Control of Roads Act 1953 (Northern Territory)

The Control of Roads Act 1953 vests the legal ownership and the day-to-day care, control and management of most roads in the Northern Territory in the Territory, administered by the Minister (s 7). It defines what counts as a road for the purposes of the Act and then gives the Minister broad statutory powers to form, maintain, alter, close, open and dispose of roads, to erect road-side works and to recover costs when the Minister must remove unauthorised works or obstructions (Parts 3 and 4; notably ss 8-15, 23). The Act establishes a procedural regime for opening, altering and closing roads: the Surveyor‑General must prepare and deposit plans and lists of adjoining owners (s 17), the Surveyor‑General must publish notices and maintain the plan for inspection (s 18), there is a 28‑day objection window (s 20), and the Minister must act within statutory time windows to make orders or deposit amended plans (ss 21-22, 22A). An order published in the Gazette vests land into the Territory and triggers a range of transactional powers (s 23).

The Act creates administrative powers and regulatory controls over activity on roads. The Minister may licence cutting of timber, quarrying, erection of petrol pumps and cattle ramps on roads and may impose conditions or cancel licences in absolute discretion (s 13). The Minister may close roads temporarily or impose use restrictions, and the statute prescribes signage, public notice mechanisms and offences for unauthorised driving on closed or restricted roads (s 11). The Act also enables the Minister to require occupiers to remove trees or erect fences where growth or drift material threatens roads and to recover costs as a debt (ss 10, 12). Where a road closure results in Crown land that is to be offered to adjoining owners, the Act lays down an offer and tender process (s 24), and provides that land may become Crown land if not acquired within one year (s 25).

NORTHERN TERRITORY OF AUSTRALIA CONTROL OF ROADS ACT 1953 As in force at 10 February 2026 Table of provisions Part 1 Preliminary matters 1 Short title ......................................................................................... 1 2 Commencement .............................................................................. 1 5 Interpretation ................................................................................... 1 Part 2 Administration 7 Roads etc. vested in Territory .......................................................... 3 7B Delegation ....................................................................................... 3 Part 3 General powers of Minister 8 Power to form, maintain, drain etc. roads ........................................ 3 9 Power to plant trees etc. .................................................................. 3 10 Trees etc. obstructing or damaging roads ....................................... 4 11 Minister may close road temporarily or restrict use of road ............. 4 12 Minister may require fence, wall or other structure to be erected for prevention of certain hazards ........................................ 6 13 Minister may license timber cutting, quarrying, and other activities on a road........................................................................... 6 14 Power to construct temporary roads and remove trees or other growing things ................................................................................. 7 Part 4 Opening and closing of roads 14A Definition.......................................................................................... 8 15 Power to close and open roads ....................................................... 8 16 Agreement for exchange ................................................................. 8 17 Proceedings to open, alter etc. roads .............................................. 9 18 Duties of Surveyor-General ............................................................. 9 20 Person may object to proposal ........................................................ 9 21 Procedure where no objection received ........................................ 10 22 Procedure where objection received ............................................. 10 22A Certain provisions to apply where proposal amended after objection ........................................................................................ 10 23 Effect of order ................................................................................ 11 24 Land to be offered to adjoining owners.......................................... 11 25 In certain cases land may become Crown lands ........................... 12 26 Reservations .................................................................................. 13 27 Administrator or Minister empowered to amend existing lease...... 13

Control of Roads Act 1953 ii 28 Easements etc. preserved ............................................................. 13 29 Registrar-General to correct Register books etc............................ 13 30 Prohibition of removal to the Supreme Court ................................. 14 31 Compensation ............................................................................... 14 31A Compensation ............................................................................... 14 32 Closing of certain roads ................................................................. 16 33 Order may affect more than one road ............................................ 16 34 Duty to fence ................................................................................. 16 35 Minister may declare private streets etc. to be roads .................... 17 36 Application of Land Title Act 2000 ................................................. 17 Part 6 Miscellaneous matters 51 Metal projections etc. on tyres ....................................................... 17 52 Vehicle or object to have wheels fitted .......................................... 17 53 Caterpillar type tractors ................................................................. 18 54 Certain acts forbidden ................................................................... 18 54A Use of immobilising devices .......................................................... 19 55 Person not to stop vehicle etc. on bridges or culverts ................... 19 56 Vehicles etc. to be removed from bridges and culverts ................. 19 57 Timber etc. fixed to roads not to be damaged etc.......................... 20 58 Person not to cut timber, quarry, erect petrol pumps or cattle ramps without licence .................................................................... 20 59 Houses and other obstructions on roads ....................................... 20 60A Approval to drive air cushioned vehicle ......................................... 21 61 Liability of owner and actual offender ............................................ 22 62 Regulations.................................................................................... 22 Part 7 Transitional matters for Northern Territory Civil and Administrative Tribunal (Conferral of Jurisdiction Amendments) (No. 2) Act 2014 63 Application before former Tribunal................................................. 23 ENDNOTES

NORTHERN TERRITORY OF AUSTRALIA

As in force at 10 February 2026

CONTROL OF ROADS ACT 1953 An Act to provide for the administration and control of roads Part 1 Preliminary matters 1 Short title This Act may be cited as the Control of Roads Act 1953. 2 Commencement This Act shall come into operation on a date to be fixed by the Administrator by notice in the Gazette. 5 Interpretation (1) In this Act: adjoining owner means an owner in fee simple of land, or a lessee of Crown lands, of land which is contiguous to, or affected by, land comprising a road, or a part of a road. attached, in relation to the connection between a prime mover and a trailer, includes connected indirectly through another trailer. pneumatic tyre means a tyre consisting of a flexible elastic shell inflated with air, with or without an inner tube. rigid, as applied to a vehicle, means that the longitudinal axis of the vehicle cannot deviate from a straight line in a horizontal direction. road means, subject to subsection (2): (a) all streets, roads, courts, alleys, thoroughfares and culs-de-sac which were, immediately before the date when this Act comes into operation, public streets, roads, courts, alleys, thoroughfares, or culs-de-sac within the meaning of any law then in force in the Northern Territory; or

Part 1 Preliminary matters Control of Roads Act 1953 2 (c) land which, whether before or after the date when this Act comes into operation: (i) is proclaimed, dedicated, resumed or otherwise established as a public street, road or thoroughfare; or (ii) is opened as a road or is declared to be a road by the Minister pursuant to this Act; or (iii) is reserved or left as a road in a subdivision of Crown land; or (iv) is conveyed or transferred to the Territory in fee simple and is accepted by the Territory as a road; or (v) not being Crown land leased for purposes which include the construction of a road at the expense of the lessee, is used as a thoroughfare passing through or over Crown land whether alienated or otherwise. Surveyor-General, see section 4 of the Licensed Surveyors Act 1983. width means: (a) in relation to a vehicle, including an articulated vehicle: (i) in the case of a vehicle to which a trailer is attached, the distance from one side of the vehicle, the trailer, a projecting part of the vehicle, the trailer or the load of the vehicle or trailer, to the other side of the vehicle, the trailer, a projecting part of the vehicle, the trailer or load of the vehicle or trailer, whichever is the greatest; or (ii) in any other case, the distance from one side of the vehicle, a projecting part of the vehicle or its load, to the other side of the vehicle, a projecting part of the vehicle or its load, whichever is the greatest; or (b) in relation to a tyre, the width of the surface of the tyre which ordinarily comes into contact with the surface of the road; or (c) in relation to tyres on a group of co-axial wheels on one side of the longitudinal centre line of a vehicle, the sum of the widths of the surfaces of those tyres which ordinarily come into contact with the surface of the road. Note for subsection (1) The Interpretation Act 1978 contains definitions and other provisions that may be relevant to this Act.

Part 3 General powers of Minister Control of Roads Act 1953 3 (2) For Parts 3 and 4, road does not include a road that is under the care, control and management of a local government council. Part 2 Administration 7 Roads etc. vested in Territory Subject to section 64 of the Planning Act 1999 and Part 12.3 of the Local Government Act 2019, all roads in the Northern Territory, together with the timber growing on those roads and all bridges, culverts, water-tables, kerbs, gutters, footpaths, lamps, direction boards, kilometre posts, rails, posts, walls, chains, fences and other things erected on or affixed to those roads are the property of and vested in the Territory and are under the care, control and management of the Minister. 7B Delegation The Minister may delegate any of the Minister's functions and powers under this Act. Part 3 General powers of Minister 8 Power to form, maintain, drain etc. roads (1) The Minister may form, pave, drain, level and repair roads and footpaths, alter the levels of roads and footpaths, erect or construct bridges, culverts, water-tables, kerbs, gutters, lamps, direction boards, kilometre posts, rails, posts, walls, chains and fences, erect or build, or cause to be erected or built, a house or other building, verandah, structure or road side facility on or at the side of a road and may drain water from roads into or through adjacent land. (2) The owner in fee simple, or the lessee under a Crown Lease, of land into or through which water is drained from a road, may claim compensation from the Territory except where the drainage follows the natural fall of the ground. 9 Power to plant trees etc. (1) The Minister may cause trees, shrubs, gardens or lawns to be planted at the side of a road and tree-guards, stakes or other supports to be erected. (2) The Territory is not liable for any damage to property which results from the planting of a tree, shrub, garden or lawn at the side of a road or from the existence of a tree or shrub growing in a road whether caused to be planted by the Minister or not.

Part 3 General powers of Minister Control of Roads Act 1953 4 (3) The Minister may cause to be: (a) pulled down or demolished a house, building, verandah, hedge, fence or structure or other obstruction erected, built or placed on a road; and (b) filled in a ditch, drain, gutter, sink or watercourse constructed; and (c) cleared out and removed an obstruction in a ditch, drain, gutter, sink or watercourse at the side of a road, which had been placed there; in contravention of this Act and may, in the name of the Territory, recover the cost of so doing from the person who contravened this Act, whether or not that person has been found guilty of an offence under this Act, as a debt due to the Territory by that person. 10 Trees etc. obstructing or damaging roads (1) If a tree or other thing growing on land adjacent to a road obstructs or damages that road, the Minister may, by notice in writing, served by post on the occupier of that land, require that occupier to remove the tree or other thing or a part of the tree or thing on or before such date as the Minister specifies in that notice. (2) If a person fails to comply with a requirement made by the Minister under subsection (1), the Minister may cause the tree or other thing, or a part of the tree or thing, to be removed and may, in the name of the Territory, recover the cost of so doing from that person as a debt due to the Territory by that person. 11 Minister may close road temporarily or restrict use of road (1) The Minister may, if he or she considers it appropriate: (a) close a road; or (b) do any of the following in relation to the road: (i) restrict the use of the road to vehicles that do not exceed a specified mass; (ii) restrict the use of the road to a specified class of vehicles; (iii) impose other restrictions on the use or manner of use of the road as the Minister considers appropriate.

Part 3 General powers of Minister Control of Roads Act 1953 5 (2) A closure of a road, or a restriction on the use of the road, under subsection (1) is effected by: (a) to the extent it is reasonably practicable – causing signs to be displayed in a prominent place at the approaches to the road to which the closure or restriction relates, or erecting fences or barriers on or across the road; and (b) by giving notice of the closure or restriction in accordance with subsection (4) before, or as soon as reasonably practicable after, the closure or restriction. (3) If the Minister is satisfied the closure of a road or restriction on the use of the road is no longer required, the Minister must cause the removal of any signs, fences or barriers and give notice of the revocation of the closure or restriction in accordance with subsection (4). (4) A notice for this section may be given in the following ways: (a) by Gazette notice; (b) by notice in a newspaper circulating in the region in which the road is located; (c) by publication on a website maintained by the Department and promoted to the public as a resource for accessing road closure and road condition information; (d) by recorded message accessed by telephone using a telephone number promoted to the public as a resource for accessing road closure and road condition information; (e) by radio or television broadcast in the region in which the road is located. (5) A person must not drive a vehicle, or cause or permit a vehicle to be driven, on a road that is closed under this section. Maximum penalty: 100 penalty units. (6) A person must not drive a vehicle, or cause or permit a vehicle to be driven, on a road that is subject to a restriction under this section while in contravention of the restriction. Maximum penalty: 100 penalty units. (7) It is a defence to a prosecution for an offence against subsection (5) or (6) if the person establishes a reasonable excuse.

