Make a submission
We’re inviting written feedback on the Options Paper for this review.
Options Paper
Help shape the future of the Roads Act
We’re entering a crucial stage in the review of the Roads Act 1993 (the Act), and your feedback will help create a framework that better supports safe, efficient and future-ready roads in NSW.
Since commencing, the Act has undergone limited change and no longer meets the evolving needs of NSW communities. Transport for NSW is reviewing the Act to ensure it reflects modern function of roads, recognising both the importance of roads to move cars and freight but also their role as places where people walk, cycle, catch public transport, meet, shop, and connect with their communities.
Options Paper: Have Your Say
Following extensive feedback provided in the first stage of the review, we have released an Options Paper, to explore reform models that could establish a suitable framework for a modern and efficient Roads Act.
The Options Paper consultation period will close on Friday 31 October 2025.
The reform approaches in the Options Paper are presented as three models each reflecting different levels of change. These models are:
| Model 1: Codifying Current Practice | This model keeps the Act’s current structure but embeds current practices into the legislation to clarify responsibilities and makes processes more transparent and consistent without major changes. |
| Model 2: Plan-Led Framework | This model introduces network plans that would better align road management with land use planning and provide a clearer, more proactive way to manage change. It would also reduce the need for case-by-case approvals and support more consistent decision-making. |
| Model 3: Institutional Change | This model would establish an independent road regulator to oversee and support the management of roads in NSW, ensuring accountability and alignment with safety, accessibility, and sustainability goals. |
These options were shaped by the extensive feedback received to date and through ongoing engagement with a broad and diverse range of stakeholders.
If you work for or represent a roads authority, a peak body or advocacy group, or any organisation which interacts directly with the Roads Act 1993, we ask you to read the Options Paper in full and make endorsed submissions to let us know your preferred model for reform and recommendations.
Feedback is open from Friday 15 August 2025 to Friday 31 October 2025. This consultation period will not be extended due to the required timeframes to complete the review during this Parliamentary term.
The Options Paper is detailed and extensive feedback is expected. To make the most out of your submission, please use the submission guide and download the submission template.
The Roads Act 1993 touches almost every aspect of daily life in NSW, shaping how we move, interact, and develop as communities. It affects the way roads and streets are managed, ensuring safety, accessibility, and support for walking, cycling, driving, and public transport.
The Act can also help to protect essential services, support emergency responses, and it applies to the environmental health in our cities and towns making daily life safer, easier and more connected for everyone in NSW.
If you are a community member with an interest in what the future of roads and streets could look like, we encourage you to read the Roads Act Reform Community Companion Document and let us know what’s important to you by responding to the community survey.
Feedback is open from Friday 15 August 2025 to Friday 31 October 2025.
Further targeted engagement will take place with key stakeholders throughout this consultation.
Transport for NSW is continuing to work alongside local councils, industry partners and the community to ensure the Act remains fit-for-purpose. By participating in this next stage, you will help inform how we plan, regulate, and manage the road network for years to come.
Key outcomes we’re aiming to achieve through the review include:
- Modern, safe and adaptable uses for roads and streets that respond to community needs
- Empowering local decision making with effective risk management
- Clearer, more streamlined legislation that keeps pace with change
- A statute that supports operational excellence and efficiency.
The Options Paper consultation period will close on Friday 31 October 2025. Feedback received will inform the selection and refinement of the preferred model and support the development of legislative and implementation proposals. This will be the final opportunity to provide input into the review and shape the recommendations to the Ministers.
A consultation summary report will be available in late 2025.
For further enquiries, contact us roadsactfeedback@transport.nsw.gov.au
Previous engagement: Issues Paper
Help review and update the Roads Act 1993
With the input and support of councils and peak bodies, we aim to review and update the Roads Act 1993 (The Act) which will empower roads authorities, allow for faster decision making, improve operational processes and deliver a statute which is adaptable for the future.
The Roads Act 1993 is over 30 years old and the NSW Government wants to ensure it continues to be fit-for-purpose. Roads authorities have built in various administrative procedures and workarounds, which have resulted in complex and time-consuming processes for the planning, operation, regulation of activities and management of the road network in NSW.
Working with local government and industry
Simplifying the planning, management and delivery of roads is key to building stronger communities and connections across NSW. Transport for NSW wants to work with councils and key industry bodies to identify opportunities to simplify processes within the legislation to make road management more efficient and straightforward.
By working together, we hope to achieve these four outcomes proposed for the Roads Act Review:
- More contemporary uses for roads and streets that are safe and responsive to community needs
- Faster local decision making with appropriate mitigations to manage network risk
- A streamlined and easy to use statute that keeps pace with change
- A more operationally effective statute.
Issues Paper: thank you for having your say
The review of the Act will be carried out through to 2026. It will look at specific areas of the legislation to identify improvements to the way we plan for and manage roads and streets in NSW.
To launch this review process, Transport for NSW developed an Issues Paper to outline the process and the intended scope of the review.
Feedback on the Issues Paper was open from Friday 14 February 2025 to Friday 28 March 2025, stakeholders were encouraged to complete the online survey, post a suggestion or idea on the ideas board, or provide a written submission to roadsactfeedback@transport.nsw.gov.au. While formal consultation on the Issues Paper has closed, the paper contains useful information about the Act and this review and is still available to download and read.
The project team has now reviewed more than 100 survey responses, ideas and submissions which will inform the next steps for the review process. We would like to thank everyone who has participated in this first stage and collaborated with Transport for NSW to kick off this once-in-a-generation review.
A Consultation Summary Report is now available, providing an overview of the key themes and issues raised during this first phase of consultation. Submissions can be viewed on the project webpage.
Next steps
In the second half of 2025, an Options Paper will be published on our website and the Have Your Say portal for consultation as part of our ongoing engagement for the review.
In the meantime, Transport for NSW acknowledges some stakeholders may wish to provide additional feedback on the topics outlined in the Issues Paper, while the Issues Paper survey is now closed comments can continue to be shared via roadsactfeedback@transport.nsw.gov.au
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Survey for community
We're inviting the broader community to complete this survey and share which outcomes for roads and streets matter most to you.
