South Australia School Zones: 25 km/h vs the New 40 km/h Limit, Times (8am to 9:30am, 2pm to 4pm) and Which Schools Are Done (Adelaide, SA)

In South Australia the speed limit near a school is 25 km/h inside a signed school zone, at a flashing children’s crossing and when passing a stopped school bus, and on many main roads it is now 40 km/h during school drop-off and pick-up times: 8:00am to 9:30am and 2:00pm to 4:00pm on school days. The 40 km/h limit does not replace the 25 km/h school zones on local streets.

This guide follows the MyLicence SA school safety page, the DIT 40 km/h school speed limits project page and the DIT frequently asked questions, all read on 7 November 2026. Where the pages do not answer a question, we say so.

What is the difference between the 25 km/h and 40 km/h school limits?

	25 km/h school zone	40 km/h school speed limit
Where	Within signed school zones; flashing children’s crossings; a stopped school bus	Roads near schools with a speed limit of 50 km/h or higher, aimed at school pedestrian actuated crossings on busy roads
When	The DIT says the 25 km/h limit in school zones applies whenever a child is present, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, year-round	School days only: 8:00am to 9:30am and 2:00pm to 4:00pm
Not in force	No days are excluded in the DIT’s description	Weekends, school holidays and public holidays
Signs	School zone signs, with zigzag lines on the road where feasible	“40 ahead” sign 60 to 80 metres before, then a school precinct sign; some sites have an electronic sign that lights up when the limit is on
Relationship	Stays in place	Does not replace or remove 25 km/h school zones on local streets

MyLicence SA puts it this way: 40 km/h school speed limits do not replace 25 km/h school zones. The DIT adds that the new 40 km/h limits will not be introduced where a location already has a school zone, a koala crossing or an emu crossing, because those places already have a 25 km/h limit when they are in operation or when children are present.

When does the 40 km/h school limit apply?

The limit applies on school days, from 8:00am to 9:30am for morning drop-off and from 2:00pm to 4:00pm for afternoon pick-up. It does not apply on weekends, school holidays and public holidays. School days are defined by the Department for Education, which publishes the term dates for South Australian state schools on its website. The DIT says the times were chosen with the Department for Education, based on typical school drop-off and pick-up patterns, so that drivers get a consistent approach across the state.

The DIT says that the limit is permanent and that speed cameras will be updated to enforce 40 km/h during the set times once a site has both static and electronic signs installed. Enforcement stays at the pre-existing speed limit at all other times. New safety cameras will be installed at some locations that did not have one before, the DIT says.

Which roads and how much of the road does 40 km/h cover?

The DIT says locations were chosen after a review of school precincts on state-maintained roads, looking at the school’s proximity to busy roads, traffic speed and volumes, crash history and existing speed limits. The reduced limit covers road sections of around 200 metres before and after a school entrance or an area with high pedestrian activity, such as a popular crossing point. The length may be extended where several schools are close together, and each site is assessed individually.

The DIT also says parking is not affected by the speed limit change, and normal signed parking rules still apply near schools.

Which Adelaide schools have the 40 km/h limit?

The DIT lists the schools by council area, split into completed sites and sites to be delivered in late 2026 (operational for the start of the 2027 school year). The first locations rolled out were Goodwood Primary School and St Thomas School on Goodwood Road, Goodwood, and Marryatville High School on Kensington Road, Marryatville. The table below gives the DIT’s list for metropolitan Adelaide councils as published; the DIT’s page also lists country councils.