Part 3 General powers of Minister Control of Roads Act 1953 6 (8) Without limiting subsection (7), it is a reasonable excuse if the person has consent from the competent authority for the road: (a) to use a road that is closed under this section; or (b) to use a road subject to a restriction under this section without complying with the restriction. (9) In this section: competent authority, for a road, means the person, body or authority (including the Territory) having the care, control and management of the road. road includes part of a road. vehicle, see section 3(1) of the Traffic Act 1987. Note The definition of vehicle in the Traffic Act 1987 includes a wide range of types of transportation. This means the prohibitions in subsections (5) and (6) apply, for example, to riding a bicycle, and to riding or droving animals. 12 Minister may require fence, wall or other structure to be erected for prevention of certain hazards (1) If land adjoining a road is not enclosed to the satisfaction of the Minister, the Minister may, by notice in writing served by post on the occupier of that land, require the occupier, on or before a date mentioned in that notice, to enclose the land by a fence, wall or other structure, sufficient to prevent drift sand, soil or other material from being carried on to the road. (2) If the occupier of the land fails or neglects to comply with a requirement made under subsection (1), the Minister may cause the fence, wall or other structure to be erected and the Minister may, in the name of the Territory, recover the cost of so doing from the occupier as a debt due to the Territory by that person. 13 Minister may license timber cutting, quarrying, and other activities on a road (1) The Minister, in his or her absolute discretion and subject to such conditions as the Minister sees fit, may grant a licence to a person, authorising that person: (a) to cut and remove timber and bark from a road; or (b) to quarry and remove stone, clay, gravel or sand from a road; or

Part 3 General powers of Minister Control of Roads Act 1953 7 (c) to erect, maintain and operate on a road a petrol pump, together with such tanks, apparatus, pipes and erections as are reasonably necessary for the operation of a pump for the supply of petrol for sale; or (d) to construct and maintain a cattle ramp on a road. (2) The Minister may, at any time, by notice in writing served by post on a person to whom a licence has been granted under subsection (1): (a) require that person to do such acts or things as the Minister, in his or her absolute discretion, deems necessary or desirable; or (b) cancel a licence, whether or not the licensee has observed all of the conditions under which the licence was granted. (3) If a person fails to comply with the requirements of a notice served under subsection (2), the Minister may cause to be done the act or things required to be done and may, in the name of the Territory, recover the cost of so doing from that person as a debt due to the Territory by that person. 14 Power to construct temporary roads and remove trees or other growing things A person acting with the authority, or under the orders, of the Minister may: (a) construct a temporary road over uncultivated land for use as a passage for vehicles whilst a road or a part of a road is being made or repaired; and (b) remove a tree or thing, growing on land adjacent to a road, which: (i) obstructs, damages or is likely to obstruct or damage that road; or (ii) obstructs or is likely to obstruct the vision of the driver of a vehicle approaching a bend or corner in the road; and for any of these purposes or for the purpose of carrying out or giving effect to this Act, may, with or without workers, horses, machinery and vehicles, enter in and upon land adjoining a road.

Part 4 Opening and closing of roads Control of Roads Act 1953 8 Part 4 Opening and closing of roads 14A Definition In this Part: proposal means a proposed new road, the proposed alterations of a road or part of a road, or a road or part of a road proposed to be closed, delineated on a plan. 15 Power to close and open roads Despite any law in force in the Northern Territory, but subject to this Act, the Minister may, whether by one proceeding or otherwise, from time to time: (a) open a new road; and (b) alter a road or a part of a road; and (c) close a road or a part of a road; and (d) exchange land comprising a road or a part of a road for land required for a new road or for an alteration of a road; and (e) retain land comprising a road or a part of a road, which has been closed under this Act, for any purpose of the Territory or dedicate the land for any public purpose; and (f) dispose of land comprising a road, or a part of a road, which has been closed under this Act, whether retained under paragraph (e) or otherwise; and (g) execute a transfer, conveyance, lease or other document to give effect to this Act. 16 Agreement for exchange (1) If the Commonwealth or the Territory has acquired land or an estate or interest in land for the purpose of making or opening a new road or altering an existing road, the Minister may agree with the person from whom that land or that estate or interest in land was acquired that, in satisfaction in whole or in part of any compensation, the person will receive the grant of a corresponding estate or interest in specified land of the Crown adjoining the parcel of land that contains the land which or the estate or interest in which was acquired.

Part 4 Opening and closing of roads Control of Roads Act 1953 9 (2) In this section: compensation means an amount of money ascertained in accordance with the Lands Acquisition Act 1978 or any other law in force in the Northern Territory to be the amount which a person is entitled to receive in respect of the acquisition by the Commonwealth or the Territory of land or an estate or interest in land. 17 Proceedings to open, alter etc. roads (1) If it is proposed to open a road, or alter or close a road or part of a road, the Surveyor-General must give the Minister: (a) a plan, certified by the Surveyor-General as an adequate representation, showing the approximate position of the proposal; and (b) in relation to the plan, a statement showing the names of adjoining owners with the last known address of each of them. (2) After consideration of the plan, the proposal and statement mentioned in subsection (1), the Minister may approve or amend the proposal and, as soon as practicable after the approval, must deposit with the Surveyor-General the plan showing the proposal and amendments, if any, endorsed with the approval of the Minister, together with the statement. 18 Duties of Surveyor-General If a plan is deposited with the Surveyor-General in accordance with section 17(2), the Surveyor-General must: (a) cause a notice to be inserted in the Gazette and in a newspaper circulating in the locality of the land to which the plan relates stating a general description of the proposal and setting out the names of adjoining owners; and (b) maintain a copy of the plan as approved by the Minister, and permit any person, during normal business hours, to inspect it. 20 Person may object to proposal Any person may, at any time within 28 days from and including the date of publication of the notice in the Gazette or the newspaper, whichever is the later, mentioned in section 18(a), object to the proposal by serving a notice, stating the grounds for the objection, on the Minister either personally or by post.

Part 4 Opening and closing of roads Control of Roads Act 1953 10 21 Procedure where no objection received If, at the date of expiry of the time limited by section 20, no person has objected to the proposal in accordance with that section, the Minister may, at any time within 6 months from and including that date, by notice in the Gazette and in a newspaper circulating in the locality of the proposal, order a new road to be opened or a road or part of a road to be altered or closed in accordance with the plan deposited with the Surveyor-General. 22 Procedure where objection received (1) If, at the expiry of the time limited by section 20, a person has objected to the proposal in accordance with that section, the Minister may consider the objection and the plan and the statement deposited under section 17, and must determine whether or not the proposal will proceed or an amendment to the proposal must be made. (2) Within 6 months after the expiry of the time limited by section 20, the Minister must: (a) by notice in the Gazette and in a newspaper circulating in the locality of the land to which the plan and proposal relate, order a new road to be opened or a road or part of a road to be altered or closed in accordance with the plan deposited with the Surveyor-General under section 17(2); or (b) deposit with the Surveyor-General: (i) the plan showing the proposal and amendments, if any, pursuant to subsection (1) endorsed with the approval of the Minister; and (ii) in relation to the plan – a statement showing the names of the adjoining owners with the last known address of each of them. 22A Certain provisions to apply where proposal amended after objection (1) Subject to this section, if a plan is deposited with the Surveyor- General under section 22(2)(b), sections 18 to 22 inclusive apply to and in relation to that plan and the proposal to which it relates as if the plan were a plan deposited under section 17(2). (2) If a plan is deposited with the Surveyor-General under section 22(2)(b), the Surveyor-General must cause a notice to be inserted in the Gazette and in a newspaper circulating in the locality of the land to which the plan relates stating a general description of

Part 4 Opening and closing of roads Control of Roads Act 1953 11 the proposal, that the proposal is an amended proposal and setting out the names of adjoining owners. (3) If the Minister is satisfied that an objection is the same or substantially the same as an objection already submitted under section 20 and considered under section 22, the Minister may disregard the first-mentioned objection and proceed under this Act as if it had not been made. 23 Effect of order Upon the publication in the Gazette of an order made under section 21 or 22: (a) land to be taken for a new road or for an alteration to a road, or a part of a road, is, by virtue of this Act, vested in the Territory and is under the care, control and management of the Minister; and (b) the Minister may, subject to this Act: (i) pay or receive money agreed to be paid or received for the exchange or disposal of land affected by the order; and (ii) dispose of land comprising a road, or a part of a road, which is closed by the order; and (iii) execute such documents as are required or are necessary to be executed. 24 Land to be offered to adjoining owners (1) If any land of the Crown comprises: (a) a former road or part of a road that has been closed under this Act; or (b) a road or part of a road that it is proposed to close under this Act; the Minister may agree with a person who has an estate or interest in land adjoining the first-mentioned land that the person will, after the road or part of a road has been so closed, be granted an estate or interest in the first-mentioned land of a like nature to the person's estate or interest in the adjoining land: (c) for such amount as is specified in the agreement; or

Part 4 Opening and closing of roads Control of Roads Act 1953 12 (d) if the person's estate or interest in the adjoining land is a lease granted by or on behalf of the Crown, on the resumption of such part of the adjoining land as is specified in the agreement. (2) If each of 2 or more parcels of land adjoining land comprising a former road or part of a road that has been closed under this Act is held for an estate in fee simple or leasehold from the Crown and the parcels are not so held by the same person, the Minister may give written notice to all the persons holding the parcels that the Minister is prepared to dispose of the second-mentioned land. (3) Each notice under subsection (2) must specify the estate in the land which the Minister is prepared to offer and the amount for which the Minister is prepared to dispose of that estate. (4) If notices have been given under subsection (2) and 2 or more of the persons notified inform the Minister in writing, within 28 days after the date on which the last of the notices was given, that they desire to acquire the land specified in the notices, the Minister must invite each such person to tender for an estate in that land of like nature to the estate held by the person in the person's adjoining parcel of land. (5) If the Minister receives only one tender of an amount that is not less than the price specified in the notices, the Minister must accept the tender but, if he or she receives more than one tender, the Minister must accept the tender of the person tendering the highest amount. (6) If a tender under subsection (5) is accepted the tenderer is entitled to be granted an estate in the land in respect of which the tender is made of like nature to the estate held by the tenderer in his or her adjoining parcel of land. 25 In certain cases land may become Crown lands If a road, or a part of a road, that is not on land in respect of which a local government council is the registered proprietor of an estate in fee simple is ordered to be closed and: (a) the Minister certifies that the land comprising that road or part of the road can be conveniently used, whether separate from other land or when added to other Crown lands; or (b) an adjoining owner does not, within one year from and including the date of the publication in the Gazette of the order, acquire, or enter into an agreement to acquire the land, or so much of the land as is not disposed of;

Part 4 Opening and closing of roads Control of Roads Act 1953 13 the land becomes Crown lands and is subject to the laws of the Northern Territory relating to Crown lands. 26 Reservations The Minister may, at any stage in a proceeding under this Act, direct that a certificate as to title to be issued, or a lease to be granted, under this Act must be subject to such reservations as the Minister directs. 27 Administrator or Minister empowered to amend existing lease (1) If an agreement made under section 16, 24(1) or 24(5) by the acceptance of a tender entitles a person to be granted a leasehold estate, the estate must be granted by amending the person's lease of the land adjoining the land to be granted so that the land comprising the former road or part of a road is included in the land that is subject to the lease, with such alteration of the reservations, covenants, conditions and provisions of the existing lease as are specified in the agreement. (2) The Minister is empowered to amend an existing lease to incorporate additional land in the lease and to do all other things necessary to give effect to subsection (1). (3) An amendment of an existing lease under this section is effected by lodging with the Registrar-General a memorandum describing the land incorporated and the alterations in the reservations, covenants, conditions and provisions specified in the agreement. (4) The Registrar-General must register a memorandum lodged under subsection (3) and must endorse on the original lease in the Register of Crown Leases a note referring to the memorandum and stating that further land has been incorporated in the lease. 28 Easements etc. preserved If land subject to an easement, mortgage or other charge is included in land for which a certificate as to title is to be issued under section 27, the certificate as to title issued must be subject to that easement, mortgage or other charge. 29 Registrar-General to correct Register books etc. (1) Upon issuing of a certificate as to title or the granting of a lease, under this Act, the Registrar-General must make such alterations and corrections as are necessary on any deposited plan and in the Register.

