Outcomes from the Accessible Public Transport in Victoria Action Plan 2020-2024

The information below outlines the progress made on accessibility across the four-year period of the 2020-2024 Action Plan. It does not include information related to actions from the planning portfolio, which joined the department on 1 January 2023.

Priority One: Customer, community and engagement

People with disability have equitable, dignified, and responsive access to customer service and are provided the opportunity to interact and engage to identify continuous improvement.

Image of two people, including one wheelchair user, waiting at the first door boarding point on a train platform.

We have worked to ensure that DTP and operator staff are equipped with the tools and resources to assist users with disability. We require frontline staff for our major operators to undertake disability awareness training as a part of contractual arrangements.

Our major operators continue to work closely with their accessibility reference groups to embed inclusion across the transport network. Their customer service charters address the importance of access to transport for people with disability and highlight accessible information initiatives.

Several of our operators are accredited with the Communication Access Symbol, a key tool to communicate with users with communication difficulties, and support the Sunflower Initiative, so that staff can confidently deliver customer service that responds to the needs of all users.
Travellers Aid continues to provide vital services to users travelling on the transport network. In 2023, Travellers Aid commenced providing services at Ballarat Station, with thousands of users assisted to travel between platforms, coach and bus bays, taxi ranks, and car park drop off zones.
To ensure that accessible information and assistive technology continues to be available to all users, the PTV app has been redesigned to be fully accessible. VoiceOver and TalkBack capabilities assist blind and low vision users, alongside additional journey planning features.
All departmental websites are compliant with web content accessibility guidelines. We are working towards aligning information about transport network accessibility features across operator websites.
We continue to increase opportunities for people with disability to provide feedback about their transport experiences. Tricia Malowney OAM was appointed as our Chief Accessibility Advocate in 2021 and has put accessibility at the forefront of departmental thinking.
ATAC, a Ministerially appointed committee made up of people with lived experience of disability continues to meet monthly and provides invaluable advice on accessibility requirements across a range of transport projects.
This has included advising on the modernisation of DSAPT, the new public transport ticketing contract, and the design of the X’Trapolis 2.0 trains and the Next Generation Trams.
As part of the new tram franchise agreement, DTP included a new mystery shopper program that now includes people with disability employed on the network to evaluate the condition and accessibility of the tram network and the quality of customer service and staff interactions.

Priority Two: Access to public transport services

People with disability will have increased access to train, tram, bus, coach, ferry and commercial passenger vehicle services, including responsive and timely information on disruptions, cancellations and major events.

A person using a wheelchair waiting at a level access tram stop.

We have made significant improvements to the Public Transport Victoria website based on stakeholder feedback, such as improvements to keyboard navigation and screen reader functionality.

To enable users with accessibility requirements to confidently plan their journey, information on accessible services, stops, stations and conveyances is available through the journey planner tool.

Functionality has also been added to enable users to access real-time information on the accessibility of trams on different routes.

