{"id":"roads-opening-and-closing-regulations-2021","name":"Roads (Opening and Closing) Regulations 2021","slug":"roads-opening-and-closing-regulations-2021","collection":"regulation","jurisdiction":"sa","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":null,"makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":237110,"registerId":"sa-roads-opening-and-closing-regulations-2021-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-06","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Roads (Opening and Closing) Regulations 2021","content":"South Australia\nRoads (Opening and Closing) Regulations 2021\nunder the Roads (Opening and Closing) Act 1991\n\nContents\n1\tShort title\n2\tCommencement\n3\tInterpretation\n4\tPrescribed public utilities\n5\tPrescribed public authorities\n6\tPublic notice of proposed road process\n7\tForm of objection to proposed road process\n8\tForm of application for easement\n9\tNotice of discontinuance of road opening\n10\tAdelaide Park Lands—information\n11\tAdelaide Park Lands—public notice of application\n12\tAdelaide Park Lands—road closure processes\nSchedule 1—Revocation of Roads (Opening and Closing) Regulations 2006\nLegislative history\n\n1—Short title\nThese regulations may be cited as the Roads (Opening and Closing) Regulations 2021.\n2—Commencement\nThese regulations come into operation on the day on which they are made.\n3—Interpretation\nIn these regulations, unless the contrary intention appears—\nAct means the Roads (Opening and Closing) Act 1991;\nunmade road means a road that is not sealed with bitumen (or other surfacing material) for use by motor vehicles.\n4—Prescribed public utilities\nFor the purposes of the definition of prescribed public utility in section 3(1) of the Act, the following are declared:\n\t(a)\tDistribution Lessor Corporation;\n\t(b)\tTransmission Lessor Corporation;\n\t(c)\ta person who holds a licence under the Electricity Act 1996, authorising the operation of a transmission or distribution network;\n\t(d)\tAustralian Gas Networks (SA) Ltd;\n\t(e)\tSouth Australian Water Corporation;\n\t(f)\tTelstra Corporation Limited;\n\t(g)\tEpic Energy South Australia Pty Ltd;\n\t(h)\tNBN Co Ltd.\n5—Prescribed public authorities\nFor the purposes of paragraph (d) of the definition of person affected in section 3(1) of the Act, the following are prescribed public authorities in relation to land of the class prescribed:\n\t(a)\tthe Commissioner of Highways, in relation to land vested in, or under the care, control and management of, the Commissioner in accordance with the Highways Act 1926 that adjoins land subject to a road process or proposed road process or that is near such land and may be affected by the road process or proposed road process;\n\t(b)\tthe Coast Protection Board, in relation to land within a coast protection district constituted under Part 3 of the Coast Protection Act 1972 that is subject to, or adjoins land that is subject to, a road process or proposed road process;\n\t(c)\tthe National Parks and Wildlife Service, in relation to land within a national park, conservation park, game reserve, recreation park or regional reserve constituted under the National Parks and Wildlife Act 1972 that adjoins land that is subject to a road process or proposed road process;\n\t(d)\tthe Native Vegetation Council, in relation to land subject to a road opening or proposed road opening on which native vegetation within the meaning of the Native Vegetation Act 1991 is growing;\n\t(e)\tthe administrative unit responsible for assisting the Minister for Recreation, Sport and Racing, in relation to land forming the whole or a part of an unmade road that is subject to a road closure or proposed road closure.\n6—Public notice of proposed road process\n\t(1)\tFor the purposes of section 10 of the Act, public notice of a proposed road process must be given in accordance with this regulation.\n\t(2)\tThe notice of a proposed road process must—\n\t(a)\tdescribe, with reasonable particularity, the nature of the proposal; and\n\t(b)\tspecify, by means of a clear and accurate diagram, or other description determined by the Surveyor-General, the land subject to the proposed road process; and\n\t(c)\twhere the proposed road process is or includes a road closure—specify the manner in which it is intended to deal with each part of the land that is subject to the closure; and\n\t(d)\tstate the address of an office of the council and the times at which the preliminary plan and statement prepared by the council in accordance with section 9 of the Act are available for examination by the public and indicate that the plan and statement are also available for inspection on request at the Adelaide office of the Surveyor-General during normal office hours; and\n\t(e)\tstate that any person who objects to the proposal may lodge a written objection for the consideration of the relevant authority at a meeting of the authority, and indicate—\n\t(i)\tthe time within which such an objection must be made; and\n\t(ii)\twhere the objection should be lodged; and\n\t(iii)\tthe information that the objection should contain; and\n\t(f)\tif the proposed road process is or includes a road closure—state that an adjoining landowner or other person substantially affected by the closure who wishes to apply for an easement over any part of the land subject to the closure may do so in accordance with these regulations, and indicate—\n\t(i)\tthe time within which such an application must be made; and\n\t(ii)\twhere the application should be lodged; and\n\t(iii)\tthe information that the application should contain.