Banner drops
There are several serious safety considerations when doing a banner drop from a bridge, particularly where roads are involved and trespass may be relevant.
The banner must be secure. If it is tied on, the knots need to be carefully selected, well-executed, and safe. The rope must be strong enough to hold up the banner and withstand the force of the wind.
A weighted banner poses an additional risk to the road or vehicles below because of the damage it could cause if it is dropped or becomes loose and escapes.
A safer option is to drop the banner on the shoulder of the bridge rather than over the road itself so that if something unexpected happens and the banner falls, it is less likely to result in injury.
It may be better to stay with the banner and take it down personally, rather than risk it being stolen, torn or lost, or risk someone being injured as a result of it being there unsupervised.
Visibility and safety are of utmost importance. Wearing high visibility vests is recommended.
Prepare how you will respond if approached by police or by people who want to argue or think you are doing something bad.
A “Honk if you want climate action!” (or similar) placard can have a positive effect.
Police are rarely interested in banner drops on public land near roads. If the police approach, they tend to check knots and ensure the scene is safe from their point of view, or express concern about people too close to the road and therefore in danger, or not wearing high visibility clothing.
Be aware that there are laws about dropping or throwing things from bridges, and these offences have severe penalties. The burden is on the activists to ensure that these offences do not occur, either by dropping the banner from somewhere safe or by taking other suitable steps. The offences were passed after people dropped bricks from a pedestrian overpass, smashing windscreens and causing accidents and injury.
The offences
Key points under the Criminal Law Consolidation Act 1935:
The law states that a person must not throw a prescribed object at, or drop it on, a vehicle that is being driven on a road or road-related area or a vehicle that is being run on a busway, railway or tramway (whether, at the time the object is thrown or dropped, the vehicle is moving or stationary).
“Vehicle” is defined very broadly, and, for example, includes an animal being ridden by a person.
“Road” is also defined very broadly.
A “prescribed object” is an object that would, on impact with a vehicle, cause severe damage to the vehicle or harm (whether directly or indirectly) to an occupant of the vehicle (but does not include soft fruits, vegetables or eggs).
“Harm” means physical or mental harm (whether temporary or permanent) (Criminal Law Consolidation Act 1935 s 32A Maximum penalty: Imprisonment for 5 years.)
Be aware that if a person dies as a result of an object being dropped onto a vehicle, the person(s) responsible could be charged with murder or manslaughter.
Key points under the Local Government Act 1999:
Sections 226 and 227 of the Local Government Act 1999 apply to moveable signs and work together with the relevant local council’s by-laws.
A moveable sign may be placed and maintained without authorisation or permit only if it complies with the requirements of a council’s by-laws including design, structure and positioning, and if it does not unreasonably restrict the use of the road or endanger the safety of members of the public.
While by-laws vary by local council, the Adelaide City Council by-laws state that a moveable sign must be an A-frame sign, a Sandwich Board sign, or an inverted ‘T’ sign. Signs are size limited (600mm by 900mm) and must conform with various other requirements. A sign of some other kind may be displayed with the permission of the Council. Banner drops would likely require permission from the relevant local council.
Breach of a by-law (eg failure to get council permission to display a banner) could result in a maximum penalty of $750. In the case of a continuing offence, there may be a further penalty not exceeding $50 for every day on which the breach of the by-law continues, ie for every day that the sign is displayed.
If the by-laws concerning a moveable sign are breached, or if the sign unreasonably restricts the use of the road or endangers the safety of members of the public, an authorised person may order the owner of the sign to remove the sign from the road. Alternatively, if the authorised person cannot find the owner or the owner fails to comply immediately with the order, the authorised person may remove and dispose of the sign.
For information about the Moveable Signs By-law 2018 (pdf), Permits and Penalties By-law 2018 (pdf), and Roads By-law 2018 (pdf) visit the Adelaide City Council website.
Last revised: January 2022