The department continues to provide accessible alternative transport options during disruptions, cancellations and major events. Customer service staff who assist people with disability to navigate disruptions are required to undertake disability awareness training.
The department has also engaged Travellers Aid to support users at Flinders Street and Southern Cross Stations, while operators have engaged them to provide additional services during disruptions and major events as needed. Further work to improve the user experience of disruptions is captured in this Action Plan.
All metropolitan train platforms have information points that connect users to a customer service officer or to pre-recorded timetable information.
Through the Better Stations Amenity Upgrades program, we have delivered accessibility upgrades at Glen Waverley, Jacana, Lalor, Merri, Thornbury, Victoria Park, Warrnambool, and Woodend. This has included installing new passenger information displays, tactile ground surface indicators, shelters and public address systems, as well as improving signage and wayfinding.
Several accessibility upgrades have been delivered through the Regional Rail Revival Program, with four new, three rebuilt, and 13 upgraded stations in growth areas across regional Victoria to continue to improve the accessibility of the network and to address compliance requirements under DSAPT.
This has included improvements to accessible station infrastructure such as pathways, shelters, seating, and overpasses at Warrnambool, Waurn Ponds, Traralgon, South Geelong, and Marshall stations.
We have also committed to installing lifts and building a connecting overpass at Ballarat Station.
We have delivered all 70 of the High Capacity Metro Trains and have commenced work on 25 new X’Trapolis 2.0 trains. The design of these trains has been informed by people with a range of accessibility needs and incorporates significant accessibility features, including:
- additional handholds,
- more allocated spaces at accessible boarding doors,
- real-time information through dynamic route maps and passenger information displays,
- semi-automated boarding ramps
- hearing loops, and
- continuous walkways throughout the trains.
VLocity trains are running on more lines, including to Bairnsdale and Albury. We are currently delivering 12 new VLocity trains to run on the Shepparton and Warrnambool lines and have committed funding to deliver a further 23 three-car trains that will run on the Melton and Geelong corridors.
Twelve level access tram stops have been built along La Trobe Street, servicing routes 30 and 35. Level access stops have also been delivered in Parkville and along St Kilda Road to connect to the new metro tunnel stations, and in Glen Huntly as part of level crossing removal works.
All stops include a range of accessibility features to improve the safety and experience of users, including real time passenger information displays in accessible locations. There is a significant further pipeline of tram platform upgrades.
Since 2020, 259 bus stops have been upgraded to meet accessibility standards. This includes equivalent provision of information and messages for people with disability, whether through static or electronic visual information, or public address systems.
Additional funding was provided for service, accessibility and amenity upgrades that aligned with Victoria’s Bus Plan, released in 2021. These upgrades have been delivered at 80 bus stops.
Safe Transport Victoria facilitates an industry that ensures that taxis, hire care and rideshare vehicles are accessible for all members of the community, including people with disability. The number of wheelchair accessible vehicles has increased by more than 300 following the Commercial Passenger Vehicle Industry Act 2017 coming into effect.
The Multi-Purpose Taxi Program (MPTP), which assists the travel needs of people with disability by offering discounted vehicle fares to program members has been expanded to include taxis, hire cars, and rideshare services.
In addition, DTP advocates for better outcomes for people with disability travelling in commercial passenger vehicles through national committees, working groups and issue specific committees.
DTP has contributed to reforms to ferry accessibility as part of the Disability Standards for Accessible Public Transport 2002 reform project. In early 2023, the new Queenscliff Ferry Terminal opened. The terminal provides an accessible and safe route for users to board and disembark.

Priority Three: Accessible processes and systems

People with disability will benefit from inclusive and accessible processes and systems.

Image of a passenger information display with a train departing for Blackburn.

We have inclusive policies and processes that support and promote accessibility and will continue to build accessibility into our systems.

We have developed a set of Guidelines for Social Procurement that outlines how goods, works and services can be purchased to generate social value and benefit all Victorians.

These guidelines have been applied to major projects to ensure that accessibility is a key consideration in procurement, including for the design of the X’Trapolis 2.0 trains and Next Generation Trams, as well as part of the new tram franchise agreement.

Since the introduction of DSAPT, Victoria has invested heavily in new and upgraded public transport infrastructure and rolling stock.
However, significant challenges remain to make the network fully accessible and compliant with statutory obligations. Key barriers include the age of existing infrastructure and rolling stock, the size of the network, and the high cost of upgrades or replacements.
We have contributed to national work to review and reform DSAPT and advocate for better outcomes for Victorians with disability. Work to finalise this process is continuing through targeted working groups.
We are also working on a network-wide monitoring and review process to support DSAPT compliance, to be completed following outcomes of the reform project being finalised.
To ensure a consistent approach to considering and prioritising accessibility as part of transport services and infrastructure planning, we have developed a Transport Accessibility Strategic Framework.
Co-designed with people with disability, the Strategic Framework sets out our approach to assessing accessibility gaps.
It proposes a prioritisation method to help guide future advice to Government on investment decisions and aims to embed thinking about accessibility so that it is considered from the start in planning, designing, and delivering assets, services, and policies.
The key principles and strategic directions in the Strategic Framework have also provided a structure to develop this Action Plan.
Alongside transport operators, DTP has accessible feedback mechanisms. Users can provide feedback online, over the phone and via text telephone mode, in person or by post.
Our customer service complaint systems generate reports where accessibility issues can be identified. Operators provide aggregated information on accessibility to the department as part of contractual requirements.
Operators of the metropolitan train, regional train, and tram network continue to update information on the available facilities at stations and stops across Victoria. This includes facilities such as accessible toilets, wheelchair accessible parking, hearing loops, lifts and other facilities that assist people to travel on the network.
The new tram franchise agreement provides greater certainty that low floor trams will show up when expected through a ‘right tram, right trip’ key performance indicator.
The department also has an ongoing role in exploring different solutions to accessibility barriers. This has included:
- Design-based responses to platform and boarding ramps, as well as wheelchair containment systems,
- Technology and data-based responses, such as NaviLens real-time journey mapping, and
- Supporting start-ups through the CivVic Labs program at LaunchVic to develop technology-based solutions to public transport accessibility barriers.
Our accessible processes and systems are also reflected in our Master Style Guide, which is regularly updated with best practice accessibility messaging, such as consistent audio announcements and improved access features.
Through governance and reporting, we are accountable and transparent on progress of accessibility initiatives. Our executive-level committees review and provide input into accessibility initiatives, as well as accessibility components in major projects.
This has included updates on progress of actions in the Accessible Public Transport Action Plan 2020-2024, which has also been reported on in the department’s Annual Report.
ATAC has played a key role in ensuring the department continues to build accessibility into all stages of projects and initiatives. For example, their involvement with the new ticketing system commenced with providing advice on the design of the tender, well prior to the engagement of a successful bidder.
ATAC were also involved in user testing sessions with the three competing suppliers. Following the selection of the successful tender ATAC have been involved in testing new ticketing infrastructure, including readers, screens and gates.
The early engagement has been important in identifying different accessibility needs to be considered in modernising the public transport ticketing system.