\n\t(3)\tThe notice must be published in the Gazette and—\n\t(a)\ton a website determined by the Minister; or\n\t(b)\tin a daily newspaper circulating generally in the area in which the proposed road process is to be undertaken.\n7—Form of objection to proposed road process\n\t(1)\tFor the purposes of section 13(3) of the Act, a notice of objection to a proposed road process must comply with this regulation.\n\t(2)\tThe notice must—\n\t(a)\tbe in writing; and\n\t(b)\tset out the full name and address of the person making the objection; and\n\t(c)\tstate with reasonable particularity the reasons for the objection; and\n\t(d)\tstate whether the objector wishes to make submissions to the relevant authority at any meeting held by the authority to consider objections and applications made in relation to the proposed road process.\n8—Form of application for easement\n\t(1)\tFor the purposes of section 13(3) of the Act, a notice of application for the grant of an easement over land subject to a proposed road closure must comply with this regulation.\n\t(2)\tThe application must—\n\t(a)\tbe in writing; and\n\t(b)\tset out the full name and address of the person applying for the grant; and\n\t(c)\tgive full particulars of the nature and location of the easement that is being applied for; and\n\t(d)\tif the application is made by a person as the owner of adjoining or nearby land—specify the land to which the easement is to be annexed; and\n\t(e)\tstate with reasonable particularity the reasons for the application for the grant of the easement.\n9—Notice of discontinuance of road opening\n\t(1)\tFor the purposes of section 15(3)(c), 19(b)(ii), 20(3)(b) or 24(2)(b)(ii) of the Act, if a proposed road opening is discontinued in respect of the whole or a part of the land that was subject to the proposed opening, a notice of discontinuance given by a council or the relevant authority to a person who has an interest in that land must be given in accordance with this regulation.\n\t(2)\tThe notice of discontinuance must—\n\t(a)\tstate that notice of a proposed road opening over land in which the person has an interest was given under the Act and specify—\n\t(i)\tthe date of that notice; and\n\t(ii)\tthe name of the council that commenced the road opening; and\n\t(b)\tindicate that the road opening has been discontinued in respect of the whole or a part of that land; and\n\t(c)\tspecify, by means of a diagram or written description or a combination of the 2, the land that is no longer subject to the proposed road opening; and\n\t(d)\tstate that the person may, by written notice served on the council, claim compensation from the council in accordance with section 32 of the Act and indicate—\n\t(i)\tthe time within which such a claim must be made; and\n\t(ii)\twhere the claim should be lodged; and\n\t(iii)\tthe matters, specified in Part 3 of the Land Acquisition Act 1969, in respect of which compensation may be claimed.\n10—Adelaide Park Lands—information\n\t(1)\tFor the purposes of section 34G(2)(b) of the Act, an application in accordance with section 6B of the Act must comply with this regulation.\n\t(2)\tThe application must include the following matters:\n\t(a)\tthe applicant's reasons for making the application; and\n\t(b)\tevidence that the applicant has undertaken research or consulted on the potential impacts of the proposal; and\n\t(c)\tfindings resulting from the research or consultations provided by the applicant under paragraph (b); and\n\t(d)\tevidence that the applicant has considered and investigated alternative options, and the basis for the decision to proceed with the proposal.\n11—Adelaide Park Lands—public notice of application\n\t(1)\tFor the purposes of section 34G(4)(a) of the Act, public notice of an application must be given in accordance with this regulation.\n\t(2)\tThe notice of an application must—\n\t(a)\tdescribe, with reasonable particularity, the nature of the proposal; and\n\t(b)\tspecify, by means of a clear and accurate diagram, or other description determined by the Surveyor-General—\n\t(i)\tthe land subject to the proposal; and\n\t(ii)\tthe effect on any land adjoining the relevant road, including any loss of land as a result of the proposal; and\n\t(c)\tif the proposal includes a road closure—specify the manner in which it is intended to deal with each part of the land that is subject to the closure; and\n\t(d)\tstate the address of an office and the times at which the information provided by the applicant under section 34G(2) of the Act is available for examination by the public and indicate that the information is also available for inspection on request at the Adelaide office of the Surveyor-General during normal office hours; and\n\t(e)\tstate that any person who objects to the proposal or wishes to comment on the proposal may lodge a written objection or provide a written comment for the consideration of the applicant, and indicate—\n\t(i)\twhere the objection or comment should be lodged; and\n\t(ii)\tthe information that the objection or comment should contain, including the full name and address of the person making the objection or comment; and\n\t(iii)\tthe time within which the objection or comment should be made in accordance with section 34G(5) of the Act; and\n\t(f)\tif the proposal is or includes a road closure—state that an adjoining landowner or other person substantially affected by the closure who wishes to apply for an easement over any part of the land subject to the closure may do so in accordance with regulation 8.