Austroads is the apex organisation of

road transport Road transport or road transportation is a type of transport using roads. Transport on roads can be roughly grouped into the transportation of goods and transportation of people. In many countries licensing requirements and safety regulations e ...

and traffic agencies in

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

and

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

. It publishes guidelines, codes of practice and research reports that promote best practice for road management organisations in Australasia. Austroads is based in

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

and funded by the

federal government A federation (also called a federal state) is an entity characterized by a political union, union of partially federated state, self-governing provinces, states, or other regions under a #Federal governments, federal government (federalism) ...

. Operations of Austroads are primarily administrative, with all research and engineering work contracted out, such as to produce the Australian standards for construction, planning and design in roads. Austroads membership comprises: *

Transport for NSW Transport for NSW (TfNSW) is a Government of New South Wales, New South Wales Government transport services and roads List of New South Wales government agencies, agency established on 1 November 2011. The agency is a different entity to the NSW ...

New South Wales *

VicRoads VicRoads is a government joint venture in the state of Victoria, Australia. In the state, it is responsible for driver licensing and vehicle registration. It is owned and operated through a joint venture between the Victorian government an ...

Department of Transport & Main Roads The Department of Transport and Main Roads (TMR), is a department of the Queensland Government. TMR was formed in April 2009 by merging Queensland Transport and the Department of Main Roads. TMR manages Queensland's 33,000 km state road ...

, QueenslandAustroads publications

Department of Planning, Transport & Infrastructure The Department for Infrastructure and Transport (DIT) is a department of the Government of South Australia. It is responsible for maintaining, expanding and operating the statewide road network. In addition to road transport, the department i ...

, South Australia *

Main Roads Western Australia Main Roads Western Australia (formerly the Main Roads Department) is a statutory authority of the Government of Western Australia that is responsible for implementing the state's policies on road access and main roads. It operates under the ''M ...

Department of State Growth The Department of State Growth is a Tasmanian Government department responsible for fostering economic growth and creating job opportunities within the state. The department plays a vital role in supporting diverse and sustainable economic dev ...

, Tasmania * Department of Infrastructure, Planning and Logistics Northern Territory * Transport Canberra & City Services, Australian Capital Territory * Commonwealth

Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Communications The Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Communications was an Australian Public Service department of the Australian Government that existed between February 2020 and June 2022, responsible for transport infrastruct ...

Australian Local Government Association The Australian Local Government Association (ALGA) is the principal organisation representing all 537 Local Government councils in Australia, and acts as the independent interest body for Australian local mayors, councillors and local government ...

New Zealand Transport Agency NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA), superseded by is a New Zealand Crown entity tasked with promoting safe and functional transport by land, including the responsibility for driver and vehicle licensing, and administering the New Zealand st ...

Austroads - About
(official site)

History

At a conference of the Commonwealth and State Ministers for Transport in

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

in 1933, it was decided to form a national body to coordinate road transport planning. The foundation and first meeting of the new 'Conference of State Road Authorities' (COSRA) took place in February 1934, in Melbourne. After much consideration, and the interruption of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, the first national route marking system was introduced in 1954, with a trial signposting of National Route 31 (

Hume Highway The Hume Highway, including the sections now known as the Hume Freeway and the Hume Motorway, is one of Australia's major inter-city national highways, running for between Melbourne in the southwest and Sydney in the northeast. Upgrading of t ...

). As the substantive role of the organisation grew, in October 1959 the name was changed to 'National Association of Australian State Road Authorities' (NAASRA). In 1960 NAASRA set up the Australian Road Research Board (ARRB) to further coordinate and encourage research into all aspects of road-making, planning and management. With increasing federal control of roads planning and development, the role of the organisation changed, and in 1989, NAASRA was disbanded and replaced by Austroads.Austroads, NAASRA and COSRA – a history of Austroads and its predecessors
Ozroads In 1997, Austroads published ''Towards a Nationally Consistent Approach to Route Marking'', which proposed a new system of alphanumeric route marking, agreed by all the transport ministers in May 1997 for nationwide implementation. Austroads' remit includes the provision of guidance for vehicle classification and cycling and pedestrian infrastructure.GUIDE TO ROAD DESIGN Part 6A: Pedestrian and Cyclist Paths
2009, Austroads; at NSW Government site

References

{{Reflist

External links

Official site
Road infrastructure in Australia