Part 4 Opening and closing of roads Control of Roads Act 1953 14 (2) The Registrar-General may serve notice in writing, by registered post, on a person who holds a certificate as to title which is affected by the issue of a certificate as to title pursuant to this Act, requiring that person to deliver the certificate as to title to the Registrar- General, within a time stated in that notice, in order that the Registrar-General may cancel, correct or alter it in the manner required. (3) A person must not fail to comply with the requirements of a notice given in accordance with subsection (2). Maximum penalty: 3 penalty units. 30 Prohibition of removal to the Supreme Court An order purporting to be made under this Act must not be removed or removable into the Supreme Court after section 29 has been complied with in respect of that order. 31 Compensation If a road or a part of a road which is ordered to be opened, altered or added to runs through or over land, in the original grant or in the lease of Crown lands of which a power of making roads has not been reserved, a person, not being a party to an agreement for exchange, who has an estate or interest in the land or a part of the land taken, may, within 12 months from the date of the Gazette in which the order was published, serve a notice in writing on the Minister, claiming compensation for the land taken. Note for section 31 See section 16 for agreement to exchange. 31A Compensation (1) This section applies to: (a) a person who has an estate or interest in land, or a part of land, at the time a section 31 order relating to the land is published; or (b) a person who had an estate or interest in land, or a part of land, at the time a section 31 order relating to the land was published before the commencement. (2) It is declared that: (a) after the section 31 order is published, the person mentioned in subsection (1)(a) has a right to apply to; or

Part 4 Opening and closing of roads Control of Roads Act 1953 15 (b) after the section 31 order was published, the person mentioned in subsection (1)(b) always had a right to apply to; the Tribunal to determine an amount payable to the person as compensation, on just terms, for the person's estate or interest in the land, or the part of the land, taken as mentioned in section 31. (3) The Tribunal may hear and determine the following: (a) an application under subsection (2); (b) an application by a person for leave to serve a notice under section 31 after 12 months from the date of publishing of the section 31 order relating to land, or part of land, in relation to which the person had an estate or interest at the time of publishing. (4) A person may not apply under subsection (2) or (3)(b) if the person, in writing, agrees or, before the commencement, agreed, to an amount of compensation in relation to the estate or interest in the land or the part of the land taken. (6) In relation to an application under subsection (2), the Tribunal must hold a directions hearing within 28 days after the date of the application. (7) This section, including the fact that an application is made under subsection (2) or (3)(b), does not prevent a person to whom this section applies from making an agreement with the Minister about the person's estate or interest in land, or a part of land, that is or was the subject of a section 31 order. (8) If an agreement as mentioned in subsection (7) is made, the person who made the agreement with the Minister must withdraw any application made under subsection (2) or (3)(b). (9) In this section: commencement means the commencement of this section. published, in relation to a section 31 order (including a section 31 order made before the commencement) means published in the Gazette. section 31 order means an order, as mentioned in section 31, by which a road or a part of a road is to be opened, altered or added to. Tribunal means the Civil and Administrative Tribunal.

Part 4 Opening and closing of roads Control of Roads Act 1953 16 32 Closing of certain roads (1) Despite anything contained in this Act, the Minister may, on the recommendation of the Surveyor-General, by notice in the Gazette and in a newspaper circulating in the locality of that road, order that a road or a part of a road be closed if all the land contiguous to that road, or that part of a road, is land: (a) occupied by or on behalf of the Territory or by an agent or instrumentality of the Territory; or (b) belonging to the Territory or an agent or instrumentality of the Territory which has not been granted, sold, leased or contracted to be granted, sold or leased to any persons and is vacant land. (2) The date upon which a road, or a part of a road, is to be closed under this section must not be less than one month after the date of the Gazette or the date of the newspaper, whichever is the later, in which the order is published. (3) From and including the date when a road or a part of a road is closed under this section, the land mentioned in the order is Crown lands and is subject to the provisions of the laws of the Northern Territory relating to Crown lands. (4) The Registrar-General must make such corrections on any deposited plan and in the Register Book or in the Register Book of Crown Leases as are necessary to give effect to an order made under this section. 33 Order may affect more than one road An order made under this Act may affect more than one road, or part of a road, and may affect more than one act or proceeding with regard to a road or a part of a road. 34 Duty to fence If land contiguous to a road is fenced and the boundary of that road is altered in consequence of an order made under this Act, other than an order made under section 32, the Minister, at the expense of the Territory, must cause the road to be fenced so that the boundary of the contiguous land is fenced with a substantial fence of the same nature as the fence previously separating the road from that land.

Part 6 Miscellaneous matters Control of Roads Act 1953 17 35 Minister may declare private streets etc. to be roads (1) If a private street, road, court, alley, thoroughfare or cul-de-sac, situated within a town, has been made or paved at the cost of its owner, whether before or after the date when this Act comes into operation, the Minister may, on the written request of the owner, declare the street, road, court, alley, thorough-fare or cul-de-sac to be a road. (2) The Minister may, on behalf of the Territory, accept as a road land which is transferred or conveyed to the Territory in fee simple by the owner of the land. (3) When land is declared to be, or is accepted by the Territory as, a road, under this section, compensation is not payable to the owner by or on behalf of the Territory. 36 Application of Land Title Act 2000 The provisions of this Part apply, despite the provisions of the Land Title Act 2000, the Crown Lands Act 1992 or any other law of the Northern Territory relating to Crown lands. Part 6 Miscellaneous matters 51 Metal projections etc. on tyres A person must not drive or haul a vehicle on the formed or paved part of a road, if a part of a wheel or tyre of the vehicle, which comes into contact with the road, has a metal projection, bar, spike or stud on, or attached to it. Maximum penalty: 3 penalty units or imprisonment for 6 months. 52 Vehicle or object to have wheels fitted (1) A person must not drive or haul or cause to be driven or hauled on or across a paved part of a road a vehicle or object unless: (a) the vehicle or object is so supported on or by wheels as to prevent any part of the vehicle or object other than its wheels from coming into contact with the surface of the road; and (b) the wheels are equipped with rubber tyres; and (c) any rubber tyre, not being a pneumatic tyre, which is fitted to a wheel of the vehicle or object is at least 30 millimetres thick at its thinnest part and has a surface of which the portion that

Part 6 Miscellaneous matters Control of Roads Act 1953 18 ordinarily comes into contact with the paved part of the road is at least 30 millimetres wide and is even across its full width. Maximum penalty: 3 penalty units or imprisonment for 6 months. (2) It is a defence to a prosecution under this section if the defendant proves to the satisfaction of the Court hearing the case: (a) that the defendant's failure to comply with the requirements of this section occurred immediately after: (i) an accident in which the vehicle or object was damaged; or (ii) a tyre, or a mechanical or structural part, of the vehicle or object ceased to function efficiently; so that it was then not reasonably practicable for the defendant to comply with those requirements; and (b) that the defendant then took all reasonable steps to comply with those requirements as soon as possible. 53 Caterpillar type tractors Despite section 52, a person may drive or haul a caterpillar type tractor or machine transversely across a road if the tracks of the tractor or machine are so constructed or protected that metal projections, bars, spikes or studs on or attached to those tracks do not come into contact with the surface of a road. 54 Certain acts forbidden A person must not do any of the following: (a) retard the progress of a vehicle by means of an instrument or device which comes into contact with the surface of a road; (b) make or assist in making, or cause to be made a fire on or within 3 metres of a road; (c) suffer the effluent from a septic tank, dirty water, filth, dirt or other offensive matter, fluid or thing to run or flow on to a road from a house, land or premises occupied by that person; (d) leave a stone or other thing, having been used for blocking or stopping the wheels of a vehicle, to remain on a road or a part of a road after that vehicle has moved from the place where that stone or other thing was so used;

Part 6 Miscellaneous matters Control of Roads Act 1953 19 (e) except with lawful excuse, deposit sand, stone, rubbish or material of any description on a road or part of a road. Maximum penalty: 3 penalty units or imprisonment for 6 months. 54A Use of immobilising devices (1) The Commissioner of Police may authorise the use by police officers of a vehicle immobilising device: (a) to prevent the use of a vehicle by a person for the purpose of escaping from lawful custody or avoiding lawful arrest; or (b) to stop or assist in stopping a vehicle in connection with the pursuit of the vehicle by police officers. (2) Section 54(a) does not apply to the placing or deploying of a vehicle immobilising device by a police officer acting in the course of the officer's duties. (3) In this section: vehicle immobilising device means a device capable of causing a vehicle to stop or preventing a vehicle from moving and includes a device designed for, or capable of, deflating tyres. 55 Person not to stop vehicle etc. on bridges or culverts A person must not stop a vehicle on a road whilst the vehicle, a part of the vehicle or a trailer attached to the vehicle, is on a bridge or culvert, or causeway except in case of mechanical break-down, accident or other unavoidable cause. Maximum penalty: 0.8 penalty unit. 56 Vehicles etc. to be removed from bridges and culverts If a person has stopped a vehicle on a road whilst the vehicle, a part of the vehicle or a trailer attached to the vehicle, is on a bridge or culvert, or causeway, the person must not fail to remove the vehicle, the part of the vehicle or the trailer attached to the vehicle, from that bridge or culvert or causeway as soon as is reasonably practicable. Maximum penalty: 0.8 penalty unit.

Part 6 Miscellaneous matters Control of Roads Act 1953 20 57 Timber etc. fixed to roads not to be damaged etc. A person must not dig up, break, pull down, cut, destroy, injure or damage, or drive a vehicle on a road in such a manner as to destroy, injure or damage, timber growing on a road or a bridge, culvert, water-table, kerb, gutter, footpath, lamp, direction board, kilometre post, rail, post, wall, chain, fence or other thing erected on or affixed to a road. Maximum penalty: 3 penalty units or imprisonment for 6 months. 58 Person not to cut timber, quarry, erect petrol pumps or cattle ramps without licence A person must not do any of the following: (a) cut or remove timber or bark from a road; (b) quarry or remove stone, clay, gravel, or sand from a road; (c) erect, maintain or operate a petrol pump on a road; (d) construct or maintain a cattle ramp on a road; unless the person holds a licence, granted by the Minister under section 13, which is in force. Maximum penalty: 0.8 penalty unit. 59 Houses and other obstructions on roads (1) Subject to this section, a person must not do any of the following: (a) erect or build, or cause to be erected or built, a house or other building, verandah, wall, fence or structure on or at the side of a road, or in such a place or in such a manner as to reduce the width of, or encroach upon, the road; (b) make or cause to be made a drain, gutter, sink or watercourse, in or across a road or a part of a road; (c) fill up or obstruct a ditch, drain, gutter, sink or watercourse at the side of a road; (d) obstruct the public use of a road or part of a road. Maximum penalty: 0.8 penalty unit.

Part 6 Miscellaneous matters Control of Roads Act 1953 21 (2) Despite subsection (1), a person may do an act prohibited by that subsection if the act is done in accordance with the permission of the Minister given under this section. (3) For the purposes of this section, the Minister may, by notice in writing and on payment by a person of such fees and charges as the Minister determines, give permission to the person to do an act prohibited by subsection (1). (4) Permission given under this section may be subject to such conditions, including the giving of indemnities, as the Minister thinks fit and specifies in the notice. (5) The Minister may revoke a permission given under this section by notice in writing to the person to whom the permission was given, and the permission is revoked at the expiration of 6 months after the date the notice was given. (6) If a permission is revoked under subsection (5), the person must remove the house, building, verandah, wall, fence, structure or obstruction erected or built on or at the side of the road or remove or restore the drain, gutter, sink, watercourse made, filled up or obstructed in, across or at the side of the road, as the case may be, in accordance with the directions, if any, of the Minister. (7) If a person fails to comply with subsection (6), section 9(3) applies as if permission under this section had never been given and the house, building, verandah, fence, structure or obstruction was erected or built, or the ditch, drain, gutter, sink or watercourse was made, filled up or obstructed, as the case may be, in contravention of this Act. (8) If a permission is revoked under this section, the person to whom the permission was given is not entitled to any compensation for any loss sustained in respect of or as a consequence of the revocation or for any costs incurred in respect of the removal or demolition of the house, building, verandah, wall, fence, structure or obstruction or the removal or restoration of the ditch, drain, gutter, sink or watercourse. 60A Approval to drive air cushioned vehicle A person must not drive a hovercraft over a road without the written approval of the Minister. Maximum penalty: 0.8 penalty unit.

Part 6 Miscellaneous matters Control of Roads Act 1953 22 61 Liability of owner and actual offender (1) Except as provided by this section, if a vehicle is driven on a road or part of a road in contravention of this Act, the owner and the driver of the vehicle at the time it was so driven are each guilty of the offence in respect of that contravention and liable on being found guilty to the penalty provided for the offence. (2) It is a defence to a prosecution against the owner of a vehicle for an offence mentioned in subsection (1) if the owner of the vehicle satisfies the court that the vehicle was being driven at the time of the alleged offence without the owner's express or implied authority. (3) In this section: (a) owner has the same meaning as in the Motor Vehicles Act 1949; and (b) a document issued: (i) by the Registrar of Motor Vehicles appointed under that Act; or (ii) by an officer having duties in connection with the registration of motor vehicles in a State or in another Territory, bearing the officer's written, stamped or printed signature and stating that during a specified period or on a specified date, a specified person was the person whose name was registered as the owner of a specified motor vehicle is evidence of the matters stated in the document without proof of the signature of the person by whom the document purports to have been issued or of the fact that the person was the Registrar or the officer. 62 Regulations (1) The Administrator may make regulations under this Act. (2) A regulation may prescribe fees payable under this Act for the issue of a licence or permit or the giving of an approval.