\n\t(3)\tThe notice must be published in the Gazette and—\n\t(a)\ton a website determined by the Minister; or\n\t(b)\tin a daily newspaper circulating generally throughout the State.\n12—Adelaide Park Lands—road closure processes\nIn accordance with section 34G(15) of the Act, Parts 4 and 8 of the Act are modified to the extent necessary to ensure that the following provisions may take effect:\n\t(a)\tthe order made by the Minister under that section will operate under those Parts of the Act as if it were a road process order;\n\t(b)\tthe Minister may issue a closed road title certificate so that the land to which the certificate relates may be vested in the Crown and merged with adjoining land;\n\t(c)\tif the Minister so indicates in an order under section 34G of the Act or in a closed road title certificate, the land will be taken to be placed under the care, control and management of The Corporation of the City of Adelaide as park lands;\n\t(d)\tthe Registrar-General may take such action as is necessary to give effect to an order of the Minister under section 34G of the Act, or to any provision made by this regulation;\n\t(e)\tto the extent that the Commissioner of Highways makes an alteration to a road that is fenced along one or both of its boundaries—the Commissioner will be responsible for ensuring that the road as altered is fenced along its boundaries with a fence of the same nature as the fence previously on the boundary of the road and abutting the land.\nSchedule 1—Revocation of Roads (Opening and Closing) Regulations 2006\nThe Roads (Opening and Closing) Regulations 2006 are revoked.\nLegislative history\nNotes\n\t•\tFor further information relating to the Act and subordinate legislation made under the Act see the Index of South Australian Statutes or www.legislation.sa.gov.au.\nPrincipal regulations\nYear\nNo\nReference\nCommencement\n2021\n63\nGazette 3.6.2021 p1832 \n3.6.2021: r 2\n","sortOrder":0}],"analysis":{"flash_summary_failed":{"failed":true,"reason":"A positive credit balance is required for all requests, including BYOK, so fallback providers remain available. Add credits at https://vercel.com/d?to=%2F%5Bteam%5D%2F%7E%2Fai%3Fmodal%3Dtop-up to continue.","source":"analysis-cron"},"issue_detection":{"absurdities":[],"contradictions":[]},"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":4,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The regulations appear consistent with their original purpose under the Roads (Opening and Closing) Act 1991. They prescribe procedural details, specify affected parties, and create special provisions for the Adelaide Park Lands—all within the expected scope of subordinate legislation supporting the parent Act. The 2021 version replaces the 2006 regulations without apparent expansion beyond the Act's framework."},"complexity_factors":["Moderate cross-referencing to the parent Act (Roads (Opening and Closing) Act 1991) with multiple specific section citations (e.g., sections 10, 13, 15, 34G)","8 defined entities in regulations 4-5 (prescribed public utilities and authorities)","Detailed procedural requirements with multiple sub-paragraphs (e.g., regulation 6(2) has 6 lettered paragraphs with nested roman numerals)","Conditional logic requiring different notice contents depending on whether the process involves road closure vs opening (regulation 6(2)(c) and (f))","Specific modifications to Act provisions for Adelaide Park Lands requiring careful tracking of which Parts of the Act are modified (regulation 12)","Dual publication requirements (Gazette plus website or newspaper) with geographic variations (local vs statewide circulation)"],"plain_english_summary":"These regulations set out the practical rules for how roads can be opened (created) or closed (removed from public use) in South Australia. They work alongside the main Roads (Opening and Closing) Act 1991.\n\n**What the regulations do:**\n\n*   **Define who counts as important stakeholders** — they list specific organisations that must be notified about road changes, including electricity companies, gas networks, water suppliers, Telstra, the NBN, highway authorities, and environmental bodies like the Native Vegetation Council.\n\n*   **Set notice requirements** — councils must publish details of proposed road changes in the Government Gazette and either online or in local newspapers. Notices must include maps, explain what will happen to the land, and tell people how to object.\n\n*   **Explain how to object or apply for access rights** — they provide standard forms for people who want to object to a road closure/opening, or who want to apply for an easement (a legal right to use someone else's land, such as for a driveway or utility line) over land being closed.\n\n*   **Cover compensation claims** — if a planned road opening is cancelled after someone has already been affected, the regulations specify how councils must notify affected people and how those people can claim compensation.