Australian National University Act 1973

Who does it affect?

Anyone who drives or parks a vehicle on ANU land in the ACT — not just students and staff. The rules apply to all members of the public who use University roads and car parks.

Key safeguards built in

• ANU rules cannot override ACT law: If an ANU traffic Statute conflicts with an ACT law, the ACT law wins. The ANU's rules only operate in the space that ACT law leaves available.
• Public streets stay public: If the ANU regulates access to a road that would otherwise be a public street, that road doesn't stop being a public street under ACT law — other legal rights on public streets are preserved.
• Evidentiary shortcuts: In enforcement proceedings, if a sign or road marking is shown to exist on ANU land, it is presumed to have been lawfully placed there (the person contesting it would need to prove otherwise). Similarly, a prosecutor's statement that land belongs to the ANU is taken as correct unless disproved.

Why does this matter?

Before this Act, the ANU had no clear legislative authority to run its own traffic and parking regime separate from the general ACT road laws. This Act plugs that gap, giving the University a tidy, self-contained legal framework to manage the roads and car parks on its campus.