Transport Integration Act 2010

The Act applies to most State transport agencies and their activities through its coverage of Victoria's "transport system".[12] Accordingly, it applies[13] to things such as -

• heavy and light rail systems including trains and trams
• roads and vehicles including cars, trucks and bicycles
• ports and waterways including commercial ships[14] and recreational vessels
• air transport systems[15]

"Transport system" is defined widely to include not only system infrastructure and conveyances, but also such things[16] as -

• communication systems and other technologies
• strategic, business and operational plans
• schedules, timetables and ticketing systems
• labour components
• service components.

The Act's coverage of the transport system is therefore extensive. This occurs because "(T) the (Act) recognises that a 21st century transport system should be conceived and planned as a single system performing multiple tasks rather than separate transport modes.

The Transport Integration Act also seeks to integrate land use and transport planning and decision-making by extending the framework to land use agencies whose decisions can have significant impact on transport.[17]

Accordingly, the Act can apply to the activities of a range of planning, land use and other agencies. Generally, the Transport Integration Act "...provides that planning authorities must have regard to the policy framework when preparing a Planning Scheme Amendment...which is 'likely to have a significant impact on the planning system' ".[18]

The Transport Integration Act has an overarching status in the hierarchy of Victoria's transport legislation. All other Victorian transport laws, including those relating to particular aspects of the regulation of trains, trams, roads, ports, transport projects and safety, are identified as "transport legislation" under the Act[19] and are therefore captured by the framework and are subordinate to it.

The Act also sits above "interface legislation" in its application to interface bodies.[20] That is, the Act captures the enabling legislation which creates and empowers the non transport agencies who have a significant impact on the transport system and requires those agencies to have regard to the key policy elements in the Act needed to guide sound transport and land use planning.

The current North East Rail Revitalisation project will improve transport integration in the north east of Victoria. The project includes a rail bypass of Wodonga and track upgrades between Melbourne and Albury-Wodonga to improve interstate rail freight and passenger services links.

The transport decision makers and agencies established and empowered by the Transport Integration Act include -

• Ministers (currently the Minister for Public Transport, the Minister for Roads and the Minister for Ports)
• the Secretary of the Department of Transport
• the Department of Transport
• the Transport Infrastructure Development Agent
• the Director of Public Transport
• the Public Transport Development Authority
• the Taxi Services Commission (initially conducting the Taxi Industry Inquiry)
• the Roads Corporation (VicRoads)
• Victorian Rail Track (VicTrack)
• V/Line Corporation
• the Linking Melbourne Authority
• the Port of Melbourne Corporation
• the Port of Hastings Development Authority
• the Victorian Regional Channels Authority
• the Director, Transport Safety
• the Chief Investigator, Transport Safety
• the Regional Rail Link Authority[21]

The Act requires Victorian transport agencies - including the Director of Public Transport, the Public Transport Development Authority, VicRoads, the Port of Melbourne Corporation, VicTrack, V/Line and the Linking Melbourne Authority – to work collaboratively towards the common goal of an integrated and sustainable transport system.

The Act does not apply directly to the private entities contracted to provide metropolitan passenger rail and tram services in Victoria, nor does it apply to metropolitan and regional bus operators. However, State transport agencies must have regard to the framework under the Act when exercising statutory functions in relation to these private transport operators (including contract management).[22]

The interface decision makers and agencies affected by the Transport Integration Act include -

• relevant Victorian Government Ministers including the Minister for Planning
• the Department of Planning and Community Development
• the Growth Areas Authority
• the Department of Sustainability and Environment
• Parks Victoria
• Major Projects Victoria
• Places Victoria, formerly VicUrban
• municipal councils

The Act requires that the interface agencies, including land use agencies, take account of the new Act and its policy directions when making decisions that are likely to have a significant impact on the transport system.[23]

Importantly, the Transport Integration Act also supports and assists the development, implementation and updating of a transport plan for the State.[24]

The centrepiece of the Transport Integration Act is the high level policy framework contained in Part 2. The key features of the policy framework are a vision for the transport system, six transport system objectives and seven decision making principles. The core of the policy framework is drawn from the principles of sustainability as applied to the transport sector. The framework recognises that transport is part of a broader policy goal of achieving sustainable development, both locally and globally.

Trams pass trains on the Flinders Street Viaduct in the Melbourne CBD.

