Wednesday, 1 May 2024

Petitions

Sydney Road tram stops

Samantha RATNAM (Northern Metropolitan) (16:53): I move:

That the petition be taken into consideration.

I am so pleased to speak in support of this community-led petition for the government to act on its legal obligation to make all tram stops on Sydney Road fully accessible. I thank the thousands of people who signed this petition in solidarity with the many people in our community who are excluded from our so-called public transport system because of this government’s failure to meet the accessibility needs of all its citizens. There are currently no accessible tram stops on Sydney Road for 5.5 kilometres, stretching from Brunswick Road in Brunswick East all the way to Bakers Road in Coburg North. For passengers with accessibility requirements, like people with a disability, parents with prams, elderly people or anyone with temporary and permanent mobility restrictions, or even with a heavy suitcase, if you live or travel anywhere along this long stretch of road, right now you are being left behind.

Christian Astourian, one of the leaders of this petition, is here with us today. May I also point out that the accessibility provisions in this place – in this Parliament – are far from ideal. I am very glad he could join us, and I thank him so much for his work over many, many years. In Christian’s own words:

I’m sick of living in a jungle in my everyday life where accessibility is very limited and I’m no Tarzan.

Once, a tram driver missed the last accessible stop on Brunswick Road and Christian had to rely on the kindness and muscle of other riders to manually lift him down to the street. Where is the dignity? Where is our government’s commitment to providing essential public services for everyone in the community? We are proud to support Christian and thousands of others in our community who have spent decades calling on the state government to finally do their job and build accessible tram stops on Sydney Road.

On that point I would also like to acknowledge the incredible work of so many elected representatives and local advocates including Tim Read, Sue Bolton, Monica Harte, Mark Riley and our local council along with community advocates Shelley and Sibylla and so many more who have joined in this effort. Under the Disability Discrimination Act 1992 all tram stops in Victoria were required to be fully accessible by the end of 2022. The state government has had decades to do it, but Victorian Labor blew right past the deadline without so much as an acknowledgement much less an apology to the many people who are hurt by this failure. The Victorian Auditor-General strongly criticised the government in their Accessibility of Tram Services report in October 2020 and made 10 recommendations to help the government meet its legal not to mention moral obligations, yet here we are in 2024 and through its inaction this government continues to exclude people from being able to get where they need to go.

And it will only get worse during the construction of the skyrail along the Upfield train line if and when that ever happens. Just before the 2022 election Labor promised to remove eight level crossings and complete a skyrail in Brunswick by 2027. However, we are hearing that this project may be significantly delayed or stalled. Whether or not it is true, now is the time to make all tram stops on Sydney Road fully accessible, fulfilling the state’s overdue obligations to the federal government but, more importantly, to its own community. If we do not do this now, then once the Upfield train line is closed for construction there will be no accessible public transport along the Upfield corridor for many, many months. We know from past Upfield closures that this disruption can more than double the travel time for people with mobility requirements and make it even more difficult for them to get where they need to go, and we must not waste taxpayers money with temporary accessible tram stops that will just be ripped out once construction is over, as was flagged during the Public Accounts and Estimates Committee hearings last November. The state government is already overdue on its legislated requirement to put in permanent accessible stops, so let us just get it done. The best time to make all tram stops permanently accessible in Victoria was two years ago as required by federal law. The second-best time is now.

Accessible tram stops cost just a tiny fraction of the cost of level crossing removals, and just this morning the government’s own inquiry into road safety tabled a report recommending that we prioritise the delivery of accessible tram stops to improve accessibility, calm traffic and reduce the risk of pedestrians being hit by a car while getting on or off a tram. Accessible tram stops benefit everyone, so what are we waiting for? I commend this petition, thank the community for bringing this issue to the attention of the house and all the incredible advocacy. We are right with you. We will not give up until this community is accessible to all.

Evan MULHOLLAND (Northern Metropolitan) (16:58): I rise to speak on the petition regarding accessible tram stops on Sydney Road. I want to start by thanking all involved in the campaign and those who signed the petition. From the outset of my contribution I want to make it clear that I am very, very supportive of accessible tram stops, especially on Sydney Road. Ensuring the accessibility of public transport users, regardless of their accessibility needs, where reasonably practicable is a fundamental component of a fair and inclusive society. We want everyone to be able to contribute to society as much as possible, and accessible transport, including public transport, is a really critical proposition which I wholeheartedly support.

In my electorate on countless occasions I have received calls to my office or inquiries about there not being an accessible tram stop on Sydney Road for a very large section of Sydney Road. It is just not good enough. We have heard that the state government has been recommended to and required by law to comply with having accessible tram stops, and that just has not happened, which is symbolic of this government and its contempt, I think, for public transport users not only in the outer suburbs but the inner city as well.

