What are school zone times in NSW?

8 to 9.30 am and 2.30 to 4 pm on school days, at 40 km/h. Some schools have other times, shown on their signs.

What are school zone times in Queensland?

Most run 7 to 9 am and 2 to 4 pm on school days. Split-campus schools can run all day, 7 am to 4 pm. The limit is 40 km/h, or 60 km/h on roads normally signed 80 km/h or more.

What are school zone times in Victoria?

8 to 9.30 am and 2.30 to 4 pm on weekdays during Victorian school terms, not on public holidays. Most are 40 km/h; rural roads of 80 km/h or more can have 60 km/h zones.

What are school zone times in WA?

7.30 to 9 am and 2.30 to 4 pm on school days, at 40 km/h. Hours in regional areas may vary.

Do school zones apply in the school holidays?

No. They apply on school days only, not on weekends, public holidays or school holidays. Terms differ between states and between schools, so if you are unsure, slow down.

What is the school zone speed limit in South Australia?

25 km/h when children are present, at any time. On busy roads near schools, new 40 km/h limits apply from 8 to 9.30 am and 2 to 4 pm on school days, being rolled out until the start of the 2027 school year.

Guide · 5 min read

School zone times in every state and territory

Every state slows traffic near schools, but not at the same times or to the same speed. A driver who knows 8 to 9.30 in Sydney is already in a live zone at 7.30 in Perth, and Darwin's zones run until 5 pm. Here are the times and limits in each state and territory, from each government's own pages, and the signs that override them.

The times and limits, state by state

State	Speed limit	Times on school days	Watch for
NSW	40 km/h	8–9.30 am and 2.30–4 pm	Some schools have other times, shown on the sign
Victoria	40 km/h (60 km/h on rural roads of 80 km/h or more)	8–9.30 am and 2.30–4 pm, on weekdays in school terms	Some zones are permanent; electronic signs change with the time of day
Queensland	40 km/h (60 km/h where the limit is normally 80 km/h or more)	7–9 am and 2–4 pm	Split-campus schools run all day, 7 am–4 pm, with flashing signs
Western Australia	40 km/h	7.30–9 am and 2.30–4 pm	Hours in regional areas may vary
South Australia	25 km/h when children are present; new 40 km/h zones on busy roads	40 km/h zones: 8–9.30 am and 2–4 pm	See below: the 40 km/h zones are being rolled out
Tasmania	40 km/h	The times shown on the sign	Also 40 km/h near a school bus with its lights flashing
ACT	40 km/h	Typically 8 am–4 pm, Monday to Friday	Signs open and close the zone; when closed, 50 km/h applies
Northern Territory	40 km/h	7 am–5 pm	The times on the sign apply

From each government's road safety pages, checked on 20 October 2026. The sign at the school is the law: where it shows other times or another limit, follow the sign.

What counts as a school day

School zones apply on school days only: not on weekends, public holidays or school holidays. South Australia says so in those words; Victoria's run on weekdays during school terms and not on public holidays; every state ties its zones to school days.

School terms are not the same in every state, and private and public schools can differ. Queensland's transport department notes that more than one school can share a zone, each with its own days, and says that if you are unsure whether it is a school day, slow down.

South Australia: two kinds of school zone

South Australia's school zones have long been 25 km/h whenever children are present, at any hour. Those zones stay as they are.

On busy roads near schools, where the limit is 50 km/h or more, the state is adding 40 km/h time-based limits like the other states': 8 to 9.30 am and 2 to 4 pm on school days. Signs began going up in November 2025, each limit is enforced from the day its site is finished, and all of them are due to be working by the start of the 2027 school year.

Signs that change the rules

Flashing lights: in Queensland, the lights on a school zone sign flash while the zone is in force, and warn of zones outside the standard times. NSW has installed more than 6,800 school zone flashing lights.
Electronic signs: in Victoria, school zones on busy roads often use electronic signs that show the limit for the time of day.
Open and closed signs: in the ACT, a closed sign means the zone is off and the default 50 km/h applies.
School buses: in Tasmania, drivers must also slow to 40 km/h near a school bus whose lights are flashing.

Where NSW catches the most drivers

Transport for NSW recorded more than 183,000 school zone speeding offences in 2024–25, about 70 per cent of them during active school zone hours. The top five locations were all in Sydney, and several are on the highways this site follows.

Location	Direction	Fines in 2024–25
Woodville Road, Chester Hill	Southbound	8,615
Victoria Road, Ryde	Eastbound	7,313
Princes Highway, Kogarah	Southbound	5,866
Hume Highway, Yagoona	Westbound	5,691
Cleveland Street, Moore Park	Westbound	5,307
Pacific Highway, Gateshead	Southbound	3,288
Pacific Highway, Ourimbah	Northbound	2,970
Princes Highway, Wollongong	Northbound	1,636

Transport for NSW, 21 July 2025. The last three are the worst outside Sydney.

NSW speed cameras in school zones 51

Hume Highway: between Murrell Street and Queen Street
Hume Highway: between Rookwood Road and Stacey Street
King Georges Road: between Stoney Creek Road and Edgbaston Road
Cabramatta Road: between Katinka Street and Tarlington Parade
Old Northern Road: between Telfer Road and Brisbane Road
Edgar Street: between Augusta Street and Upper Railway Parade
Bunnerong Road: between Fitzgerald Avenue and Smith Street
Pacific Highway: between Sydney Street and Macquarie Avenue
Woodville Road: between Kenelda Avenue and Osgood Street
Forest Road: between Lily Street and Cronulla Street
Parker Street: between Copeland Street and Gascoigne Street
Princes Highway: between Gray Street and President Avenue

Every NSW speed camera, by road and suburb →

Questions

What are school zone times in NSW?: 8 to 9.30 am and 2.30 to 4 pm on school days, at 40 km/h. Some schools have other times, shown on their signs.
What are school zone times in Queensland?: Most run 7 to 9 am and 2 to 4 pm on school days. Split-campus schools can run all day, 7 am to 4 pm. The limit is 40 km/h, or 60 km/h on roads normally signed 80 km/h or more.
What are school zone times in Victoria?: 8 to 9.30 am and 2.30 to 4 pm on weekdays during Victorian school terms, not on public holidays. Most are 40 km/h; rural roads of 80 km/h or more can have 60 km/h zones.
What are school zone times in WA?: 7.30 to 9 am and 2.30 to 4 pm on school days, at 40 km/h. Hours in regional areas may vary.
Do school zones apply in the school holidays?: No. They apply on school days only, not on weekends, public holidays or school holidays. Terms differ between states and between schools, so if you are unsure, slow down.
What is the school zone speed limit in South Australia?: 25 km/h when children are present, at any time. On busy roads near schools, new 40 km/h limits apply from 8 to 9.30 am and 2 to 4 pm on school days, being rolled out until the start of the 2027 school year.

Live now

Sources

School zones are back in force (21 July 2025)· Transport for NSW
School zones· Department of Transport and Planning, Victoria
School zone speed limits and signs· Queensland Government
School Zones and Children's Crossings Improvement Program· Main Roads Western Australia
40 km/h school speed limits· Department for Infrastructure and Transport, South Australia
No excuses in school zones (30 January 2025)· Road Safety Advisory Council, Tasmania
Speeding· Transport Canberra and City Services
Speed limits· Northern Territory Government
Back to school for Term 3 2025· Road Safety NT