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All the road rules are the same from state-to-state, right?
Well… no
The vast majority of our road rules are sourced from the Australian Road Rules, but each state and territory has its own variation on these.
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There are some pretty big distinctions in what the law is and how the law operates in practice.
Here are three examples we’ve found.
Hook turn
A hook turn is a right-hand turn made from the far-left lane as opposed to the middle, or the right lane.
It is used to ensure traffic moves smoothly, especially when there are trams using the same areas.
Melbourne has nearly 50 hook turns in its central business district and surrounding areas, but Victoria is the only place you will find them.
New South Wales also has similar legislation to Victoria, where under section 34 of the Road Rules, a driver facing a hook turn only sign must turn right from the furthest point they can.
While the legislation exists, there are no hook turns on any New South Wales roads, meaning it no longer operates in practice.
Turning right across double white lines
Turning right across two continuous lines is common practice in New South Wales to enter driveways or another road.
In New South Wales, a driver can drive to the right of a dividing lane to enter or leave a road under section 134 of the Road Rules.
This is not the case in Queensland, Victoria, South Australia Tasmania and the Northern Territory, where a driver on a two-way road must keep to the left of the centre road under section 132.
They can only drive to the right of the centre of the road to overtake another driver or to leave the road when there is no dividing lane or median strip under section 133.
Beware New South Wales drivers, it could set you back as much as $3454 if you’re caught.
U-turns at traffic lights
Most states and territories prohibit performing a U-turn at traffic lights unless there is specific signage permitting it.
This includes New South Wales, Western Australia, South Australia and the ACT, mirroring section 40 of the Australian Road Rules.
Victoria has taken a different approach, where its domestic road rules don’t mention section 40, rather only states disobeying a ‘No U-Turn’ sign is illegal.
This can be a potential hazard for Victorian drivers in other states and territories as the lack of signage does not permit a U-turn at traffic lights.
In New South Wales, it could set you back up to $2200 for performing a U-turn at a traffic light.