In general, the policy framework in the Act adopts the core principles of sustainable development or sustainability and translates that policy into a contemporary and enforceable legislative form in a transport context.

The transport system objectives in the Transport Integration Act cover the following matters[25] -

• social and economic inclusion
• economic prosperity
• environmental sustainability
• integration of transport and land use
• efficiency, coordination and reliability
• safety and health and wellbeing.

The objectives therefore draw heavily on the key sustainability concepts described above. Agencies must have regard to the objectives when they make decisions or exercise functions which are sourced back to the authority of the Act.

The objectives essentially describe the outcomes sought to be achieved by the scheme. The need for clear and consistent objectives in policy and legislation settings for transport in Victoria was recognised by both the Transport Legislation Review and the Victorian Competition and Efficiency Commission (VCEC), the latter as part of its final report on managing transport congestion in Victoria.[26] VCEC observed that -

"The government’s congestion policy priorities need to be supported by clear legislative objectives. If the legislation covering organisations charged with delivering the government’s priorities does not reinforce its policy goals, agencies’ authority to deliver on those goals can be undermined. This is true for most transport policy areas, but particularly so for congestion where the legislation must support a coordinated approach across many agencies if congestion is to be effectively addressed."[27]

VCEC commented on the failure of the previous central Victorian Government transport statute, the Transport Act 1983, to set out clear objectives for the transport system and transport agencies: "...the Act does not include a statement of its purpose or objectives to guide interpretation and decision making. Notwithstanding the absence of express objectives in the Transport Act, this and other Acts state the legislative objectives and functions for the key government agencies involved in transport policy development and service delivery."[28]

VCEC went on to recommend the development of clear and coordinated objectives to apply across the transport portfolio: "(H) having appropriate high level objectives that ‘cascade’ down into related objectives for each agency is a prerequisite for achieving the government’s desired outcomes for the transport sector. Such objectives can encourage agencies to work consistently to achieve these outcomes, and reduce the risk of inconsistent behaviour."[29]

The decision making principles in the Transport Integration Act cover the following matters[30] -

• integrated decision making
• triple bottom line assessment
• equity
• transport system user perspective
• precautionary principle
• stakeholder engagement and community participation
• transparency.

The decision making principles essentially describe the process elements which must be taken into account by agencies in pursuing the objectives of the scheme and ultimately, the vision for the transport system. For example, a transport decision which has impacts across all tiers of government - local, State and national - should have regard to an integrated decision making process where due regard is had for effects across all three tiers rather than concentrating on only one or two tiers.

Melbourne Bike Share station on Macarthur St beside a tram line near the Parliament Railway station.

In broad terms, transport agencies and interface agencies caught by the Act must have regard to the objectives and principles when exercising their powers and performing their functions.[31] The framework recognises that many transport system decisions involve competing interests and that decisions are unlikely in many cases to satisfy all parties. This is inherent in the listing of a series of objectives and principles which involve deliberate overlap and tension and which can require careful thought to reconcile. As a result, the Act merely requires that agencies "have regard" to the matters - that is actively consider them - and does not attempt to prescribe particular outcomes in individual cases. In addition, the framework specifically provides that the weight to be given to each objective and principle in the Act is not prescribed by the scheme itself and instead is ultimately a matter to be determined by the relevant agency which is responsible for the decision.[32]

The vision statement in the Act is drawn on in the purpose of the Transport Integration Act.[33] The vision statement and transport system objectives are also relevant to the charters and therefore the legal powers of each transport agency established under the Act.

Each transport agency is required to pursue its statutory object consistent with the vision and the objectives.[34] By way of example, if a transport agency is considering establishing a new transport service such as a rail line or bus line and procuring new rolling stock or buses, it must explicitly turn its mind to the matters in Part 2 of the Act as early as the planning stages of such a project. Planning agencies have the same obligations.

Adherence to the Act can generally be pursued through administrative law avenues including merits review[35] in some cases. However, the Act does not create a civil cause of action.[36]

In 2007, after several years work the Department of Transport released a discussion paper outlining a policy proposal for a new Transport Integration Bill for Victoria. An extensive stakeholder consultation process followed throughout Melbourne and regional Victoria. The Transport Legislation Review: Stakeholder Feedback Summary[37] aimed to reflect the key views held by stakeholders. Released in 2008, it drew on formal submissions as comments made at workshops, forums and briefings during the community engagement program.

