Request for Speed Humps on Spirit Drive Capalaba - Paper Petition 55 Signatures

Principal Petitioner: Alison Sciberras

Closing Date: 13 February 2024

At 10 signatures, this petition will be considered properly made.

Petition Request:

Install speed humps between Lorina Court and riley Drive on Spirit Drive to reduce the speed in which all vehicles come around the BLIND BEND.  Spirit Drive Park, a children's playground, is in the middle of this section, and children's lives are at risk.  Residents residing in this location are also at high risk.  Residents residing in this location are also at high risk of car accidents when entering and reversing out of their driveways.  There have been countless near misses, unreported incidences and several accidents attended to by Emergency Services.

Petition Response:

Thank you for your petition for speed humps and signage to be installed between 27 and 29 Spirit Drive, Capalaba, due to speeding motorists.

Your petition was tabled by Councillor Berridge at Council’s General Meeting on 21 February 2024 (Resolution 2024/22). Defined as operational in nature, the petition was referred to officers to respond on behalf of Redland City Council’s Chief Executive Officer, Mr Andrew Chesterman.

Council officers have investigated your request and as the principal petitioner, provides this response to you summarising those investigations and advises of the outcome. As the principal petitioner, it is at your discretion to notify other signatories of the outcome.

In making the decision on your request, Council has considered the following:

• Spirit Drive is classified as a local collector street in Council’s Road hierarchy and has the capacity to carry up to 3,000 vehicles a day.
• Under the Queensland Road Safety Technical User Volumes (QRSTUV): Guide to speed management, a local collector road has a default speed of 50Km/hr. This guide states, that ‘the default speed limit for a road in a built-up area is 50Km/hr and this is legally enforceable with or without posted signs, which avoids the need for extensive signing’. 
• Council undertook traffic surveys on Spirit Drive in January 2024 to assess current traffic volumes and speeds. 
• The results are shown in the table below which show that Sprit Drive is performing within the required parameters for this class of roadway.

• Council policies state that traffic management devices are not implemented if the nature of complaints are predominantly related to hooning or speeding. 
• Traffic management devices are not implemented in these situations as they do not reliably alter the behaviour of drivers that speed or drive dangerously.
• Traffic management devices can have other negative impacts such as increasing road traffic noise for surrounding residences.
• Law enforcement is the single most effective method of controlling anti-social behaviour, including hooning.

In considering the above findings of the investigation, Council does not support the installation of traffic management devices (speed humps) in this instance as requested by your petition.

However, Council will install additional line marking and signage at this location to promote greater awareness among motorists and encourage driving according to road conditions. This will include installing signs on each approach to the park on Spirit Drive to alert motorists of children in the area. A dashed centre line between 13 Spirit Drive and the start of Tipperary Court will be installed to direct motorists to the correct driving path. This will also give the appearance of a tighter driving lane encouraging vehicles to drive to the conditions.

Council would also note that all incidences of illegal and unsafe driver behaviour should be reported to your local Police Station, Policelink (131 444 or online), or via the dedicated Anti-hooning Hotline on 13HOON (134666). By consistently reporting this type of illegal driving, it allows Police to better understand and deal with the issue.

While we understand that this may not be the outcome that you had sought, your request has been thoroughly investigated.