Part 7 Transitional matters for Northern Territory Civil and Administrative Tribunal (Conferral of Jurisdiction Amendments) (No. 2) Act 2014 Control of Roads Act 1953 23 Part 7 Transitional matters for Northern Territory Civil and Administrative Tribunal (Conferral of Jurisdiction Amendments) (No. 2) Act 2014 63 Application before former Tribunal (1) This section applies if, before the commencement: (a) a person had made an application under section 31A to the former Tribunal; and (b) the former Tribunal had not decided the application. (2) The former Tribunal must continue to deal with the matter in accordance with the former legislation. (3) In this section: commencement means the commencement of Part 5 of the Northern Territory Civil and Administrative Tribunal (Conferral of Jurisdiction Amendments) (No. 2) Act 2014. former legislation means the following as in force immediately before the commencement: (a) this Act; (b) the Lands, Planning and Mining Tribunal Act 1998. former Tribunal means the Lands, Planning and Mining Tribunal as in existence under the Lands, Planning and Mining Tribunal Act 1998 immediately before the commencement of the Northern Territory Civil and Administrative Tribunal Act 2014.

ENDNOTES Control of Roads Act 1953 24 ENDNOTES 1 KEY Key to abbreviations amd = amended od = order app = appendix om = omitted bl = by-law pt = Part ch = Chapter r = regulation/rule cl = clause rem = remainder div = Division renum = renumbered exp = expires/expired rep = repealed f = forms s = section Gaz = Gazette sch = Schedule hdg = heading sdiv = Subdivision ins = inserted SL = Subordinate Legislation lt = long title sub = substituted nc = not commenced 2 LIST OF LEGISLATION Control of Roads Ordinance 1953 (Act No. 8, 1953) Assent date 1 July 1953 Commenced 1 April 1954 (Gaz No. 11, 17 March 1954) Control of Roads Ordinance 1955 (Act No. 9, 1955) Assent date 8 June 1955 Commenced 15 October 1955 (Gaz No. 41, 12 October 1955) Control of Roads Ordinance 1956 (Act No. 18, 1956) Assent date 4 May 1956 Commenced 19 September 1956 (Gaz No. 37, 19 September 1956) Control of Roads Ordinance 1958 (Act No. 21, 1958) Assent date 14 November 1958 Commenced 13 February 1959 (Gaz No. 6, 11 February 1959) Administrator's Council Ordinance 1959 (Act No. 22, 1959) Assent date 7 July 1959 Commenced 28 April 1960 (Gaz No. 18, 27 April 1960) Control of Roads Ordinance 1962 (Act No. 22, 1962) Assent date 18 June 1962 Commenced 8 May 1963 (Gaz No. 19, 8 May 1963) Control of Roads Ordinance (No. 3) 1962 (Act No. 8, 1963) Assent date 23 January 1963 Commenced 23 January 1963 Control of Roads Ordinance (No. 2) 1962 (Act No. 40, 1963) Assent date 27 May 1963 Commenced 11 December 1963 (Gaz No. 50, 11 December 1963)

ENDNOTES Control of Roads Act 1953 25 Control of Roads Ordinance 1964 (Act No. 21, 1964) Assent date 14 May 1964 Commenced 14 May 1964 Control of Roads Ordinance 1966 (Act No. 25, 1966) Assent date 6 July 1966 Commenced 6 July 1966 Control of Roads Ordinance 1968 (Act No. 25, 1968) Assent date 18 June 1968 Commenced 18 June 1968 Control of Roads Ordinance 1970 (Act No. 40, 1970) Assent date 28 October 1970 Commenced 28 October 1970 Control of Roads Ordinance 1969 (Act No. 41, 1970) Assent date 4 November 1970 Commenced 4 November 1970 Amending Legislation Control of Roads Ordinance 1971 (Act No. 42, 1971) Assent date 27 September 1971 Commenced 27 October 1971 (Gaz No. 43, 27 October 1971) Control of Roads Ordinance 1971 (Act No. 42, 1971) Assent date 27 September 1971 Commenced 27 October 1971 (Gaz No. 43, 27 October 1971) Ordinances Revision Ordinance 1973 (Act No. 87, 1973) Assent date 11 December 1973 Commenced 11 December 1973 (s 12(2)) Amending Legislation Ordinances Revision Ordinance 1974 (Act No. 34, 1974) Assent date 26 August 1974 Commenced 11 December 1973 (s 3(2)) Ordinances Revision Ordinance (No. 2) 1974 (Act No. 69, 1974) Assent date 24 October 1974 Commenced 11 December 1973 (s 3) Ordinances Revision Ordinance 1976 (Act No. 27, 1976) Assent date 28 June 1976 Commenced ss 1, 2 and 6: 28 June 1976 (s 6(2)); ss 3 and 4: 11 December 1973; s 5: 24 October 1974 Control of Roads Ordinance 1974 (Act No. 38, 1974) Assent date 23 September 1974 Commenced 23 September 1974 Control of Roads Ordinance 1975 (Act No. 20, 1975) Assent date 30 July 1975 Commenced 30 July 1975

ENDNOTES Control of Roads Act 1953 26 Ordinances Revision Ordinance 1976 (Act No. 27, 1976) Assent date 28 June 1976 Commenced ss 1, 2 and 6: 28 June 1976 (s 6(2)); ss 3 and 4: 11 December 1973; s 5: 24 October 1974 Transfer of Powers (Further Provisions) Ordinance 1977 (Act No. 51, 1977) Assent date 9 December 1977 Commenced 1 January 1978 (s 8) Transfer of Powers (Self-Government) Ordinance 1978 (Act No. 54, 1978) Assent date 1 July 1978 Commenced 1 July 1978 (s 8) Statute Law Revision Act 1978 (Act No. 95, 1978) Assent date 5 September 1978 Commenced 5 September 1978 Control of Roads Act 1979 (Act No. 64, 1979) Assent date 15 June 1979 Commenced 24 August 1979 (Gaz G34, 24 August 1979, p 9) Control of Roads Amendment Act 1980 (Act No. 58, 1980) Assent date 22 December 1980 Commenced 1 January 1981 (s 2, s 2 Crown Lands Amendment Act (No. 2) 1980 (Act No. 56, 1980) and Gaz S41, 31 December 1980) Statute Law Revision Act 1981 (Act No. 29, 1981) Assent date 25 March 1981 Commenced 25 March 1981 Control of Roads Amendment Act 1981 (Act No. 46, 1981) Assent date 29 June 1981 Commenced 29 June 1981 Statute Law Revision Act (No. 3) 1981 (Act No. 91, 1981) Assent date 21 September 1981 Commenced 21 September 1981 Control of Roads Amendment Act 1982 (Act No. 68, 1982) Assent date 8 October 1982 Commenced 1 January 1983 (s 2) Control of Roads Amendment Act 1983 (Act No. 13, 1983) Assent date 17 June 1983 Commenced 17 June 1983 Statute Law Revision Act 1984 (Act No. 28, 1984) Assent date 20 July 1984 Commenced 20 July 1984 Statute Law Revision Act 1989 (Act No. 60, 1989) Assent date 2 October 1989 Commenced 2 October 1989

ENDNOTES Control of Roads Act 1953 27 Real Property (Consequential Amendments) Act 1991 (Act No. 33, 1991) Assent date 25 June 1991 Commenced 1 October 1991 (Gaz S49, 1 October 1991) Statute Law (Miscellaneous Amendments) Act 1991 (Act No. 77, 1991) Assent date 16 December 1991 Commenced 16 December 1991 Pastoral Land (Consequential Amendments) Act 1992 (Act No. 39, 1992) Assent date 25 June 1992 Commenced 26 June 1992 (s 2, s 2 Pastoral Land Act 1992 (Act No. 17, 1992) and Gaz S33, 26 June 1992) Control of Roads Amendment Act 1992 (Act No. 60, 1992) Assent date 22 October 1992 Commenced 9 December 1992 (s 2, s 2 Local Government Amendment Act (No. 3) 1992 (Act No. 63, 1992) and Gaz G49, 9 December 1992, p 3) Local Government (Consequential Amendments) Act 1993 (Act No. 84, 1993) Assent date 31 December 1993 Commenced 1 June 1994 (s 2, s 2 Local Government Act 1993 (Act No. 83, 1993) and Gaz S35, 20 May 1994) Planning (Consequential Amendments) Act 1993 (Act No. 86, 1993) Assent date 31 December 1993 Commenced 18 April 1994 (s 2, s 2 Planning Act 1993 (Act No. 85, 1993) and Gaz S28, 18 April 1984) Control of Roads Amendment Act 1995 (Act No. 16, 1995) Assent date 26 June 1995 Commenced 26 June 1995 Sentencing (Consequential Amendments) Act 1996 (Act No. 17, 1996) Assent date 19 April 1996 Commenced 1 July 1996 (s 2, s 2 Sentencing Act 1995 (Act No. 39, 1995) and Gaz S15, 13 June 1996) Planning (Consequential Amendments) Act 1999 (Act No. 56, 1999) Assent date 14 December 1999 Commenced 12 April 2000 (s 2, s 2 Planning Act 1999 (Act No. 55, 1999) and Gaz S15, 12 April 1999) Land Title (Consequential Amendments) Act 2000 (Act No. 45, 2000) Assent date 12 September 2000 Commenced 1 December 2000 (s 2, s 2 Land Title Act 2000 (Act No. 2, 2000) and Gaz G38, 27 September 2000, p 2) Statute Law Revision Act 2001 (Act No. 3, 2001) Assent date 22 March 2001 Commenced 22 March 2001 Local Government (Consequential Amendments) Act 2008 (Act No. 28, 2008) Assent date 14 November 2008 Commenced 1 July 2008 (s 2)

ENDNOTES Control of Roads Act 1953 28 Mineral Titles (Consequential Amendments) Act 2010 (Act No. 37, 2010) Assent date 18 November 2010 Commenced 7 November 2011 (Gaz G41, 12 October 2011, p 5) Control of Roads Amendment Act 2011 (Act No. 4, 2011) Assent date 16 March 2011 Commenced 31 May 2011 (Gaz S26, 30 May 2011) Penalties Amendment (Miscellaneous) Act 2013 (Act No. 23, 2013) Assent date 12 July 2013 Commenced 28 August 2013 (Gaz G35, 28 August 2013, p 2) Local Government Amendment Act 2014 (Act No. 19, 2014) Assent date 2 June 2014 Commenced s 16: 1 July 2014; s 18: 1 December 2014; rem: 2 June 2014, (s 2) Northern Territory Civil and Administrative Tribunal (Conferral of Jurisdiction Amendments) (No. 2) Act 2014 (Act No. 35, 2014) Assent date 13 November 2014 Commenced pts 4, 9, 10 and 19: 1 June 2015 (Gaz S53, 29 May 2015, p 2); rem: 1 January 2015 (Gaz G51, 24 December 2014, p 7) Statute Law Amendment Act 2018 (Act No. 10, 2018) Assent date 23 May 2018 Commenced 20 June 2018 (Gaz S41, 20 June 2018) Transport Legislation Amendment Act 2019 (Act No. 35, 2019) Assent date 6 November 2019 Commenced s 11: nc (Act rep by Act No. 23/2020 before comm); rem: 11 December 2019 (Gaz S70, 11 December 2019) Local Government Act 2019 (Act No. 39, 2019) Assent date 13 December 2019 Commenced pt 8.6: 1 July 2022; rem: 1 July 2021 (Gaz S27, 30 June 2021) Amending Legislation Statute Law Revision Act 2020 (Act No. 26, 2020) Assent date 19 November 2020 Commenced 20 November 2020 (s 2) Local Government Amendment Act 2021 (Act No. 15, 2021) Assent date 25 May 2021 Commenced 26 May 2021 (s 2) Statute Law Revision and Repeals Act 2026 (Act No. 3, 2026) Assent date 9 February 2026 Commenced 10 February 2026 (s 2) 3 SAVINGS AND TRANSITIONAL PROVISIONS s 3 Control of Roads Ordinance 1964 (Act No. 21, 1964) s 6 Control of Roads Amendment Act 1982 (Act No. 68, 1982)

