Claims against public transport providers for disability discrimination are increasing, whether for day-to-day travel, holiday or recreational purposes; therefore, it’s important for providers of premises, infrastructure and conveyances to know what the disability standards and the law require now and in the near future. The most effective way to achieve this is through early, informed and ongoing engagement with an experienced access consultant who understands both the regulatory framework and the practical realities of transport environments.
The Disability Standards for Accessible Public Transport, otherwise known as the Transport Standards or DSAPT, came into effect on 23 October 2002 and was introduced to address long-standing barriers faced by people with disability when using public transport. The DSAPT followed the introduction of the Disability Discrimination Act 1992 (DDA), which made discrimination unlawful but did not provide detailed guidance on what accessible transport should look like in practice.
The Disability Discrimination Act 1992 (DDA) provides the legal foundation for protecting the rights of people with disabilities in Australia, including public transport. Adoption of the Transport Standards under the DDA translates its broad anti-discrimination obligations into clear, enforceable requirements for transport providers and operators. Together, they are further reinforced by Australia’s commitments under the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD), which establishes access to transport as a fundamental human right and requires progressive improvement in accessibility.
Therefore, the DDA sets the legal framework, the DSAPT provides practical standards for compliance, and the Convention guides ongoing reform through a rights-based, internationally aligned approach to accessibility.
In terms of disability discrimination, public transport premises, infrastructure and conveyances are affected by the:
Public transport passenger use areas require a complex application of disability legislation, codes and standards. When DSAPT was developed back in 2002, older standards were in place and incorporated into the transport standards, and these remain referenced today. The issue with this is that it creates a conflict with some of the current provisions when assessing projects; some examples are accessible toilets, stair nosing’s and access path edge protection, but it is important to note that these projects also require compliance with the Building Code of Australia which references both the old and current standards and where a conflict arises, the older standards are to take precedence (Part H2.1). It is therefore important that public transport operators engage an experienced and accredited access consultant to guide them and provide appropriate advice on how to meet obligations and improve the environment for users with disability.
Public transport operators have an obligation under the DSAPT to provide an accessible environment for passengers with disabilities. Although the transport standards set a minimum level of compliance for premises, infrastructure and conveyances (ferries, trains, trams, monorails, aircrafts, buses, catamarans etc.), it permits ‘equivalent access’ with direct assistance by staff where compliance is not achievable. While this is understandable in certain circumstances (e.g. operators assisting passengers to board a ferry affected by high or low tides), the main common objective should always be to provide dignified, equitable and independent access for everyone regardless of ability, especially at the design stage when the opportunity to enhance the environment is at its greatest.
The DSAPT is reviewed every five years to ensure it remains fit for purpose and is currently undergoing its fourth (2022) review by the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Cities and Regional Development in consultation with the Attorney-General’s Department.
The Australian Government identified a range of opportunities for improvement based on the outcome of the 2022 consultations with a reform package currently underway that aims to update and modernise the DSAPT across 76 reform areas. The Whole Journey Guide continues to play a key role in informing the current reform process and helps operationalise the intent of the reforms by embedding whole-of-journey thinking into planning, design, and service delivery.
Further information is provided in the links below.
Equal Access has successfully consulted on multiple public transport premises, infrastructure and conveyances projects throughout Australia, including:
Access Audits for public transport environments are complex and involve a review of public facing accessible environments as well as back of house staff areas. Engaging an experienced access consultant at the early stages of your project can improve outcomes while also reducing time delays and overall costs.
Our audits typically include:
A disability action plan enables an organisation to meet its obligations under the DDA. A Disability Action Plan states how an organisation will make changes over a period of time to reduce discrimination and promote equality of people with a disability.
An action plan prepared under the DDA must contain the following (s.61):
Review of current activities
Devise policies and programs
Set goals and targets
Define evaluation strategies
Allocate responsibility
Communicate policies and programs
The DSAPT can be downloaded from the Australian Government Federal Register of Legislation
Download the Disability Standards for Accessible Public Transport 2002
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