Road Transport (Safety and Traffic Management (Road Rules) Amendment (Bus Lanes) Regulation 2007 (NSW)

2007 No 93

New South Wales

Road Transport (Safety and Traffic

Management) (Road Rules)
Amendment (Bus Lanes) Regulation

2007

under the

Road Transport (Safety and Traffic Management) Act 1999

Her Excellency the Governor, with the advice of the Executive Council, has made the following Regulation under the Road Transport (Safety and Traffic Management) Act 1999.

ERIC ROOZENDAAL, M.L.C.,

Minister for Roads

Explanatory note
The object of this Regulation is to amend the Road Transport (Safety and Traffic

Management) (Road Rules) Regulation 1999:

(a)	to enable bus lanes to be created by means of road markings as well as by traffic signs, and
(b)	to re-instate a repealed provision that enabled only drivers of public buses and special purpose vehicles to use bus only lanes, and
(c)	to clarify the circumstances in which drivers of public buses may make right or left turns at an intersection from any bus lane, and
(d)	to provide that the additional road rules applicable to drivers of public buses set out in Division 2 of Part 17 of the Australian Road Rules apply to such drivers only while they are driving in bus lanes, and
(e)	to place further limitations on the use of bus only lanes by drivers other than drivers of public buses or special purpose vehicles.

This Regulation is made under the Road Transport (Safety and Traffic Management) Act

1999, including section 71 (the general regulation-making power) and Schedule 1.

Published in Gazette No 33 of 23 February 2007, page 1028	Page 1
2007 No 93	Road Transport (Safety and Traffic Management) (Road Rules)
Clause 1	Amendment (Bus Lanes) Regulation 2007

Road Transport (Safety and Traffic Management) (Road

Rules) Amendment (Bus Lanes) Regulation 2007

under the

Road Transport (Safety and Traffic Management) Act 1999

1      Name of Regulation

This Regulation is the Road Transport (Safety and Traffic Management) (Road Rules) Amendment (Bus Lanes) Regulation 2007.

2 Amendment of Road Transport (Safety and Traffic Management) (Road Rules) Regulation 1999

The Road Transport (Safety and Traffic Management) (Road Rules)
Regulation 1999 is amended as set out in Schedule 1.

Road Transport (Safety and Traffic Management) (Road Rules)	2007 No 93
Amendment (Bus Lanes) Regulation 2007
Amendments	Schedule 1
Schedule 1	Amendments

(Clause 2)

[1]      Clause 15 Vehicles permitted to travel in bus lane, tram lane, transit lane or truck lane

Insert “(other than a bus only lane)” after “bus lane” in clause 15 (1) (e).

[2]      Clause 15 (1) (f)

Insert “(other than a bus only lane)” after “bus lane”.

[3]      Clause 15 (2), definition of “bus only lane”

Omit the definition. Insert instead:
bus only lane means:

(a)	a bus lane beginning at a bus lane sign of the kind referred to in rule 154 of the Australian Road Rules where the words “bus only” or “buses only” appear on or with the sign, or
(b)	a bus lane beginning at a bus lane road marking (within the meaning of Schedule 1) where the road marking consists of the words “bus only” or “buses only”.

[4] Schedule 1 Qualifications on application of Australian Road Rules

Insert in alphabetical order in clause 1:

bus lane road marking means a road marking consisting of:

(a)	the letters “BL”, or
(b)	the words “bus lane”, or
(c)	the words “bus only” or “buses only”.

intersection has the same meaning as it has in the Australian
Road Rules.
marked lane has the same meaning as it has in the Australian
Road Rules.
road marking has the same meaning as it has in the Australian
Road Rules.

2007 No 93	Road Transport (Safety and Traffic Management) (Road Rules) Amendment (Bus Lanes) Regulation 2007
Schedule 1	Amendments

[5] Schedule 1 Qualifications on application of Australian Road Rules

Omit clause 5. Insert instead:

4      Certain marked lanes taken to be bus lanes

(1)  Despite rule 154 (2) of the Australian Road Rules, a bus lane for the purposes of rule 154 (1) of those Rules is a marked lane, or part of a marked lane:

(a)

beginning at a bus lane sign (whether or not there is also a bus lane road marking) and ending at the nearest of the following:

(i)	an end bus lane sign,
(ii)	a traffic sign that indicates the beginning of another special purpose lane, or

(b)

beginning at a bus lane road marking (if there is no bus lane sign) and ending at the next intersection.

(2)

In this clause:
end bus lane sign means an end bus lane sign of the kind referred
to in rule 154 of the Australian Road Rules.
special purpose lane has the same meaning as it has in the
Australian Road Rules.

5      Only public buses and special purpose vehicles may travel in bus only lanes (cf MTR, r 54 (6) (za))

(1)  For the purposes of rule 154 (1) of the Australian Road Rules (as qualified in its operation by clause 4 of this Schedule), rule 158 of those Rules does not apply so as to permit a driver (except the driver of a public bus or a special purpose vehicle) to drive a vehicle in a bus lane if:

(a)	in the case of a bus lane beginning at a bus lane sign—the words “bus only” or “buses only” appear on or with the sign, or
(b)	in the case of a bus lane beginning at a bus lane road marking (if there is no bus lane sign)—the road marking consists of the words “bus only” or “buses only”.

Note. Rule 158 of the Australian Road Rules provides generally for exceptions to the prohibition on driving in bus lanes. This subclause will not affect the application of that rule to bus lanes marked by bus lane signs or road markings on or with which the words “bus only” or “buses only” do not appear.

(2) In this clause, special purpose vehicle has the same meaning as
it has in clause 15 of this Regulation.

Road Transport (Safety and Traffic Management) (Road Rules)	2007 No 93
Amendment (Bus Lanes) Regulation 2007
Amendments	Schedule 1

5A	Buses turning from bus lanes (cf MTR, r 72AA)
(1) Despite the provisions of Divisions 1 and 2 of Part 4 of the Australian Road Rules, the driver of a public bus may cause the vehicle to turn to the right or left at an intersection from any bus lane if:

(a)	the turn is in accordance with a signal displayed by B lights erected at or near the intersection and any road marking indicating how the turn is to be made, and
(b)	the turn may be made with safety to the public.
(2)	In this clause: B lights has the same meaning as it has in the Australian Road Rules.

5B Additional rules applying to public bus drivers

Division 2 of Part 17 of the Australian Road Rules applies to the driver of a public bus only while the driver is driving the bus in a bus lane.

[6]      Dictionary

Insert “(as qualified in its operation by clause 4 of Schedule 1)” after
“Australian Road Rules” in the definition of bus lane in Part 1.

BY AUTHORITY