6 of Australia’s weirdest road rules
When learning to drive, you’re taught about indicating when turning and how to navigate a roundabout, but there are some weird and wacky road rules you won’t find in your driving logbook.
Check out a few of the stranger road rules we uncovered from around our country in this quirky list below.
1. Don’t overload your car with potatoes
Where: Western Australia
Let’s start with one of the odder road rules on this list. In WA, you can’t transport more than 50kg of potatoes unless you’re a member of a potato corporation – weird hey.
This law was introduced during the Great Depression and World War II to help regulate food.
Break this rule and you face a hefty $2000 fine. Break it again, and the fine increases to $5000.
2. No shortcuts
Where: South Australia, New South Wales
Picture this: there’s a line of traffic in front of you at an intersection and you want to turn left at the next road. You notice there’s a service station with driveways on both corners.
Like a scene out of Mario Kart, you take a shortcut and drive through the petrol station to skip the traffic lights and beat the traffic. In South Australia, police can charge you with driving on or over a footpath if you’re caught cutting a corner.
The same rule applies in New South Wales, with offenders receiving a $349 fine and three demerit points.
3. No horsing around
Where: Queensland
In the Sunshine State you need to give way to a ‘restive horse’. To save you Googling what that means, the definition of a restive horse is one that’s refusing to advance, stubbornly standing still or moving backward and sideways.
If you see one when you’re driving or if the rider signals to you that they’re having trouble, pull over to the left side of the road, turn your engine off and wait. Once the horse settles, you’re free to go.
If you fail to give way to a restive horse, you could be slapped with a $130 fine.