The two-year stakeholder and community consultation process informed the development of the Bill proposal, culminating in the release in July 2009 of the Policy Statement Towards an integrated and sustainable transport future: a new legislative framework for transport in Victoria.[38]

The policy areas of the Transport Integration Act provide an example of principles-based legislation. This type of legislation relies on broad principles to articulate the outcomes to be achieved by the regulated entities. The Australian Law Reform Commission has described this approach in the following terms -

"Principles-based regulation can be distinguished from rules-based regulation in that it does not necessarily prescribe detailed steps that must be complied with, but rather sets an overall objective that must be achieved. In this way, principles-based regulation seeks to provide an overarching framework that guides and assists regulated entities to develop an appreciation of the core goals of the regulatory scheme. A key advantage of principles-based regulation is its facilitation of regulatory flexibility through the statement of general principles that can be applied to new and changing situations."[39]

The Act originated as the Transport Integration Bill.[40][41] The Bill was introduced into the lower house of the Victorian Parliament (the Legislative Assembly) on 8 December 2009 by the Hon Lynne Kosky MP, the then Minister for Public Transport. Second reading for the Bill was moved on 10 December 2009.[42]

The Bill was eventually debated and passed by the Legislative Assembly without opposition on 4 February 2010. The Bill was introduced immediately into the upper house of the Victorian Parliament (the Legislative Council) and second reading moved on the same day by the Hon Martin Pakula MLC who had succeeded Lynne Kosky as Minister for Public Transport in the period since the Bill's introduction.[43]

The Transport Integration Bill was ultimately passed without opposition by the Legislative Council on 23 February 2010. The Bill then received the Royal Assent to become an Act on 2 March 2010.[44]

The Transport Integration Act was subsequently proclaimed to commence on 1 July 2010.[45]

The "port corporations", the Port of Melbourne Corporation, the Port of Hastings Corporation and the Victorian Regional Channels Authority were originally not included in the Bill proposal and were added later to the Transport Integration Act scheme by the Transport Legislation Amendment (Ports Integration) Bill 2010 (the Ports Integration Bill).[46]

The Ports Integration Bill merged the Port of Melbourne Corporation and the Port of Hastings Corporation under a rebadged Port of Melbourne Corporation banner. The Ports Integration Bill was proclaimed to commence on 1 September 2010.[47] This formally brought the Port of Melbourne Corporation and the Victorian Regional Channels Authority within the Transport Integration Act framework on that date.

The merger of the Port of Melbourne Corporation and the Port of Hastings Corporation has been reversed - see changes to the Act below.

The Climate Change Act 2010 amended the Transport Integration Act to amend the environmental sustainability objective in the transport system objectives of the Transport Integration Act.[48] The amendment changed that objective by providing that the transport system should actively contribute to the reduction of the overall contribution of transport-related greenhouse gas emissions. In addition, the change require relevant agencies to have regard to preparing for and adapting to the challenges presented by climate change.[49]

The Climate Change Act was passed on 3 September 2010, received royal assent on 14 September 2010[50] and commenced on 1 July 2011.

Taxis and trams in Melbourne. Taxis are as vital to the public transport mix of Melbourne as the city's iconic trams.

The Transport Legislation Amendment (Taxi Services Reform and Other Matters) Act 2011 amended the Transport Integration Act to create the Taxi Services Commission. The Commission was created as an inquiry body in first instance charged with conducting the Taxi Industry Inquiry, a major inquiry into the taxi industry and taxi services in Victoria, and then to become the ongoing taxi industry regulator in place of the current regulator, the Director of Public Transport and the Victorian Taxi Directorate.

The Transport Legislation Amendment (Public Transport Development Authority) Act 2011 amended the Transport Integration Act to establish the Public Transport Development Authority, trading as Public Transport Victoria, and to make other related changes. The legislation partially commenced on 15 December 2011.[51] Further parts of the amending legislation will be proclaimed in the future to provide for the full establishment of the PTDA and to abolish the agencies it replaces - the Director of Public Transport, the Transport Ticketing Authority and MetLink.

The Transport Legislation (Port of Hastings Development Authority) Act 2011 amended the Transport Integration Act to reverse the merger of the Port of Melbourne Corporation and the Port of Hastings Corporation, which occurred in September 2010, and to establish a Port of Hastings Development Authority to oversee the development of the Port of Hastings as a competitor in container trade to the Port of Melbourne. The legislation was passed on 16 August 2011,[52] and came into force on 1 January 2012.[53]