Priority Four: Access to facilities

Universal design principles and dignified access to buildings and public transport infrastructure will be included in network expansions and upgrades.

Image of two assistance buttons on a tram. To the left is the button that connects to the driver intercom, to the right, a button for the next stop for more time to exit.

We continue to prioritise facilities for upgrade or redevelopment across the public transport network and build in accessibility outcomes.

The Transport Accessibility Strategic Framework’s prioritisation method seeks to identify the upgrades that will have the greatest impact for people with disability.

The prioritisation method draws on data held by the department for public transport infrastructure, for example, from station and stop audits. Work to embed the prioritisation method in departmental processes is reflected in this Action Plan.

To improve connections across different transport modes, we have completed work on bus stop and interchange guidance and developed requirements for the design of new and upgraded infrastructure.
This guidance was informed by user experience research, including with people with disability, and had a strong focus on improving journey accessibility.
We have improved access to our tram network by upgrading tram stops and increasing the number of low floor trams on the network. There are currently 200 low floor trams operating across metropolitan Melbourne, with another 100 to be rolled out from 2025.
Since 2019, more than 25 tram stops have been upgraded to enable level access boarding, including on routes 19, 30, 35, 67, 70, 58, 86 and 96.
While there are minimal boarding gaps at new train stations, there are a complex set of variables that inform how access solutions for boarding gaps at existing train stations are developed.
The height and width of platforms, as well as the size of trains across the network varies significantly.
Raised boarding pads have been delivered at 14 stations along the Dandenong corridor, 8 stations along the Sunbury line as well as at Lalor, Merri, Thornbury, Warrnambool and Victoria Park stations.
We continue to investigate options to reduce boarding gaps at existing stations, which is reflected in this Action Plan.
Accessible toilet facilities are available at 98 metropolitan stations and 44 regional stations. All new stations delivered as part of the Level Crossing Removal project have included accessible toilet facilities.
On V/Line services, all Sprinter and VLocity trains have accessible toilets on board. Changing places facilities were installed at Bendigo Station in late 2020 and Pakenham in 2024. All five Metro Tunnel stations will also have Changing Places facilities.

Priority Five: Workplace accessibility

Inclusive practices for employment of people with disability will create accessible work environments.

Image of the DTP Ringwood office, with meeting rooms and desks.

The Action Plan aims to position accessibility and inclusion as fundamental values where our employees at every level embrace the inclusion of people with disability.

Through Public Transport Victoria, VicRoads, and the Department of Transport machinery of government changes, actions related to employment of people with disability are captured in DTP's and the former DoT's:
- Inclusion and Diversity Strategy 2020-2024,
- Accessibility Action Plan 2020-2024 (internally facing), and the
- Transport and Planning Portfolio First Peoples Cultural Safety Framework: Action Plan 2024-2028
Progress on these strategies and action plans is reported back through relevant internal executive governance committees and in DTP’s Annual Report.

Updated 24 November 2025