\n\n*   **Special rules for Adelaide Park Lands** — they create extra consultation and transparency requirements for any road changes affecting Adelaide's unique park lands system, including requiring applicants to show they've researched alternatives and consulted the community.\n\n**Who it affects:**\n\n*   Local councils proposing road changes\n*   Landowners next to roads being opened or closed\n*   Utility companies (power, water, gas, telecommunications)\n*   Anyone wanting to object to road changes or claim compensation\n*   The Minister and Surveyor-General who oversee the process\n\n**Why it matters:**\n\nRoads are public assets, and closing or opening them affects property values, access rights, and community infrastructure. These regulations ensure the process is transparent, gives affected people a fair chance to have their say, and protects important environmental and heritage areas like the Adelaide Park Lands."},"summary":{"complexity_score":1,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"Scope cannot be assessed as the legislative text was not accessible. The page returned an error, meaning no comparison between original intent and final form is possible."},"complexity_factors":["No legislative content was provided — the source URL returned a 404 Page Not Found error","Analysis is impossible without the actual text of the regulations","Complexity score is set to 1 by default due to absence of content, not because the legislation itself is simple"],"plain_english_summary":"Based on its title, the Roads (Opening and Closing) Regulations 2021 (SA) would set procedural rules for formally opening and closing public roads in South Australia, affecting landowners, developers, local councils, government agencies and road users. The actual text could not be retrieved (link returns “Page Not Found”), so no substantive analysis is possible—search the South Australian legislation site for the document."},"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":3,"scope_assessment":{"changed":true,"description":"The regulations revoke the Roads (Opening and Closing) Regulations 2006 (Schedule 1) and replace subordinate rules by prescribing new lists of public utilities and public authorities, specifying detailed contents and publication channels for notices, standardising objection/easement forms and introducing a bespoke Adelaide Park Lands procedure (regs 4–12). This alters the practical scope and administrative requirements that implement the Act compared with the prior regulations."},"complexity_factors":["Direct cross‑references to multiple sections of the Roads (Opening and Closing) Act 1991 (eg reg 6 refers to s 10; regs 7–9 refer to s 13, s 15 and other Act provisions) — requires users to read both instruments.","Prescriptive lists of prescribed public utilities (reg 4) and public authorities tied to land classes (reg 5) — affects which bodies must be consulted or notified.","Detailed, form‑like content requirements for notices, objections and applications (regs 6(2), 7(2), 8(2), 9(2), 10(2), 11(2)) — creates concrete compliance tasks for councils, applicants and objectors.","Publication and availability obligations (regs 6(3), 6(2)(d), 11(3)) — requires Gazette publication plus a Minister‑determined website or local newspaper, and physical inspection points.","Adelaide Park Lands special regime (regs 10–12) that modifies Parts 4 and 8 of the Act, enables Ministerial orders to operate as road process orders, authorises closed road title certificates and vests land with the Crown or City of Adelaide — adds bespoke administrative powers and vesting mechanics.","Discrete administrative discretions: Minister determines website and may make orders (regs 6(3), 11(3), 12(a)); Surveyor‑General may determine diagram/description formats (regs 6(2)(b), 11(2)(b)); Registrar‑General and Commissioner of Highways have implementation duties (reg 12(d)–(e)).","Revocation of the 2006 Regulations (Schedule 1) — creates a regulatory changeover that may require stakeholders to adapt procedures."],"plain_english_summary":"These regulations update the procedural rules under the Roads (Opening and Closing) Act 1991: they name which public utilities and authorities are prescribed, set required wording, diagrams and publication channels for public notices, standardise forms for objections, easement applications and discontinuance notices, add information requirements for Adelaide Park Lands applications, and revoke the 2006 regulations. They affect councils, adjoining landowners, prescribed utilities and agencies by imposing specific filing, publication and information duties and by allocating decision roles to the Minister, Surveyor‑General and relevant authorities."}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/roads-opening-and-closing-regulations-2021","history":"/api/acts/roads-opening-and-closing-regulations-2021/history","analysis":"/api/acts/roads-opening-and-closing-regulations-2021/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/roads-opening-and-closing-regulations-2021/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/roads-opening-and-closing-regulations-2021/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/roads-opening-and-closing-regulations-2021/documents"}}