructions or barriers on a roadway permanently

A State road authority may block or restrict the passage or access of vehicles
on a roadway by placing and maintaining any permanent barrier or other
obstruction on the roadway.

11. Power to place obstructions or barriers on a roadway temporarily

A State road authority may block or restrict the passage or access of vehicles
on a roadway by placing and maintaining any temporary barrier or other
obstruction on the roadway-

   (a)  for as long as is necessary to prevent any injury to any person or
        damage to any property (including damage to the roadway itself); or

   (b)  for as long as is necessary for a procession, public ceremony or
        function; or

   (c)  for a genuine traffic diversion experiment.

12. Power to restrict use of roadway by vehicles of a certain size

A State road authority may prohibit or restrict the use of a roadway by any
motor vehicle of, or over, a certain size or weight.



13. Power to determine speed limits

A State road authority may determine speed limits for vehicles on a roadway.

14. Power to prohibit traffic on unsafe roads

A State road authority may prohibit or restrict traffic on a road that it
considers is unsafe for that traffic. __________________