When we examine proposed solutions to this issue, I think they need to be viewed through a critical lens, and the Greens political party have advocated for separated bike lanes to also be included on Sydney Road and the removal of car parks on Sydney Road to make way for them. While I am supportive of accessible tram stops, I do not think that would be a reasonable approach to have separated bike lanes on Sydney Road when there is also a parallel bike path, the Upfield bike path, nearby.

Many do not have the luxury of jumping on a tram or using public transport, particularly if they come from the outer north, and separated bike lanes would severely diminish the opportunity for traders to do what they do, particularly recovering from the pandemic. There is a reason why there is a drive-through coffee shop on Sydney Road, multiple car washes and petrol stations, and that is because motorists use Sydney Road and our businesses need to be supported. Businesses like Jewels of Punjab, which I had the honour of opening, rely on customers being able to park on Sydney Road and enjoy it safely. Having spoken to many businesses on Sydney Road, I think they all agree wholeheartedly. Separated bike lanes would severely impact on local shops and people attending appointments, but the need for accessible tram stops themselves is clear.

We know that the Greens in local government – some are no longer Greens councillors; I hear there is a future former Greens councillor coming soon – have advocated for separated bike lanes. I encourage the member in her doorknocking around Pascoe Vale to actually listen to residents around Kent Road in Pascoe Vale about the impact the Greens-led Merri-bek council has had on that community with the disturbance on Kent Road. Thousands of people contacted my office but also contacted Labor members – I know the Greens members were not ignored – about the impact of those separated bike lanes. They used money that was meant for COVID recovery to put in their own permanent bike lanes that did not make sense and severely disrupted that community.

This is an important position. I wish the Greens would listen. We hear news report after news report it seems lately of dysfunction there. They are losing councillors by the day. We need good local representatives in the area who actually listen to locals and their concerns. So rather than putting in separated bike lanes on Sydney Road and accessible tram stops, which will bring traffic to a stop, let us prioritise accessible tram stops on Sydney Road and give people the dignity they deserve on Sydney Road so they can hop on and hop off a tram wherever they like on Sydney Road. But let us not bring traffic to a halt and send businesses broke because of Greens ideology.

Sheena WATT (Northern Metropolitan) (17:03): It is a delight actually to follow two other members of the Northern Metropolitan Region in speaking about much beloved Sydney Road and to speak today to the petition before us tabled by Dr Ratnam around permanent accessible tram stops on Sydney Road. I will begin my remarks by saying that the Allan Labor government is committed to ensuring Victoria’s public transport system is accessible to everybody.

Can I acknowledge that we do have some visitors here today. I particularly acknowledge Christian Astourian, who I had the pleasure of meeting earlier, I think it was last year, with the member for Pascoe Vale Anthony Cianflone from the other place to discuss this campaign. I know that the members of this community campaign have been very active over the last little while on this, even so much as to have an action in support of accessible tram stops about 50 metres away from my electorate office. So this is one that I have been well familiar with for a long, long time.

I thank Dr Ratnam for bringing this before us so that I can put some things on the record by saying truly that having talked to the member for Pascoe Vale and other members that support and love Sydney Road as much as we do, including the member to my left Mr Erdogan, I have got to say we have absolutely been prioritising investing in transport options that will enable all Victorians to travel safely and effectively. All accessible options need to be recognised, and they deserve to be met in our public transport options mix. There is a lot in our tram network, and the fact is that we are getting on with rolling out accessible tram stops. There is one not too far from my electorate office, as people know, on the corner of Sydney Road and Brunswick Road. It is incredibly popular with the community. I know that others do want more, and I appreciate that. That is why in the 2022–23 budget there was $156 million in fact to deliver a range of works all around the state.

We are also investing in accessible tram stops in the city, including on La Trobe Street. I know that that is popular. There are now plans that are on track to deliver 12 level-access tram stops at six new locations by the end of this year. That includes places that are highly frequented by our community, including Docklands Stadium, Spencer Street and William, Elizabeth, Swanston and Exhibition streets on La Trobe. These will enable better connections between the new metro stations when they open, including State Library, opening in 2025.

Can I just say there has been a lot of love locally for the new generation G-class trams and the new tram maintenance facility opening up in Brunswick West. These G-class trams will replace what really are the high-floor trams, which are not fully accessible.

While there is talk about accessibility needs, can I just talk about the accessibility options available on our bus services right around the Northern Metropolitan Region. Those buses are low floor and are very accessible for people with accessibility needs, including wheelchair and other mobility device users. The inner north is incredibly well supported by our bus network, and I think that is worthy of being recognised in our contributions today. There is of course an Accessible Transport Advisory Committee, which has been available to test trams and to test other transport as we roll it out. So thank you to those members of the Accessible Transport Advisory Committee. That is made up of people with lived experience and expertise across the whole journey. Thank you to those folks with disability, chronic health conditions and other accessibility requirements – they make themselves available, and I am so grateful to them for their work.

