Wheelchair access in taxi and limousine services

Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — My question is for the Minister for Public Transport in the other place. I was approached by a wheelchair-bound constituent who is very supportive of having more operators with wheelchair access in the taxi and limousine services. She contacted me regarding London cabs, which I saw outside this morning. She used London cabs extensively while in London, but the taxis here do not meet the current Victorian standards by 1 centimetre in their ride height. Meeting this standard would enable them to qualify for the lifting fee. My constituent would love to see these 200 London taxis on the road able to service people in wheelchairs. Can the minister confirm that she will amend the regulations to ensure that London cabs are eligible for the lift fee?

ANSWER:

A priority of the Government’s announced reforms to the Commercial Passenger Vehicle industry is to improve services for passengers with mobility impairment, particularly wheelchair passengers.

London Rides has 200 vehicles, that are accessible for the majority of wheelchair passengers, ready to put on Victorian roads as soon as the legislation that is currently before Parliament is passed. While the London Ride vehicles are accessible for the vast majority of wheelchairs, as the Member for Western Metropolitan has pointed out they do not quite comply with the current regulated standards as they are not accessible for all wheelchairs, including high needs wheelchairs.

The Government is determined to ensure that any increase in the number of vehicles that can take most wheelchairs must not come at the expense of a decrease to the number of vehicles that can take all wheelchairs.

For this reason the Government is looking at running a trial of the London Rides vehicles being eligible for Multi-Purpose Taxi Program (MPTP) scheme trips. Consumer groups, including those who represent passengers whose wheelchairs are not accessible for London Rides vehicles, will be consulted through the trial.

As part of the Government’s reforms a dedicated Commissioner for Disability services will be added to the Taxi Services Commission (TSC) to ensure the impacts of reforms benefit passengers with a mobility impairment.