ENDNOTES Control of Roads Act 1953 29 4 GENERAL AMENDMENTS General amendments of a formal nature (which are not referred to in the table of amendments to this reprint) are made by the Ordinances Revision Ordinance 1973 (as amended) to the following provisions: ss 4, 5, 10 – 13, 15, 17 – 24, 27 – 31, 34, 36, 38 – 43, 45 – 46, 48 – 50, 50A, 50C, 50F – 50H, 51 – 60. 5 GENERAL AMENDMENTS General amendments of a formal nature (which are not referred to in the table of amendments to this reprint) are made by the Interpretation Legislation Amendment Act 2018 (Act No. 22, 2018) to: ss 1, 5, 7, 11, 16, 36, 61 and 63. 6 LIST OF AMENDMENTS lt amd No. 29, 1981, s 2 pt I hdg amd No. 4, 2011, s 11 s 1 amd No. 17, 1938, s 4; No. 29, 1981, s 2 s 2 amd No. 29, 1981, s 2 s 3 rep No. 38, 1974, s 3 s 4 amd No. 29, 1981, s 2; No. 91, 1981, s 2 rep No. 4, 2011, s 4 s 5 amd No. 9, 1955, s 3; No. 18, 1956, s 3; No. 21, 1958, s 3; No. 8, 1963, s 2; No. 25, 1968, s 2; No. 42, 1971, s 3; No. 38, 1974, ss 4 and 19; No. 27, 1976, s 6; No. 54, 1978, s 4; No. 64, 1979, s 4; No. 29, 1981, s 2; No. 68, 1982, s 4; No. 60, 1989, s 6; No. 39, 1992, s 3; No. 60, 1992, s 4; No. 84, 1993, s 6; No. 28, 2008, s 3; No. 4, 2011, s 11; No. 37, 2010, s 13; No. 19, 2014, s 26; No. 10, 2018, s 6 s 6 rep No. 54, 1978, s 4 pt II hdg amd No. 4, 2011, s 11 s 7 amd No. 38, 1974, s 19; No. 54, 1978, s 4; No. 28, 1984, s 3; No. 60, 1992, s 5; No. 84, 1993, s 6; No. 86, 1993, s 3; No. 56, 1999, s 3; No. 28, 2008, s 3; No. 4, 2011, s 11; No. 39, 2019, s 370 s 7A ins No. 42, 1971, s 4 amd No. 54, 1978, s 4; No. 29, 1981, s 2 rep No. 68, 1982, s 5 s 7B ins No. 38, 1974, s 5 amd No. 20, 1975, s 3; No. 51, 1977, s 3; No. 54, 1978, s 4; No. 29, 1981, s 2 sub No. 4, 2011, s 5 pt III hdg amd No. 4, 2011, s 11 s 8 amd No. 18, 1956, s 4; No. 38, 1974, s 19; No. 54, 1978, s 4; No. 16, 1995, s 2; No. 4, 2011, s 11 s 9 amd No. 54, 1978, s 4; No. 29, 1981, s 2; No. 91, 1981, s 2; No. 17, 1996, s 6; No. 4, 2011, s 11 s10 amd No. 54, 1978, s 4; No. 4, 2011, s 11 s 11 amd No. 54, 1978, s 4 sub No. 4, 2011, s 6 s 11A ins No. 38, 1974, s 6 amd No. 20, 1975, s 4; No. 54, 1978, s 4; No. 29, 1981, s 2 rep No. 4, 2011, s 6 s 12 amd No. 22, 1959, s 6; No. 54, 1978, s 4; No. 4, 2011, s 11 s 13 amd No. 54, 1978, s 4; No. 4, 2011, s 11 s 14 amd No. 54, 1978, s 4; No. 29, 1981, s 2; No. 4, 2011, s 11

ENDNOTES Control of Roads Act 1953 30 pt 4 hdg amd No. 4, 2011, s 11 s 14A ins No. 13, 1983, s 3 amd No. 4, 2011, s 11 s 15 amd No. 22, 1959, s 6; No. 40, 1970, s 2; No. 54, 1978, s 4; No. 29, 1981, s 2; No. 4, 2011, s 11 s 16 sub No. 25, 1966, s 2 amd No. 40, 1970, s 3; No. 54, 1978, s 4; No. 64, 1979, s 5; No. 4, 2011, s 11 s 17 sub No. 40, 1970, s 4 amd No. 54, 1978, s 4; No. 95, 1978, s 2 sub No. 13, 1983, s 4 amd No. 4, 2011, s 11 s 18 amd No. 40, 1970, s 5; No. 54, 1978, s 4 sub No. 13, 1983, s 5 amd No. 4, 2011, s 11 s 19 amd No. 40, 1970, s 6; No. 54, 1978, s 4 rep No. 13, 1983, s 6 s 20 amd No. 54, 1978, s 4; No. 13, 1983, s 7; No. 4, 2011, s 11 s 21 amd No. 18, 1956, s 5 sub No. 40, 1970, s 7 amd No. 54, 1978, s 4; No. 13, 1983, s 8 s 22 sub No. 40, 1970, s 7 amd No. 38, 1974, s 7; No. 54, 1978, s 4; No. 87, 1973, s 12; No. 95, 1978, s 2 sub No. 13, 1983, s 9 amd No. 4, 2011, s 11 s 22A ins No. 40, 1970, s 7 amd No. 87, 1973, s 12; No. 38, 1974, s 7; No. 54, 1978, s 4; No. 29, 1981, s 2; No. 13, 1983, s 10; No. 4, 2011, s 11 s 23 amd No. 40, 1970, s 8; No. 54, 1978, s 4; No. 29, 1981, s 2; No. 4, 2011, s 11 s 24 sub No. 25, 1966, s 3 amd No. 54, 1978, s 4; No. 29, 1981, s 2; No. 4, 2011, s 11 s 25 amd No. 40, 1970, s 9; No. 54, 1978, s 4; No. 58, 1980, s 4; No. 4, 2011, s 11; No. 35, 2014, s 26 ss 25A – 25B ins No. 64, 1979, s 6 rep No. 60, 1992, s 6 s 26 amd No. 54, 1978, s 4; No. 29, 1981, s 2; No. 33, 1991, s 7; No. 4, 2011, s 11 s 27 amd No. 18, 1956, s 6 sub No. 25, 1966, s 4 amd No. 27, 1976, s 6; No. 54, 1978, s 4; No. 29, 1981, s 2; No. 91, 1981 s 2; No. 4, 2011, s 11 s 28 sub No. 18, 1956, s 7 amd No. 33, 1991, s 7; No. 4, 2011, s 11 s 29 amd No. 25, 1968, s 4; No. 29, 1981, s 2; No. 33, 1991, s 7; No. 77, 1991, s 13; No. 3, 2001, s 8; No. 4, 2011, s 11; No. 23, 2013, s 12 s 30 amd No. 29, 1981, s 2; No. 4, 2011, s 11 s 31 amd No. 54, 1978, s 4; No. 39, 1992, s 3; No. 4, 2011, s 7 s 31A ins No. 4, 2011, s 8 amd No. 35, 2014, s 33 s 32 amd No. 22, 1959, s 6; No. 21, 1964, s 2; No. 54, 1978, s 4; No. 29, 1981, s 2; No. 13, 1983, s 11; No. 4, 2011, s 11 s 33 amd No. 29, 1981, s 2 s 34 amd No. 54, 1978, s 4; No. 29, 1981, s 2; No. 4, 2011, s 11 s 35 amd No. 22, 1959, s 6; No. 54, 1978, s 4; No. 29, 1981, s 2; No. 4, 2011, s 11 s 36 amd No. 29, 1981, s 2; No. 45, 2000, s 11; No. 4, 2011, s 11 s 37 rep No. 54, 1978, s 4

ENDNOTES Control of Roads Act 1953 31 s 38 sub No. 18, 1956, s 8 amd No. 21, 1958, s 4; No. 40, 1963, s 3; No. 25, 1968, s 4; No. 41, 1970, s 2; No. 38, 1974, ss 18 and 19; No. 29, 1981, s 2 rep No. 68, 1982, s 5 s 38A ins No. 40, 1963, s 4 amd No. 41, 1970, s 3; No. 38, 1974, s 19; No. 51, 1977, s 3; No. 54, 1978, s 3; No. 29, 1981, s 2 rep No. 68, 1982, s 5 s 39 sub No. 18, 1956, s 9 amd No. 21, 1958, s 5; No. 25, 1968, s 4; No. 38, 1974, s 18; No. 29, 1981, s 2 rep No. 68, 1982, s 5 s 40 amd No. 21, 1958, s 6; No. 25, 1968, s 4; No. 38, 1974, s 18; No. 29, 1981, s 2 rep No. 68, 1982, s 5 s 41 sub No. 18, 1956, s 10 amd No. 21, 1958, s 7; No. 25, 1968, s 4; No. 41, 1970, s 5; No. 38, 1974, ss 18 and 19; No. 29, 1981, s 2 rep No. 68, 1982, s 5 s 42 amd No. 25, 1968, s 4; No. 38, 1974, ss 9, 18 and 19; No. 27, 1976, s 6; No. 29, 1981, s 2; No. 91, 1981, s 2 rep No. 68, 1982, s 5 s 43 amd No. 25, 1968, s 4; No. 38, 1974, ss 18 and 19; No. 29, 1981, s 2; No. 91, 1981, s 2 rep No. 68, 1982, s 5 s 44 amd No. 29, 1981, s 2 rep No. 68, 1982, s 5 s 45 amd No. 18, 1956, s 11; No. 21, 1958, s 8; No. 25, 1968, s 4; No. 38, 1974, s 10; No. 20, 1975, s 5; No. 29, 1981, s 2 rep No. 68, 1982, s 5 s 45A ins No. 21, 1958, s 9 amd No. 38, 1974, s 19 rep No. 68, 1982, s 5 s 46 amd No. 18, 1956, s 12; No. 41, 1970, s 8; No. 38, 1974, s 19; No. 54, 1978, s 4 rep No. 68, 1982, s 5 s 47 amd No. 18, 1956, s 13; No. 21, 1958, s 10; No. 38, 1974, s 11; No. 51, 1977, s 3; No. 54, 1978, s 3; No. 29, 1981, s 2 rep No. 68, 1982, s 5 s 48 amd No. 54, 1978, s 4; No. 29, 1981, s 2 rep No. 68, 1982, s 5 s 49 amd No. 21, 1958, s 11; No. 38, 1974, s 19; No. 20, 1975, s 6; No. 29, 1981, s 2; No. 91, 1981, s 2 rep No. 68, 1982, s 5 s 50 amd No. 21, 1958, s 12; No. 25, 1968, s 4; No. 38, 1974, ss 18 and 19; No. 29, 1981, s 2 rep No. 68, 1982, s 5 s 50A ins No. 21, 1958, s 13 amd No. 41, 1970, s 9; No. 38, 1974, s 19; No. 29, 1981, s 2 rep No. 46, 1981, s 2 ss 50B – 50C ins No. 21, 1958, s 13 amd No. 38, 1974, s 19 rep No. 68, 1982, s 5 ss 50D – 50E ins No. 21, 1958, s 13 rep No. 68, 1982, s 5

ENDNOTES Control of Roads Act 1953 32 s 50F ins No. 21, 1958, s 13 amd No. 22, 1962, s 3; No. 38, 1974, s 19; No. 38, 1974, s 19; No. 29, 1981, s 2; No. 91, 1981, s 2 rep No. 68, 1982, s 5 s 50G ins No. 21, 1958, s 13 sub No. 22, 1962, s 4 amd No. 29, 1981, s 2 rep No. 68, 1982, s 5 s 50H ins No. 21, 1958, s 13 amd No. 38, 1974, ss 12 and 19; No. 27, 1976, s 6; No. 29, 1981, s 2 rep No. 68, 1982, s 5 pt IV hdg amd No. 4, 2011, s 11 s 51 amd No. 25, 1968, s 4; No. 38, 1974, s 18; No. 29, 1981, s 2; No. 91, 1981, s 2; No. 4, 2011, s 11; No. 23, 2013, s 4 s 52 sub No. 22, 1962, s 5 amd No. 25, 1968, s 4; No. 38, 1974, ss 18 and 19; No. 29, 1981, s 2; No. 91, 1981, s 2; No. 4, 2011, s 11; No. 23, 2013, s 4 s 53 amd No. 29, 1981, s 2; No. 4, 2011, s 11 s 54 amd No. 25, 1968, s 4; No. 38, 1974, ss 18 and 19; No. 29, 1981, s 2; No. 91, 1981, s 2; No. 4, 2011, s 11; No. 23, 2013, s 4 s 54A ins No. 35, 2019, s 4 ss 55 – 56 amd No. 25, 1968, s 4; No. 38, 1974, s 18; No. 29, 1981, s 2; No. 4, 2011, s 11; No. 23, 2013, s 4 s 57 amd No. 25, 1968, s 4; No. 38, 1974, ss 18 and 19; No. 29, 1981, s 2; No. 91, 1981, s 2; No. 4, 2011, s 11; No. 23, 2013, s 4 s 58 amd No. 25, 1968, s 4; No. 38, 1974, s 18; No. 54, 1978, s 4; No. 29, 1981, s 2; No. 4, 2011, s 11; No. 23, 2013, s 4 s 59 amd No. 25, 1968, s 4; No. 38, 1974, s 18; No. 29, 1981, s 2; No. 16, 1995, s 3; No. 4, 2011, s 11; No. 23, 2013, s 4 s 60 amd No. 25, 1968, s 4; No. 38, 1974, s 13; No. 29, 1981, s 2 rep No. 4, 2011, s 9 s 60A ins No. 38, 1974, s 14 amd No. 54, 1978, s 4; No. 29, 1981, s 2; No. 4, 2011, s 11; No. 23, 2013, s 4; No. 3, 2026, s 64 s 61 amd No. 25, 1968, s 4 sub No. 38, 1974, s 15 amd No. 29, 1981, s 2; No. 17, 1996, s 6; No. 4, 2011, s 11 s 61A ins No. 18, 1956, s 14 rep No. 38, 1974, s 16 s 62 amd No. 25, 1968, s 3; No. 54, 1978, s 4; No. 29, 1981, s 2; No. 4, 2011, s 11; No. 35, 2019, s 5 pt 7 hdg ins No. 35, 2014, s 34 s 63 ins No. 35, 2014, s 34 sch 1 amd No. 91, 1981, s 2 rep No. 4, 2011, s 10 sch 2 rep No. 25, 1966, s 5 sch 3 – 4 sub No. 38, 1974, s 17 amd No. 91, 1981, s 2 rep No. 68, 1982, s 5 sch 5 rep No. 18, 1956, s 15 ins No. 21, 1958, s 14 rep No. 38, 1974, s 17

1 Control of Roads Act 1953

Definitions and scope

The Act defines "road" broadly, capturing streets, courts, thoroughfares, culs‑de‑sac and land proclaimed, dedicated, opened or declared to be roads, as well as thoroughfares over Crown land used as such (s 5(1)(a), (c)). For Parts 3 and 4 only, "road" expressly excludes roads under the care, control and management of a local government council (s 5(2)). The Act also defines "adjoining owner" for the procedural regime governing offers and compensation (s 5(1)).