Of course we have got rollouts of some new displays showing when the tram is coming, using some QR codes and whatnot for folks that are vision impaired or blind. Every single one of our 500 trams across the state will receive these new brightly coloured codes, called NaviLens, which will make them easier for folks who can read at long distance to use. Can I just say, we are thinking about the full spectrum of people with accessibility needs and are rolling out services as much as we can to make life easier on the Victorian public transport network.

Katherine COPSEY (Southern Metropolitan) (17:08): If we have got some time, I will take the chance to rise and speak on this very important petition and to thank Christian for all of the effort that has gone into collecting these signatures and over many years championing this issue, along with a lot of passionate supporters in his community. As the Victorian Greens transport spokesperson, this is very emblematic of an issue that is faced across the entire network. I know in my electorate of Southern Metropolitan I have also received queries from constituents with mobility needs around different tram stops as well and tram routes. We had some queries about the number 3 and the numbers 12 and 78, which are still overwhelmingly inaccessible and still operating with the high-floor trams, and constituents in my electorate as well are also worried about this issue.

Right across the network we are seeing that the government has failed to meet its legislative duty and also the need to make sure that everyone in our community has, as a matter of right, access to our public transport system. We know that the government’s legislative obligation is overdue. I would like to acknowledge the updates that we have had from some of the government MPs on the progress that is being made, but clearly there is so much work to do. I think it is really wonderful to see that members of the community are continuing to stand up and continuing to demand what we know is actually the minimum standard so that everybody in our community who wants to get on our public transport and have access in the way that other citizens do has the ability to do so.

I was very pleased to receive in response to a constituency question – as I mentioned, I have raised this in the chamber before and got some updates from the government last year – the actual criteria that are used to determine where accessible transport options are introduced, because I think that is one of the things that is frustrating to people who are seeking to understand when their route might receive these upgrades. What are the actual criteria that are applied? Here we have got a clear community need and clear community demand, so why is it taking so long? At the time the then Minister for Public Transport, Ben Carroll, responded to my question, and the response said that:

The choice of route for new low-floor trams depends on multiple factors including demand on the route for these larger trams, alternative options for accessible transport, available stabling space in our tram depots and the impact on infrastructure.

It went on:

The introduction of the new trams will, over time, allow other low-floor accessible trams to be cascaded to other routes –

so once routes are upgraded, then the other low-floor trams can go to other routes –

spreading the benefits across the network …

It concluded:

We know there is more to do and we will keep investing to deliver transport equity for Victorians.

That is very heartening to hear, but it was nearly a year ago. That was in July 2023. What we can see is that there is clearly demand and need and community support on the Sydney Road route for these accessibility upgrades to be completed.

I heard also in the contributions today government members referring to the availability of bus services that are accessible. That is all well and good, and that is a very good thing in and of itself. However, looking at this list of criteria that I received in response to my constituency question, I do hope that the availability of those local buses does not mean that therefore the needs of the Sydney Road community are put down the list because they have access to an alternative bus route.

We know that there is a legislative requirement here under disability discrimination legislation that needs to be met. I think that it is wonderful that we have heard such positive sentiment from the government, and I certainly hope that when we get to the budget next week we will have some good news for people like Christian, who have been working so hard in their communities to bring about the change that is not only necessary but is actually due to them. Congratulations, Christian, on collecting such a wonderful show of support from your community for this very much needed infrastructure upgrade. I commend the petition to the house.

Samantha RATNAM (Northern Metropolitan) (17:13): I would like to thank all members for their contributions today. I think it is really important. We heard a few distractions in this debate, and I think that does a disservice to this community, who have been campaigning for well over a decade for the most basic of their rights – the right to be able to access our so-called public transport system. I think especially the members of this chamber who directly represent these constituents – for example, the members for Northern Metro – need to honour these community advocates, people with lived experience who battle with this inaccessible system every single day, which fundamentally impacts their lives, and take their concerns seriously without politicking, because it undermines the confidence that our community has in this place to take matters of their rights and accessibility seriously. These are issues that should be multipartisan. Without question they should hear all of us singing from the same songbook in support of their basic rights to accessibility and the right to move freely in their society. It is incumbent upon all of us to do everything that we can to ensure that everyone has access to equal rights, which is what this is about. A fundamental right is being denied to a large section of our community. We must do more.

The government cannot delay or provide any more excuses. Well over a decade of campaigning means that we must get on with making our community accessible for all. I commend this petition, and I thank the community who have been fighting for this. We will continue fighting for you, and we will continue to ask this government and demand from this government that they prioritise the basic rights of the community in every budget decision they make, especially over the coming weeks.

Motion agreed to.