Executive summary: The Disability Discrimination Act 1992 (DDA) allows the Australian Government to make standards to ensure that people with disability are not discriminated against, and to provide information about these standards. The purpose of the Disability Standards for Accessible Public Transport 2002 (Transport Standards) is to enable public transport operators and providers to remove discrimination from public transport services.

Part 34 of the Transport Standards requires the Minister for Infrastructure and Regional Development, in consultation with the Attorney-General, to review the efficiency and effectiveness of the Transport Standards within five years of them taking effect, with subsequent reviews every five years. This report of the Review of the Disability Standards for Accessible Public Transport 2002 (this review) assesses how accessible public transport systems are to people with disability. Under its Terms of Reference, publicly released on 19 October 2012, this review was required to:

• report the views of people with disability, and the community generally, on progress towards achieving the targets set out in the Transport Standards
• assess compliance with the requirements set out in Schedule 1 of the Transport Standards, in particular the targets listed under Part 2 of Schedule 1
• identify initiatives and actions for removing discrimination from public transport services delivered by state and territory governments since the 2007 Review
• assess the progress of implementing the response to the 2007 Review of the Disability Standards for Accessible Public Transport 2002 (the 2007 Review).

The effectiveness and efficiency of the Transport Standards is vital for people with disability to engage and participate in the community. The 2012 Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) Disability, Ageing and Carers Survey (SDAC) released in November 2013 shows that the number of people with disability in Australia is 18.5 per cent of the population or 4.2 million people. Of these people, 1.4 million had a profound or severe limitation affecting their mobility, self-care or communication. The rate of disability increased with age, with less than 5 per cent of children under the age of five having a disability compared to almost 90 per cent of people aged 90 years and over.

There has been no improvement in the labour-force participation rate by people with disability since the SDAC was last conducted in 2009. The 2012 SDAC also shows that just over 50 per cent of people with disability aged between 15 and 64 were participating in the labour force in 2012, compared with 80 per cent of people without disability.

An accessible public transport system is also important for planning for Australia’s ageing population. In 2012 there were around 3.3 million older people (aged 65 years and over), representing 14 per cent of the population. This proportion has risen from 12.6 per cent in 2003. Around half of Australia’s older population have disability. As such, older people with disability now form a larger part of the Australian population than previously measured.

The Transport Standards also help to ensure Australia meets its international obligations. The ratification of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) in 2008 reflects the Australian Government’s commitment to promoting and supporting the equal and active participation by people with disability in economic and social life. The National Disability Strategy (NDS) incorporates the principles underpinning the CRPD into the government’s policies and programs directed towards people with disability. The NDS Policy Direction 4 of Outcome 1 focuses on developing a public, private and community transport system that is accessible to the whole community.