Vesting and administration

All roads and road appurtenances (bridges, culverts, kerbs, lamps, signs, fences, timber growing on roads etc.) vest in the Territory and are under the Minister's care, control and management, subject to specified provisions of the Planning Act 1999 and the Local Government Act 2019 (s 7). The Minister may delegate functions and powers under s 7B.

Ministerial powers and activities

The Minister has an extensive suite of functions: making and maintaining roads and footpaths, drainage, erecting bridges, constructing or removing roadside structures, planting trees and establishing roadside gardens, erecting fences and guards, closing or restricting roads temporarily, licensing activities on roads (timber cutting, quarrying, petrol pumps, cattle ramps), constructing temporary roads and entering onto adjoining land for works (ss 8-15, 13, 14). Section 13 gives the Minister the discretion to grant, condition or cancel licences and to require licensees to perform acts; the Minister may recover costs if the licensee fails to comply (s 13(2)-(3)).

Procedural regime for opening/closing/altering roads

Part 4 prescribes the technical and administrative steps for proposals to open, close or alter roads. The Surveyor‑General must prepare a certified plan and statement of adjoining owners and deposit them with the Minister (s 17). The Surveyor‑General must publish notice of the proposal in the Gazette and local newspaper and make the plan available for public inspection (s 18). There is a 28‑day objection window (s 20). If no objection is received the Minister may make an order within six months (s 21); if objections are received the Minister must consider them and either make an order or deposit an amended plan, after which the same notice and objection provisions apply (ss 22, 22A). An order published in the Gazette vests the land in the Territory and permits transactional steps (s 23).

Compensation and Tribunal jurisdiction

Section 31 preserves a 12‑month window for claimants who lose land to a section 31 order to claim compensation by serving written notice on the Minister within 12 months of Gazette publication. Section 31A modernises compensation enforcement by declaring a right to apply to the Civil and Administrative Tribunal to determine compensation on just terms and allows the Tribunal to hear applications for leave to serve a late section 31 notice; it sets procedural timeframes such as a directions hearing within 28 days (s 31A). The section also preserves the parties' ability to agree compensation with the Minister, and prevents Tribunal application where the claimant has already agreed in writing to a compensation amount (s 31A(4), (7)-(8)).

Enforcement, prohibitions and offences

The Act criminalises many unauthorised acts on roads: driving on closed or restricted roads (s 11(5)-(6) with maximum penalties), use of metal projections on tyres (s 51), driving objects or vehicles that are not wheel‑supported or have inadequate tyres on paved parts (s 52), making fires near roads and depositing material on roads (s 54), damaging timber or structures on roads (s 57), and undertaking certain activities without a licence (s 58). The Minister may act to remove unauthorised structures and recover costs as a debt (ss 9(3), 59(6)-(7) cross‑refer to s 9(3)).

Administrative finality and records

The Registrar‑General must correct registers and plans following a vesting or order and may require affected certificate holders to deliver their title documents for cancellation or correction; failure to comply with that notice is an offence (s 29). An order purporting to be made under the Act is not removable to the Supreme Court after s 29 compliance (s 30).

Interaction with other public authorities

The Commissioner of Police may authorise police use of vehicle immobilising devices (s 54A). The Act adopts the Motor Vehicles Act 1949 meaning of "owner" for enforcement provisions (s 61(3)). The statute also contemplates interaction with Commonwealth acquisition laws and the Lands Acquisition Act 1978 for compensation and exchange arrangements (s 16).

Incentive and cost structure (mechanical)

The Act places decision power in the Minister and the Surveyor‑General for road configuration and creates a cost‑recovery path for the Territory when third parties create obstructions or fail to comply with Ministerial notices (ss 9(3), 10(2), 12(2), 13(3)). It creates revenue potential through fees prescribed by regulation for licences and approvals (s 62(2)). Compensation regimes and offering processes channel closed road land into Crown holdings unless acquired by adjoining owners within specified timeframes (ss 24-25).

Collectively, these concepts establish the Minister as the principal decision‑maker and administrator for Territory roads, with procedural safeguards for adjoining owners, statutory offence and recovery mechanisms, and a defined path for compensation adjudication.

Owners and occupiers of land

Adjoining owners, defined as fee simple owners or lessees of Crown lands contiguous to or affected by a road, are central actors for procedure and compensation (s 5(1)). They receive notice‑based rights to object to proposals (s 20), are first in line to be offered closed road land by the Minister (s 24), and have time‑limited rights to claim compensation where land is taken (s 31). Occupiers who fail to comply with Ministerial notices to remove trees or erect fencing (ss 10, 12) can be charged with debts for the Minister’s remedial action and can face enforcement for non‑compliance.

Minister and departmental officers

The Minister holds the core set of powers: road formation, maintenance, licensing, temporary closures and disposals (ss 8-15, 23). Delegation is permitted, enabling the Minister to delegate functions and powers under s 7B, so departmental officers or authorised agents may act under delegated authority. Those executing works "with authority of or under orders of the Minister" (s 14) may enter adjoining land to construct temporary roads or remove vegetation; responsibility for lawful authority lies with the Minister's delegation chain.

Surveyor‑General and Registrar‑General

The Surveyor‑General is obliged to prepare, certify and deposit plans and adjoining‑owner statements (s 17) and to publish notices and maintain plans for inspection (s 18). The Registrar‑General must amend deposited plans and registers when land vests or orders are made, and may require title certificates to be delivered for correction (s 29).

Local government and third parties

Roads under local government care, control and management are excluded from Parts 3 and 4 (s 5(2)). Local governments thus retain a field for their roads, subject to the exceptions and other statutory references in s 7 (subject to Planning Act and Local Government Act). Persons who wish to cut timber, quarry, erect petrol pumps or construct cattle ramps on roads must secure a Ministerial licence (s 13 and s 58); licence decisions are made by the Minister in absolute discretion and can carry conditions or cancellation.

Users of roads and police

Road users, including vehicle drivers, cyclists and drovers of animals, are bound by temporary closures and restrictions (s 11) and by prohibitions on certain vehicle fittings and conduct on the formed or paved part of the road (ss 51-54). The Commissioner of Police and police officers are empowered in relation to the use of immobilising devices in pursuit or in preventing escape from lawful custody, with the Commissioner authorising use by officers (s 54A).

Potential claimants and litigants

Persons who lose land or have estates affected by a road order may seek compensation. Section 31 sets a 12‑month written notice window; s 31A provides that such claimants have a declared right to apply to the Civil and Administrative Tribunal to determine compensation on just terms and may apply for leave to serve a late claim. The Act maps out the Tribunal's procedural role and transitional arrangements for pre‑existing applications (s 63).

Businesses and developers

Private owners of streets or private roads constructed at cost may ask the Minister to declare those private ways to be roads (s 35), and the Minister may accept transfers to the Territory in fee simple. Businesses installing facilities that would be located on roads (petrol pumps etc.) need Ministerial licence and may face licence conditions, cancellations and obligations (s 13).

Stakeholder behaviour change and who pays

Where the Minister exercises powers to remove unauthorised obstructions, the occupier or the person in breach is liable to repay the Territory as a debt (s 9(3), s 10(2), s 12(2), s 13(3)). Adjoining owners face potential transactional costs if they wish to acquire closed road land (tendering under s 24) or must construct enclosures to prevent drift and comply with notices (s 12). The Territory bears the expense of replacing fences where boundary change caused by an order requires a new fence (s 34). Penalties for criminal offences fall on individuals, but the Act also permits cost recovery by the Territory when it performs remedial works.

Overall distribution of authority and cost: the Act centralises decision‑making and title over most roads in the Territory, places duties and liabilities on adjoining occupiers, creates licensing opportunities and fees for those seeking to use roads for commercial purposes, and reserves dispute resolution and compensation determination for the Tribunal where statutory channels are used.

Ministerial duties and discretionary rights

The Minister must perform wide administrative duties: form and maintain roads, erect roadside infrastructure, cause tree planting and removal, and manage closures, openings and disposals (ss 8-9, 11, 15, 23). The Minister has express discretion in a number of places: licensing timber cutting, quarrying and other activities is in the Minister's absolute discretion and licences may be conditioned or cancelled (s 13). The Minister may also require occupiers to erect fences or remove trees and may take action and recover costs if occupiers fail to comply (ss 10-12). The Minister is required to follow the procedural steps set out in Part 4 when opening, altering or closing roads (ss 17-22A), and must act within specified timeframes (for example, 6 months to make an order after the objection period ends in ss 21-22).

Surveyor‑General duties and public access

The Surveyor‑General must certify and deposit plans and statements of adjoining owners for any proposal to open, close or alter roads (s 17). After deposition he or she must cause notice to be published in the Gazette and in a local newspaper, state adjoining owner names and make the plan available for inspection during business hours (s 18). These duties create public‑facing procedural protections.

Adjoining owners: notice, objection, offer and compensation rights

Adjoining owners have the right to be named in the statement attached to the proposal and to receive public notice (s 17-18). They have a statutory 28‑day window to object to a proposal (s 20). If a former road is closed and comprises Crown land, the Minister may offer the closed land to adjoining owners on terms like their adjoining estate (s 24). The Act gives adjoining owners a 12‑month window to serve a written notice claiming compensation where a road is opened or altered running through their land in circumstances where the original grant or lease failed to reserve the power to make roads (s 31). Section 31A further declares a right to apply to the Tribunal to determine compensation on just terms and enables late‑notice leave applications.

Owners and operators: duties and possible defences

Owners and drivers are each guilty of an offence if a vehicle is driven in contravention of the Act (s 61(1)), although the owner may defend a prosecution by proving the driving occurred without express or implied authority (s 61(2)). For vehicle equipment offences (s 52) a court can accept a defence that deficiencies occurred immediately after an accident or mechanical failure and that all reasonable steps were taken to address the defect as soon as practicable (s 52(2)).

Statutory power to remove and recover costs

The Minister may pull down or demolish unauthorised houses, verandahs, fences or structures erected on roads, fill in or clear drains and recover the cost in the name of the Territory as a debt from the contravenor; the same mechanism applies where occupiers fail to remove obstructive trees following notice or to erect required fences (ss 9(3), 10(2), 12(2)). Licence holders under s 13 can be required to perform acts or have their licence cancelled by written notice and, if they fail, the Minister may do the work and recover costs as a debt (s 13(2)-(3)).

Procedural rights and finality

Parties have the right to make claims to compensation (s 31) and to be heard via objection mechanisms (s 20). However, the Act places limits on judicial review in that an order under Part 4 is not removable to the Supreme Court after compliance with s 29 (s 30). The Act gives the Tribunal jurisdiction over compensation determinations and late claim leave under s 31A and provides transitional arrangements in s 63 for pending matters before the former Tribunal.

Regulatory permissions and fees

Persons wishing to do acts that would otherwise be prohibited,erecting a building at the side of a road, making a drain across a road, etc.,may obtain permission from the Minister upon payment of fees and subject to conditions and indemnities as the Minister determines (s 59(2)-(4)); regulations may prescribe fees (s 62(2)).