Council	Completed sites (DIT list)	Due late 2026
City of Burnside	Seymour College (Portrush Road, Glen Osmond); Magill School (Magill Road and Penfold Road); Burnside Primary School (Glynburn Road)	Linden Park Primary School (Portrush Road)
Campbelltown City Council	Charles Campbell College (Gorge Road, Paradise); East Torrens Primary School and St Joseph’s School Hectorville (Montacute Road); St Francis of Assisi School (Newton Road); St Joseph’s School Tranmere (Magill Road); St Ignatius’ College (Gorge Road, Athelstone)	Morialta Secondary College (St Bernards Road, Rostrevor)
City of Charles Sturt	Flinders Park Primary School; Hendon Primary School; Kilkenny Primary School; Nazareth Catholic College (Middle School); Seaton High School (an existing site receiving updated signs); Henley High School; Adelaide Secondary School of English; other Nazareth Catholic College campuses; St Michael’s College Primary Campus; St Joseph’s School Hindmarsh; Woodville Primary School	Bowden Brompton Community School Brompton Campus; Brompton Primary School; Challa Gardens Primary School; Woodville High School
City of Holdfast Bay	Brighton Primary School; Brighton Secondary School; Seacliff Primary School; Sacred Heart College Marcellin Campus (all on or near Brighton Road)	Glenelg Primary School (Diagonal Road and Brighton Road)
City of Marion	Sunrise Christian School; IQRA College; Forbes Primary School; Sacred Heart College Champagnat Campus; Clovelly Park Primary School; St Martin De Porres School; Seaview High School	Ascot Park Primary School; Hamilton Secondary School; Marion Primary School; Warradale Primary School; Westminster School
City of Mitcham	Cabra Dominican College; Mercedes College; Mitcham Girls High School; Westbourne Park Primary School; Colonel Light Gardens Primary School; Bellevue Heights Primary School; Belair Primary School; St John’s Grammar School; Scotch College; Coromandel Valley Primary School; Urrbrae Agricultural High School	Blackwood High School; Blackwood Primary School; Springbank Secondary College; St Therese School
City of Norwood Payneham and St Peters	Prince Alfred College (Dequetteville Terrace); Marryatville High School (Kensington Road); St Peter’s College (North Terrace, Hackney)	Felixstow Primary School; Loreto College; Marryatville Primary School; Mary MacKillop College; St Ignatius’ College Junior School; St Joseph’s Memorial School; St Joseph’s School Payneham; Trinity Gardens School
City of Onkaparinga	Bowden Brompton Community School Beach Campus; Cardjin College Marcellin Campus; Christies Beach High School; Flagstaff Hill Primary School; Morphett Vale Primary School; Reynella South Primary School; Craigburn Primary School	Calvary Lutheran Primary School (Beach Road, Morphett Vale)
City of Playford	Hope Christian College; Angle Vale Primary School; Elizabeth South Primary School; Playford International College	Elizabeth Vale Primary School
City of Port Adelaide Enfield	Avenues College; Portside Christian College; Roma Mitchell Secondary College; Dominican School Semaphore; Hampstead Primary School; St Margaret Mary’s School; St Paul’s College; Le Fevre Peninsula Primary School; Ocean View College	Enfield Primary School; Our Lady of the Sacred Heart College; Our Lady of the Visitation School and Preschool
City of Prospect	Nailsworth Primary School; Prospect North Primary School	Blackfriars Priory School (Prospect Road)
City of Salisbury	Thomas More College; Salisbury East High School; Salisbury Primary School; St Augustine’s Parish School; Ingle Farm Primary School; Good Shepherd Lutheran School; Para Vista Primary School; Prescott Primary Northern	Parafield Gardens High School; Parafield Gardens Primary School; Paralowie School
City of Tea Tree Gully	Golden Grove High School; Gleeson College; Pedare Christian College; Torrens Valley Christian School; Modbury School P-6	Our Lady of Hope School; St Agnes Primary School
City of Unley	Goodwood Primary School; Parkside Primary School; St Thomas School; Walford Anglican School for Girls and Junior School; Black Forest Primary School	Glen Osmond Primary School (Glen Osmond Road, Myrtle Bank)
Town of Walkerville	Wilderness School (Northcote Terrace, Medindie)	Vale Park Primary School; Walkerville Primary School
City of West Torrens	Plympton Primary School; Temple Christian College; St Francis School; St John The Baptist Catholic Primary School; St John Bosco School; Emmaus Christian College	None listed

The DIT says that speed limits are enforced from the date of completion at each site, and that all new limits will be operational in time for the start of the 2027 school year. That means a school in the “due late 2026” column may not have a working 40 km/h limit yet, and the list may have moved on since we read it. The only reliable check is the sign on the road.

How are the 40 km/h school areas signed?

The DIT says a “40 ahead” sign will be placed 60 to 80 metres, depending on site conditions, before the zone, followed by the 40 km/h school precinct sign at the start of the designated area. Side streets within the precinct get bidirectional arrow “time of operation” signs. Selected sites have an electronic 40 km/h sign that lights up when the limit is in operation, and the DIT is prioritising those signs at sites with road safety cameras. MyLicence SA says school zones themselves are signed, with zigzag lines marked on the road where feasible.

The DIT warns that it cannot keep third-party navigation apps up to date, because the limits are time-based. It recommends that all road users follow the signage at each site and observe time-based limits at all times.

Do the 40 km/h and 25 km/h rules apply to a children’s crossing or a school bus?

The 25 km/h limit applies at children’s crossings when the lights are flashing, and when passing a school bus that has stopped to pick up or drop off children. MyLicence SA gives these as 25 km/h cases alongside school zones. The page does not give further detail about the crossings or about the bus rules, and we have not added any from other sources.

What about fines and demerit points?

We have not published a fine amount or a demerit point total. The MyLicence school safety page does not give them, and we did not confirm a current figure on an official page. To check the penalty, use the South Australia Police or MyLicence pages on speeding penalties, which the DIT also names among its information channels. The DIT says the money paid for camera-detected speeding fines goes into the Community Road Safety Fund.

What has not been confirmed?

• Fine and demerit point amounts for speeding in a school zone or in a 40 km/h school area.
• Which schools have been completed since the DIT list we read; the “due late 2026” sites may switch on at any time before the start of the 2027 school year.
• The school-day dates for 2026 and 2027. The DIT refers to the Department for Education’s term dates; we have not reproduced them.
• Whether a given school’s 40 km/h limit is already enforced by camera. The DIT says cameras are updated once both static and electronic signs are in place at a site.

We will update this guide if the DIT changes its list or the times. For questions about the rollout, the DIT engagement team lists 1300 794 880 and DIT.Engagement@sa.gov.au.

Sources

• MyLicence SA — School safety (25 km/h zones, 40 km/h times, signs)
• DIT — 40 km/h school speed limits (timing, first sites, list of schools by council)
• DIT — 40 km/h school speed limits: frequently asked questions (scope, length of road, signage, cameras, parking, existing 25 km/h zones)

Featured image: Goodwood Road at Goodwood, October 2026 (photo: Yu Chu Chin / CC BY-SA 4.0) (text added)

OZ Local Updates is an independent local guide and is not affiliated with the Department for Infrastructure and Transport, MyLicence SA or the South Australian Government. Road rules and school lists can change; check the signs and the official pages.