Traffic Control Melbourne: how to become a traffic controller in Victoria
Traffic controller courses in Victoria: the TC1 and TMI1 course, what you need to book, and how you earn your traffic control course certificate.
Written byEdway
The short answer
In Victoria, the entry course is Traffic Controller 1 and Traffic Management Implementer 1, done together. It is 3 classroom days, then supervised workplace practice within 6 months.
You need a White Card Statement of Attainment before you start. The course cannot be done online.
Getting your traffic control course certificate in Melbourne is your first step into a new career. Edway's Traffic Controller training gives you the skills and the confidence to start work on the road.
What the job is like
Most people don't think twice when they see traffic controllers working on the street. Their job is more than just operating the stop-slow bat. Traffic controllers play a critical role in keeping roads and construction sites safe and moving. They make sure motorists, pedestrians and fellow workers get where they are going safely.
Traffic control is outdoor work. You stand near live traffic, often in heat, rain or cold, and you stay alert for a full shift.
Work can start early, run at night, or fall on weekends, depending on the roadworks. Traffic Control in Melbourne suits people who like variety, with new hours and new sites to keep every week fresh.
Requirements before you book your traffic controller training course
Check these before you book:
- You are 18 or older.
- You have one photo ID. Your Statement of Attainment is withheld without it.
- You have a Unique Student Identifier (USI).
- You hold a Statement of Attainment for CPCWHS1001, the White Card unit. Send it before the course. A copy of the plastic card is not accepted, and you cannot start without the Statement of Attainment. If you did your White Card with Edway, it is already on file.
- You complete the online language, literacy, numeracy and digital (LLND) check after booking. You can try a free 10-minute practice check first to see the level.
- You are physically able to do practical training.
For the practical day, wear steel-capped boots, long work pants, a long-sleeved work shirt, a broad-brimmed hat, safety glasses and hi-vis. Arrive 15 minutes early.
Before your workplace hours you also need a hard hat, gloves, sunscreen, wet-weather gear and a 5-watt two-way radio.
Traffic control course Melbourne: how the course runs
The course combines two skill sets. RIISS00058 is the Traffic Controller Skill Set. RIISS00060 is the Traffic Management Implementer Skill Set. Together they cover 6 units, and they are only sold as one combined course.
That means one booking gets you both the TC1 course and the TMI1 course. You learn to direct traffic safely and to set up a worksite the right way.
The 3 days run from 8:00am to 4:00pm. Days 1 and 2 are theory in the Melbourne CBD. Day 3 is practical, in a simulated work environment at Hallam.
It qualifies you for Category 1 roads. These are urban streets and low-volume rural roads.
Can the course be done online?
No. The course is classroom only, and there is no online or Zoom option. The practical skills have to be shown in person.
After the 3 days, you finish the workplace part within 6 months. The guide to what happens after traffic control training explains that stage and the card you receive.
Traffic manager, traffic controller or traffic control implementer?
These are different roles. A traffic controller directs traffic, for example with a stop/slow bat.
A Traffic Management Implementer (TMI1) sets up signs and devices to a Traffic Management Plan and Traffic Guidance Scheme. TMI1 is not a traffic manager qualification.
TC1 and TMI1 are the prerequisites for the next level, TC2 and TMI2. Starting with this Traffic Control course puts you on the path to that next step in traffic management.
How to spot a dodgy traffic management course
Picture paying good money for a Traffic Management course and a Traffic Control course, landing the job you wanted, and finding your training is worthless. Don't let this happen to you. Check these points with any provider:
- It names its RTO. Edway Training (RTO 91401) delivers and issues this course. You can check any RTO number on the national training register.
- It is an approved TTM provider. Edway Training is approved by Austroads and the Department of Transport and Planning Victoria.
- It has a workplace stage. Edway's TC1 and TMI1 course includes supervised practice in live traffic after the classroom days. Ask any provider how its workplace stage works before you pay.
- Your status can be checked. Card holders appear on the Austroads national practitioner register, which anyone can search.
The training follows the Austroads Guide to Temporary Traffic Management and the Victorian worksite traffic management code of practice. Victoria's code requires appropriately trained and qualified people to direct traffic.
Jobs and where your traffic management certificate works
Traffic controllers work wherever roads are being built, repaired or dug up. That includes roadworks, utility work, building sites next to roads, and events.
The units also count toward the RII30920 Certificate III in Civil Construction.
The card is recognised in South Australia, the Northern Territory and Tasmania, which use the same national framework, as long as your TTM Digital Card is current and you complete any local content with a training provider in that state. The ACT runs a competency-based system with no card. New South Wales, Queensland and Western Australia run their own schemes, so a Victorian TC1 is not directly accepted there.
If you already have relevant experience, recognition of prior learning (RPL) is available. Tell us about your experience when you book.
If you would like to work in an industry with a purpose, this course is for you.
Next step
See dates, locations and the price on the Traffic Controller (TC1) course page.
If you are not sure this is the right course, compare the options in which traffic control course you need.
Sources
- Department of Transport and Planning Victoria — temporary traffic management trainingVictorian approval of Temporary Traffic Management training providers and the Code of Practice duty to use trained people to direct traffic
- Austroads — National Temporary Traffic Management Training FrameworkTTM Digital Card, the national practitioner register and which states recognise the training
- training.gov.au — RIISS00058Traffic Controller Skill Set code and title
- training.gov.au — RIISS00060Traffic Management Implementer Skill Set code and title
- Edway knowledge base — courses/traffic-controller-tc1/index.mdCourse structure, delivery, entry requirements, PPE, outcome and pathways
- Edway knowledge base — courses/traffic-controller-tc1/recognition.mdIssuing RTO, approvals and interstate recognition