Obligations to maintain safe roads and prevent hazards

Occupiers must prevent drift sand, soil or other material from being carried onto the road (or be required to erect fencing) (s 12). Where land contiguous to a road is fenced and a road boundary is altered by order, the Minister must cause the road to be fenced at the Territory's expense with a substantial fence of the same nature as the previous one (s 34). Those duties establish responsibilities for roadside safety and continuity of physical boundaries.

In sum, the Act sets a web of procedural duties for the Surveyor‑General and Registrar‑General, discretionary and remedial powers for the Minister with associated cost‑recovery mechanisms, and statutory rights for adjoining owners to object, to be offered closed road land, and to claim compensation within fixed timeframes. The criminal provisions and defences provide a regulatory backstop.

Criminal offences and maximum penalties

Driving on closed roads or in breach of a restriction under s 11 is an offence. The maximum penalty for driving on a road closed under s 11(5) is 100 penalty units; the same maximum penalty applies for driving in contravention of a restriction under s 11(6). The Act specifies a defence of reasonable excuse and permits consent from the competent authority as a reasonable excuse (s 11(7)-(8)).
Section 51 prohibits driving or hauling a vehicle on the formed or paved part of a road if a wheel or tyre that contacts the road has metal projections, bars, spikes or studs. Maximum penalty: 3 penalty units or imprisonment for 6 months.
Section 52 proscribes driving or hauling on paved parts unless the vehicle is fully supported on wheels, fitted with rubber tyres, and in specified dimensions; maximum penalty: 3 penalty units or imprisonment for 6 months. Section 52 also contains an express evidentiary defence for post‑accident or mechanical failure situations, with an obligation to take reasonable steps to comply as soon as practicable (s 52(2)).
Section 54 lists public nuisance or safety offences (retarding progress via an instrument, making fires near roads, allowing effluent to run onto roads, leaving wheel‑blocking material, depositing sand or rubbish on roads). Maximum penalty: 3 penalty units or imprisonment for 6 months.
Other offences carry lower penalties, for example stopping a vehicle on a bridge is subject to a maximum penalty of 0.8 penalty units (s 55) and not removing vehicles from bridges as soon as practicable carries the same maximum penalty (s 56). Driving or operating without a required licence for cutting timber, quarrying, erecting a petrol pump or cattle ramp is 0.8 penalty unit (s 58). Erecting works on roads without permission or contravening conditions can attract 0.8 penalty units under s 59(1).

Enforcement mechanisms beyond criminal sanction

The Act enables administrative remedies and monetary recovery separate from criminal punishment. Where occupiers or licensees fail to comply with a written notice from the Minister to remove trees, erect fences or comply with licence conditions, the Minister may cause the work to be done and recover the cost in the name of the Territory as a debt from the person (s 9(3), s 10(2), s 12(2), s 13(3)). Those recoveries are civil debts, which may be pursued by the Territory in ordinary courts.
The Registrar‑General may serve notices requiring the delivery of certificates as to title for correction; it is an offence to fail to comply with that notice (s 29(2)-(3)) carrying a maximum of 3 penalty units? The Act states the maximum penalty is 3 penalty units in s 29(3).
The Act gives the Commissioner of Police a separate authorisation power for immobilising devices; s 54A permits police authorised use in flight or pursuit contexts and clarifies that s 54(a) (retarding progress by devices contacting the road) does not apply to police officers acting in the course of duty (s 54A(2)).

Finality and limits on judicial review

The Act contains a bar on removing orders to the Supreme Court after the Registrar‑General has complied with s 29 with respect to an order (s 30). This places a procedural finality on Part 4 orders and limits the route for judicial challenge through removal. Instead, affected persons have rights under s 31A to apply to the Tribunal for compensation determination or leave to serve a late notice.

Tribunal process and timelines

Section 31A gives claimants a declared right to apply to the Civil and Administrative Tribunal to determine compensation on just terms and to apply for leave to serve a late section 31 notice. The Tribunal is required to hold a directions hearing within 28 days of such an application (s 31A(6)), indicating an expedited initial processing step for compensation disputes. The section also allows parties to preclude Tribunal adjudication by entering into written compensation agreements (s 31A(4), (7)-(8)).

Practical enforcement implications

Enforcement is thus a combination of criminal penalties intended to deter unsafe or obstructive behaviour on roads and administrative cost recovery that places the immediate financial burden of remedial action on the person in breach. The Minister’s power to remove obstructions and recover costs is a recurrent enforcement mechanism, while the criminal fines and potential imprisonment provide discrete criminal deterrence for more serious or repeated misconduct.

Note on penalty units

The Act uses penalty unit measures but does not itself specify the monetary value of a penalty unit; that value is set elsewhere in Territory law. All references to "penalty units" and specified maxima must therefore be interpreted in conjunction with the Territory's penalty unit valuation statute.

Express statutory cross‑references

Section 7 is qualified "Subject to section 64 of the Planning Act 1999 and Part 12.3 of the Local Government Act 2019", signalling that vesting of roads in the Territory under s 7 operates alongside specified provisions of those Acts. Practitioners must therefore consult those provisions when dealing with road vesting and transfers, especially where planning or local government powers are relevant.
Section 36 states that the provisions of Part 4 apply "despite the provisions of the Land Title Act 2000, the Crown Lands Act 1992 or any other law of the Northern Territory relating to Crown lands." This indicates that the Part 4 opening/closing/alteration process has primacy over potentially inconsistent land title or Crown land procedures; gated rights under those Acts can be displaced by the Part 4 machinery.
Section 16 references the Lands Acquisition Act 1978 or "any other law in force in the Northern Territory" for the ascertainment of compensation amounts when the Commonwealth or Territory acquires land for road works and contemplates exchange agreements between the Minister and original owners. This links the Act to the statutory compensation framework used for acquisitions.
Section 61(3) adopts the Motor Vehicles Act 1949 definition of "owner" for the purposes of owner liability under the Act. That adoption ties enforcement provisions to vehicle registration law and evidentiary documents issued by Registrars.

Tribunal and litigation interface

Section 31A confers rights to apply to the Civil and Administrative Tribunal for compensation determinations and leave for late claims. Part 7 (s 63) contains transitional arrangements for matters pending before the former Lands, Planning and Mining Tribunal. These provisions reposition compensation and procedural disputes into the administrative tribunal sphere, altering pre‑existing judicial pathways.
Section 30 bars removal of an order purporting to be made under this Act to the Supreme Court after compliance with s 29, constraining avenues of judicial review when Registrar‑General corrections have been effected. The interplay between s 30's procedural ouster and the Tribunal jurisdiction in s 31A must be considered in any challenge strategy.

Local government sphere

The explicit exclusion of roads under local government council care, control and management from Parts 3 and 4 (s 5(2)) means local government retains statutory competence over those roads. However, s 7 remains subject to the Local Government Act 2019’s specified parts, and the endnotes record multiple consequential amendments tied to local government legislative change. Practitioners must assess whether a particular road falls within local government control before applying the Minister's powers under Parts 3 and 4.

Regulations and fees

Section 62 allows the Administrator to make regulations under the Act and specifically permits regulations prescribing fees payable under the Act for licences, permits or approvals (s 62(2)). Regulatory instruments will therefore fill out administrative detail and fee schedules, and practitioners must consult subordinate legislation to understand operational costs and procedural forms.

Criminal law and policing

Section 54A authorises the Commissioner of Police to permit police officers to use immobilising devices, effectively carving out a policing exception from s 54(a). The police exercise of these devices will sit in the interface between traffic/road safety enforcement and criminal procedure; cross‑checking with the police powers and lawful use of force or equipment regimes is necessary.

Land title records and Registrar‑General functions

Section 29 imposes duties on the Registrar‑General to correct deposited plans and registers and empowers the Registrar‑General to require delivery of certificates as to title for correction. That mechanism interacts with the Land Title Act 2000 and Crown land registers; s 36 states Part 4 applies despite the Land Title Act, which affects the sequencing of Registrar‑General actions versus ordinary title processes.

In practice, resolving road‑related disputes or transactions will involve a constellation of statutes: the Control of Roads Act's procedural machinery, the Planning Act and Local Government Act in matters of vesting and local roads, the Land Title Act and Crown Lands Act for title and register matters, the Lands Acquisition Act for compensation calculation in acquisition contexts, the Motor Vehicles Act for owner/vehicle definitions, the Civil and Administrative Tribunal Act for dispute resolution, and subordinate regulations prescribing fees and forms. The practitioner must therefore coordinate across these instruments, giving particular attention to the explicit primacy clauses in s 36 and the compatibility caveats in s 7.

Chronology and notable insertions

The Act in the form provided carries a long history of amendment and revision. The source lists the original Control of Roads Ordinance 1953 (Act No. 8, 1953), with commencement in 1954, and records numerous amending Ordinances and Acts throughout the 1950s, 1960s, 1970s and subsequent decades (Endnotes 2 and 6). Recurrent modernising amendments appear across the 1970s and 1980s, followed by a continuing program of consequential amendments linked to planning, land title and local government legislation in the 1990s and 2000s.
The reprint indicates particular insertions and substitutions across decades. Examples from the list include:
- s 7B (Delegation) was inserted by No. 38, 1974, s 5 and later amended (Endnote list referencing s 7B ins No. 38, 1974).
- s 14A (definition used in Part 4) was inserted by No. 13, 1983, s 3.
- s 31A (compensation and Tribunal jurisdiction) was inserted by No. 4, 2011, s 8 and later amended by No. 35, 2014, s 33.
- s 54A (use of immobilising devices) was inserted by No. 35, 2019, s 4.
- s 60A (approval to drive hovercraft) was added earlier (s 60A ins No. 38, 1974, s 14) and later amended; the endnotes show it remains in force, with amendment references including No. 3, 2026, s 64 reflecting recent changes.
The Endnotes record important modern structural amendments and consequential changes, including:
- Real Property, Pastoral Land, Local Government and Planning consequential amendment Acts across the 1990s and 2000s (e.g. Real Property (Consequential Amendments) Act 1991; Local Government (Consequential Amendments) Act 2008; Planning Act 1999 and associated 1999 consequential amendments).
- Transfer of powers and self‑government transitional instruments in the late 1970s (Transfer of Powers (Further Provisions) Ordinance 1977; Transfer of Powers (Self‑Government) Ordinance 1978).
- Revisions occasioned by Statute Law Revision Acts across multiple years (1973, 1974, 1976, 1978, 1981, 1984, 1989, 2001, 2018, 2020) indicating periodic consolidation and formal amendment to update drafting and remove spent provisions.

Recent amendments and commencement notes

The reprint notes very recent amendment and commencement activity. The Statute Law Revision and Repeals Act 2026 (Act No. 3, 2026) is recorded in the list of amending legislation with assent 9 February 2026 and commencement 10 February 2026 (Endnotes, List of Amendments). The reprint itself is labelled "As in force at 10 February 2026". Specific amendments cited in the endnotes include small drafting or formal changes effected by the Interpretation Legislation Amendment Act 2018 and other modernising legislation, with the list identifying which sections were subject to which amending instrument (Endnotes 4-6 provide cross‑references).

Amendment patterns and structural signals

Over time, the Act has received both substantive insertions (for example, the delegation power, the Tribunal compensation provisions, and authorisation of police immobilising devices) and formal, editorial revisions. The listing in Endnote 6 is granular, showing the insertion, amendment and repeal history of many historical sections and schedules. The pattern shows an Act that has retained core structural features,vesting of roads in the Territory, Ministerial powers to open/close roads, and the Part 4 procedure,while adapting to changing institutional arrangements for land title, local government, planning and administrative dispute resolution.

Transitional provisions for tribunal transfers

The insertion of s 31A in 2011 and the transitional Part 7 arrangements in 2014 (s 63) reflect institutional migration of compensation disputes into the Civil and Administrative Tribunal framework, and the endnotes track the consequential vesting of jurisdiction and transitional arrangements for matters pending before the former Lands, Planning and Mining Tribunal.

What the amendment history tells practitioners

The recorded amendments show that the Act has been used as a vehicle for accommodating administrative change (for example, Tribunal reforms and local government law changes). Practitioners should therefore check the sequence of amendments and the endnotes when dealing with historic transactions or titles because procedural or jurisdictional rights may have shifted over time (for example, the Tribunal route for compensation claims was not original to the 1953 ordinance but inserted in 2011). The Endnotes provide a comprehensive roadmap to the instruments that introduced or modified specific sections, which is necessary for historical title and rights research.

What the source contains

The provided text of the Control of Roads Act 1953 does not list or describe judicial decisions, nor does it cite any cases or judicial interpretations. There is no case law recorded within this legislative reprint. The Act does, however, put procedural limits on certain forms of judicial challenge (s 30 prohibits removal of orders to the Supreme Court after Registrar‑General compliance under s 29) and creates administrative dispute resolution pathways (s 31A referencing the Civil and Administrative Tribunal). The Act's text therefore shapes litigation pathways, but does not itself record litigation outcomes.

