Originally Posted by iahphx
It's pretty obvious that, in Australia, you cannot simply drive a "reasonable speed"; you have to devote much of your attention to watching the speed limit signs. This strikes me as horrible public policy, but Australia is certainly not alone in the world in burdening motorists with draconian fines for miniscule speed violations.
Yes, that's about right. A balls up licensing system that puts underqualified drivers on the road who have done little more than roll around the block a few times is compensated for by having harsh penalties for using sound judgement about driving conditions.
Originally Posted by
iahphx
Are these cameras confined to the major cities, or are they on rural roads? I'm doing a 3-week drive across Australia and, if the cameras are prevalent, I've got a bad feeling that my luck will eventually run out. Is there a website that tracks the cameras? Thanks.
In NSW, Victoria and Queensland (I don't know about the other states), every fixed speed camera is signposted with multiple signs. In NSW mobile speed cameras are signposted too. You really can't miss them unless you're asleep. The tolerance in Qld and NSW seems to be higher than in Victoria. There's usually a few highway patrol cars on the major highways around big cities but in between there's very little. Highway Patrol, ime, will generally give you about 10km/h leeway. I guess it depends on how bored they are.