The Australian Road Rules were approved by Australian Transport Council in January 1999 and published by the National Road Transport Commission in October 1999 in a version which incorporated amendments approved by the Australian Transport Council on 30 June 1999 and 11 October 1999.

The Australian Road Rules, incorporating further approved amendments, were republished in October 2003.

When approving the principle Rules in January 1999, the Australian Transport Council also approved a strategy for maintaining the Rules, which included the establishment of a maintenance group, Australian Road Rules Maintenance Group (ARRMG) to amend the Rules to ensure their ongoing relevance.

The amendment packages are developed by the ARRMG which is convened by the National Transport Commission (formerly the National Road Transport Commission) and comprises representatives from State and Territory Transport Agencies and Department of Transport and Regional Services (Commonwealth), Police, and Standards Australia.

An abridged methodology is as follows:

· the National Transport Commission calls for discussion issues and proposals for change from the ARRMG
· issues are discussed and proposals put forward for change
· a Regulatory Impact Statement and draft amendments are developed and agreed to by the ARRMG
· the Regulatory Impact Statement and draft amendments are release for public comment/consultation (6 week period)

· all comments received either to the National Transport Commission or individual jurisdictions are considered by the ARRMG

· modifications are made to the Regulatory Impact Statement and the draft amendments as required and they are then forwarded to the Transport Agencies Chief Executives for endorsement.

· any issues the Transport Agencies Chief Executives have are addressed and their endorsement sought.
· the Regulatory Impact Statement and draft amendments are then forwarded to the Australian Transport Council for approval.

During the public comment/consultation phase jurisdictions are urged/encouraged to consult as widely as possible with their stakeholders. Documents are also placed on the National Transport Commission's web site as well as being forwarded to any National representative body.