VMS sign hire in Melbourne
VMS sign hire in Melbourne starts at $45 per day ex GST on a 12-month contract, or a flat $500 plus 8% insurance for a hire of one to six days. We deliver the variable message sign to your site, position it, load your message schedule, and collect it when the job is finished.
What a VMS board is
A VMS board — a variable message sign — is a trailer-mounted LED matrix that displays text and simple graphics to drivers and pedestrians. The board runs on a battery bank topped up by solar panels and, on longer hires, a mains connection. You change what it shows by sending us a message schedule; we can also update it remotely part-way through a hire.
Boards are either amber (single colour, the standard for roadwork and traffic messaging) or full colour, which adds coloured text and basic imagery for events and advertising. Amber is brighter for the money and reads cleanly at distance; full colour is worth it when the message needs a logo or colour coding.
What people hire a VMS board for
The common jobs, in rough order of how often we get asked:
- Roadworks and lane closures — advance warning, merge instructions, speed changes
- Detour and event wayfinding — directing traffic around a closure or to parking
- Construction and civil sites — induction reminders, gate changes, safety messaging
- Council works and community notices — bin changes, water shut-offs, works schedules
- Sporting fixtures and festivals — arrival routes, drop-off points, car park status
- Emergency and weather messaging — road condition alerts, total fire ban notices
If what you actually need is a bright picture or video for an audience — a brand activation, an outdoor screening, scoreboard-style content — that is an LED screen trailer, not a VMS board. If you want a full-colour advertising sign that still travels on a trailer, look at LED trailer sign hire.
The board
We run one trailer: a full-colour LED panel that can show plain amber-style text for traffic messaging or full colour when a job needs it. It is towed in, positioned and levelled on site.
| Our trailer | Detail |
|---|---|
| Display | Full-colour LED, 2.4 m × 1.6 m (about 3.8 m²) |
| Pixel pitch | 4 mm — around 600 × 400 pixels |
| Brightness | 7,500–8,000 nits, with an auto-brightness sensor that adjusts for daylight and night |
| Content | Text, images, simple animation and short video, updated remotely over 4G |
| Power | Solar and battery for short hires; a standard 10 A power point on site for hires of about three weeks or more |
| Trailer | Road-registered; we tow it in, position and level it, and collect it after the hire |
Tell us the road type, the speed limit and how far back drivers need to read the message. If your traffic management plan specifies a particular board class or character height, let us know and we will confirm the trailer meets it.
How programming works
You send the message schedule — the wording, the order, and when each message should show. We load it before delivery and check it on site. Messages can run on a timer (different wording for peak and off-peak, for example) or step through up to a few frames. During the hire you can ask us to change the wording remotely; there is no need to send anyone back to the board.
The board itself is our responsibility — supply, placement, power and programming. The traffic management plan for the site, and any road-occupation or works permits, sit with you or your traffic management contractor. If you are not sure what your plan calls for, your traffic controller can tell you the board size and message content it specifies, and we will match it.
Delivery, setup and power
We deliver across Greater Melbourne and to Geelong, Ballarat, Bendigo, Gippsland and the rest of regional Victoria. On delivery we position and level the trailer, point the board, run a display check and hand over the contact for remote changes. Collection is arranged for the end of the hire.
The board runs on solar and battery for short hires. For hires of about three weeks or more, or through a run of overcast weather, plan for a 10A power point on site that you provide. Delivery, setup and installation is a one-off $350 for hires under three months; self-pickup is available if you would rather tow it yourself.
VMS sign hire rates
All prices exclude GST. Insurance is 8% of the total hire.
- 12 months — $45 per day (about $1,350 a month)
- 6 months — $50 per day (about $1,500 a month)
- 3 months — $60 per day (about $1,800 a month)
- 1 month — $70 per day (about $2,100 a month)
- Under 1 month — $75 per day (about $2,250 a month)
- 1 to 6 days — flat $500, plus 8% insurance
Monthly figures assume 30 days. Delivery, setup and installation is a one-off $350 for hires under three months. Open the pricing calculator to price your exact dates.
When VMS sign hire isn’t the right call
- You need moving video or photographic images — hire an LED screen trailer instead.
- The message is indoor or short-run promotional — a towable board is overkill.
- There is nowhere legal to place and tow a trailer at the site — a fixed or hand-held sign may be the only option.
- The job is a single day and the budget is below the 1 to 6 day minimum of $500 plus insurance.
VMS sign hire — common questions
- Do I need council or road authority approval?
- Usually the approval sits with the traffic management plan for the works or event, not with the board on its own. If your site has a plan, it will specify where signs can go. For works on or beside a road you generally need a permit from the road authority (council or the state road agency). We supply and place the board to match the plan; we do not lodge the permit.
- How far ahead should I book?
- A week is comfortable for a standard metro hire. For a large board, a regional delivery, or a busy period around major roadworks and events, give us two to three weeks. Short-notice hires are often possible — call and ask.
- Can you change the message once it is on site?
- Yes. Send the new wording and we update it remotely, usually the same day. There is no charge for message changes within a hire.
- Amber or full colour — which should I hire?
- Amber for roadwork and traffic messaging: it is brighter for the cost and reads cleanly at distance. Full colour if the message needs a logo, colour coding, or basic imagery — events and advertising, mostly.
- Do you deliver outside Melbourne?
- Yes — Geelong, Ballarat, Bendigo, Gippsland and regional Victoria. Regional deliveries need a little more lead time and the delivery charge reflects the distance. Tell us the site address for a firm figure.
- What power does the board need?
- Solar and battery cover short hires. For hires of roughly three weeks or more, or a stretch of overcast weather, plan for a 10A power point on site that you provide.
- What is the shortest hire?
- One day. Hires of one to six days are a flat $500 plus 8% insurance, ex GST.
- What is a variable message sign?
- A variable message sign, or VMS, is a trailer-mounted LED display that shows text and simple graphics to road users. It is powered by a battery bank topped up by solar panels, with a mains connection for longer hires. The wording is set by loading a message schedule, and it can be changed remotely during a hire.
- What is the difference between a Class A, B and C VMS board?
- Portable VMS boards come in standard sizes under Australian Standard AS 4852, with the larger boards often referred to as Size A and the smallest as Size C. Bigger boards carry taller characters and are read from further away, so they suit freeways and higher-speed roadworks; smaller boards suit urban streets, car parks and pedestrian areas. Your traffic management plan usually specifies the size required — tell us what it calls for and we will confirm whether our trailer meets it.
- How are the messages updated?
- You send us the wording and the order you want it shown. We load the schedule before delivery and check it on site. Messages can run on a timer or step through a few frames. During the hire you can email a change and we update the board remotely, usually the same day, at no extra charge.
- Can a VMS board be used for advertising?
- A VMS board can show short promotional text, but it is a single-colour amber display built for traffic messaging. For a logo, brand colours or images, hire a full-colour LED trailer sign instead — it sits on the same style of trailer and we deliver and set it up the same way.
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