Implications of statutory bars and tribunal jurisdiction

Because s 30 prohibits removal of an order purporting to be made under the Act to the Supreme Court after s 29 compliance, affected parties seeking to challenge an order face constrained judicial options. Instead, the Act channels compensation and certain post‑order disputes into administrative avenues: s 31A expressly authorises applications to the Civil and Administrative Tribunal for determination of compensation on just terms, and for leave to serve a late section 31 notice. Part 7 provides transitional arrangements for matters pending before the former Tribunal. These features mean that, practically, many disputes about compensation and title consequences arising from road orders will be litigated or resolved in the Tribunal context rather than through Supreme Court removal.

What to check externally

For any current litigation strategy, a practitioner must consult external case law databases and Tribunal decisions to understand how courts and the Tribunal have applied the Act. Because the legislative source here does not provide case citations, the Act alone cannot inform how courts have interpreted key provisions such as "absolute discretion" in s 13, the scope of the Minister's power to recover costs as a debt, or the threshold for Tribunal leave in s 31A(3). The statutory prohibition in s 30 suggests there may be a body of Tribunal or appellate decisions addressing s 31A claims and the limits of judicial review.

Practical litigation risks and avenues

The Act generates litigation posture risks that arise from its statutory mechanics: timings (s 20 28‑day objection period; s 31 12‑month compensation notice), finality (s 30), cost recovery (ss 9(3), 10(2), 12(2), 13(3)), and broad Ministerial discretion (s 13). Affected parties who miss the strict statutory timeframes will need to apply to the Tribunal for leave and should prepare to address jurisdictional bars. Where the Registrar‑General has acted under s 29, judicial review remedies in the Supreme Court are constrained; however, judicial review in the Supreme Court on public law grounds may remain possible in narrow circumstances, depending on the breadth of s 30 as interpreted by the judiciary , an issue not settled by the statute text itself.

Summary

The legislative source contains no litigation history. It does, however, shape dispute resolution by conferring Tribunal jurisdiction over compensation and by limiting removals to the Supreme Court in certain circumstances. Practitioners must therefore review Tribunal decisions and higher court authorities external to this text to build an evidence‑based litigation strategy, and must act promptly to preserve rights under the statutory timeframes.

Delegation and exercise of "absolute discretion"

Section 13 gives the Minister power to grant licences "in his or her absolute discretion" for timber cutting, quarrying, erecting petrol pumps and constructing cattle ramps on roads, and also to require acts or cancel licences. "Absolute discretion" signals a wide humanitarian of decision‑making power; practitioners should not assume a code of procedural fairness is embedded unless other statutory or common law constraints apply. Because the Minister may delegate under s 7B, licence decisions may be made by delegates, but the exercise of that discretion can have significant commercial consequences for applicants. Any licence applicant should ensure full compliance documentation and seek written conditions and review pathways.

Local government exclusion trap

Parts 3 and 4 exclude roads under the care, control and management of local government councils (s 5(2)). A practitioner dealing with what appears to be a Territory action must confirm the road’s administrative status. Applying Part 4 procedures to a local government road may be legally ineffective if the local government retains care and control. Cross‑checking title and administrative records is essential before advising on procedure or commencing actions.

Strict timelines for objections and compensation

Statutory time limits are short and strict: a 28‑day objection period runs from the later of Gazette or local newspaper notice (s 20); if land is taken under s 31 an affected owner must serve a written notice on the Minister within 12 months from the date of the Gazette in which the order was published (s 31). Section 31A preserves Tribunal jurisdiction to determine compensation and permits applications for leave to serve a section 31 notice after the 12 months, but that is discretionary and procedural requirements (for example, the Tribunal must hold a directions hearing within 28 days , s 31A(6)) must be met. Missing initial windows forces reliance on the Tribunal’s discretion, which can be riskier for claimants.

Finality of orders after Registrar‑General compliance

Once the Registrar‑General has complied under s 29, s 30 prevents removal of an order to the Supreme Court. That may close off some judicial pathways. Practitioners should therefore treat the Registrar‑General steps as triggers for finality and advise clients to act before such compliance or to prepare Tribunal applications early.

Cost‑recovery as debt rather than fine

Several remedial actions by the Minister permit recovery of costs as debts (s 9(3), s 10(2), s 12(2), s 13(3)). Those are civil debts not necessarily limited to administrative fines or penalties; they may be pursued through ordinary civil debt collection. Occupiers who fail to remove vegetation or erect required structures may face immediate liability for the Territory’s remedial costs even without criminal conviction.

Interaction with planning and Crown lands laws

Section 7 is subject to section 64 of the Planning Act 1999 and Part 12.3 of the Local Government Act 2019; s 36 says Part 4 applies despite the Land Title Act 2000 and the Crown Lands Act 1992. Practitioners dealing with compensation, title correction or land disposition must therefore review these overlaying statutes to ensure that rights are not overlooked. Reliance on one Act without checking the cross‑references can produce faulty advice.

Licence dependence and commercial risk

Those seeking to place commercial infrastructure on roads (petrol pumps, tanks, cattle ramps) must obtain Ministerial licence under s 13 and comply with possible conditions; the Minister may cancel licences at any time. Businesses should not assume licence permanence or unreviewable property rights on road land; contractual or investment decisions should factor in licence revocability.

Registrar‑General compliance and title corrections

The Registrar‑General’s authority to correct registers and to demand the return of certificates to alter or cancel titles (s 29) can produce abrupt title changes. A person holding a certificate affected by a new certificate or lease under s 27 may receive a demand to deliver up their title for alteration; failure to comply is an offence (s 29(3)). Practitioners must advise clients to respond promptly to Registrar‑General notices and to preserve documentary evidence in case of disputes.

Police immobilising device authorisation nuance

Section 54A authorises the Commissioner of Police to permit use of immobilising devices and clarifies that s 54(a) (retarding vehicle progress by devices contacting the road) does not apply to police officers acting in the course of duty (s 54A(2)). If a private party deploys an immobilising device, they risk prosecution under s 54(a). Parties setting up private security measures must avoid use of devices that interfere with road surfaces or impede traffic.

Ownership and driver liability evidential provisions

Section 61(3) provides that certain documents from vehicle registries are evidence of ownership without proof of signature or office. That evidentiary provision streamlines prosecutions against owners but places a burden on owners to negate implied authority if prosecuted. Owners should keep meticulous records of vehicle use and authority given to drivers.

Hovercraft and other niche permissions

Driving a hovercraft over a road requires written ministerial approval (s 60A). Practitioners advising on unusual vehicle use should check for niche requirements; failing to obtain the approval attracts a penalty.

In all of the above, the critical "gotchas" arise from statutory time limits, the Minister’s discretionary and delegated powers, finality post Registrar‑General action, and overlapping regimes with planning, local government and land title law. Practitioners should map timelines, confirm administrative responsibility for the specific road, and preserve challenges early.

Check status and prepare for procedural steps

Confirm whether the road is a Territory road within Parts 3 and 4 or under local government control. The Act excludes roads "under the care, control and management of a local government council" from Parts 3 and 4 (s 5(2)). If a local government has responsibility, consult the Local Government Act 2019 and local records.
If a proposal to open, alter or close a road is under consideration, locate the plan and Surveyor‑General statement. The Surveyor‑General must prepare a plan certified as an adequate representation and a statement showing names and last known addresses of adjoining owners and must deposit them with the Minister (s 17). Practitioners representing adjoining owners should inspect the plan promptly when deposited.

Observe notice and objection timelines 3. The Surveyor‑General must cause notice of the proposal to be inserted in the Gazette and in a local newspaper and must make the plan available for inspection (s 18). The statutory window to object is 28 days from and including the date of publication of the notice in the Gazette or the newspaper, whichever is later (s 20). Serve any objection in writing on the Minister personally or by post within that 28‑day period and state the grounds for objection (s 20).

Engage with the Minister’s decision process 4. If no objections are received by the expiry of the period, the Minister may, within six months, order the opening, altering or closing of the road in accordance with the deposited plan (s 21). If an objection is received, the Minister must consider it and decide whether the proposal will proceed or be amended; the Minister must either publish an order or deposit an amended plan and statement with the Surveyor‑General within six months (s 22). If an amended plan is deposited, the same notice and objection steps re‑apply under s 22A.

Preserve compensation claims and remedies 5. If land is affected by a section 31 order (a road ordered to be opened, altered or added running through land without reserved road power), a person with an estate or interest in the land may serve written notice on the Minister claiming compensation within 12 months from the Gazette publication date (s 31). If the 12‑month period has expired, s 31A allows application to the Civil and Administrative Tribunal for determination and also provides a route to apply for leave to serve a late section 31 notice , but a person cannot apply under s 31A if they have already agreed in writing to a compensation amount (s 31A(4)).

Deal with Ministerial notices and remedial obligations 6. If the Minister serves a written notice under ss 10 or 12 requiring removal of trees or the erection of fences, comply by the specified date to avoid the Minister exercising the power to carry out the work and recover the cost as a debt (ss 10(1)-(2), 12(1)-(2)). Similarly, if licensed under s 13, comply with any written requirement sent under s 13(2); failure permits the Minister to carry out works and recover costs (s 13(3)).

Secure licences and permissions where required 7. For activities expressly licenced by the Act (cutting timber, quarrying stone, erecting petrol pumps, constructing cattle ramps) apply for a licence under s 13 and ensure any conditions are met. Because the Minister may grant licences in "absolute discretion" and may cancel them, incorporate licence contingency planning into business decisions. For erecting houses or structures on or at the side of a road, obtain Ministerial permission under s 59(2) and, if required, pay prescribed fees under regulations (s 59(3)-(4); s 62(2)).

Comply with vehicle equipment and conduct rules 8. Ensure vehicles using paved parts of roads meet the tyre and wheel requirements of s 52; avoid metal projections on tyre surfaces in contact with the road (s 51). For specific vehicle types, check the caterpillar‑type tractor exception (s 53) and obtain permission for hovercraft operations over roads (s 60A).

Respond to Registrar‑General notices 9. If the Registrar‑General serves a notice under s 29(2) to deliver a certificate as to title affected by a new title or lease, comply within the time stated to permit correction or cancellation and avoid the offence under s 29(3). Maintain copies of all title documents and correspondence for record and possible Tribunal evidence.

Follow closure and restriction signage and notice protocols 10. For temporary road closures or restrictions, the Minister must cause signs to be displayed at the approaches, erect fences or barriers where practicable and give notice by Gazette, local newspaper, Department website, recorded telephone message number, or regional radio or television broadcast (s 11(2)-(4)). When advising clients about travel or transport plans, check the Department’s promoted online resources and local broadcasts for real‑time closure and restriction information.

If a dispute arises, use Tribunal pathways and preserve evidence 11. For compensation disputes or late‑notice applications, lodge applications in accordance with s 31A to the Civil and Administrative Tribunal promptly. The Tribunal must hold a directions hearing within 28 days (s 31A(6)), so prepare concise evidence demonstrating loss and valuation. Preserve contractual agreements, earlier correspondence with the Minister and survey plans to prevent exclusion under s 31A(4) if a written compensation agreement exists.

Document delegation and authorisation 12. Because the Minister can delegate functions (s 7B), when dealing with departmental officers or contractors ask for written evidence of delegation or authority for any decision or instruction taken on the Minister’s behalf. Require written notices for removals, licences, cancellations or cost recovery to ensure administrative acts meet statutory form required by the Act.

Coordinate with other statutory regimes 13. Before relying on Part 4 or Part 3 powers, check Planning Act 1999 section 64 and Part 12.3 of the Local Government Act 2019 given the caveat in s 7; consult the Land Title Act 2000 and Crown Lands Act 1992 where title correction is required notwithstanding s 36’s "despite" clause. Align statutory timelines and duties across these instruments.

Maintain contemporaneous records and timelines 14. Due to short statutory timeframes and the potential for finality once Registrar‑General corrections are made (s 30), keep a running chronology of Gazette notices, newspaper publications, plan depositions, service dates of Ministerial notices, licence documents and any performance of remedial works. Timely evidence of service and receipt is often determinative in compensation and objection disputes.

By following the steps above,a status check, prompt inspection of deposited plans, timely objections, careful licence applications, strict compliance with Ministerial notices, and active Tribunal engagement when necessary,affected parties can preserve statutory rights and minimise exposure to debt recovery or criminal sanctions under the Act.

Control of Roads Act 1953

Plain English Summary

Deep Dive

What it does

Current sections

Control of Roads Act 1953

Source text: opening excerpt

1 Control of Roads Act 1953

Main concepts

Who it affects

Key duties and rights

Penalties and enforcement

How it interacts with other laws

Amendment history

Litigation history

Gotchas

How to comply