Passenger Transport Act 2014

This Act is the Passenger Transport Act 2014.

This Act commences on a day or days to be appointed by proclamation.

The objects of this Act are as follows—

to facilitate the delivery of safe, reliable, efficient and integrated public passenger services that are responsive to customer needs,

to regulate certain public passenger services and the providers of those services,

to facilitate a flexible service procurement framework for public passenger services for the State that—

establishes clear lines of accountability for operators of services, and

provides mechanisms to improve access to public transport, and

encourages innovation in service development, including the use of new technologies.

In this Act—

accredited means accredited under this Act for the time being.

air route licence means a licence for a regulated air route in force under Division 2 of Part 3.

air transport service—see section 7.

authorised means authorised under this Act for the time being.

authorised officer means an authorised officer appointed under Division 1 of Part 9 or a police officer.

Board of Inquiry means a Board of Inquiry constituted by the Minister under section 140.

bus means—

a motor vehicle that seats more than 12 adults, or

a vehicle of any class prescribed by the regulations for the purposes of this definition.

bus service means a public passenger service provided by a bus, and includes a community transport service that provides transport by bus.

charter service means a public passenger service provided by a bus or a ferry where—

the provision of the service is pre-booked for hire for an agreed fee and individual fares are not payable by the passengers to the operator or driver, and

the hirer is entitled to determine the route for the journey and the time of travel, and

all passengers’ journeys have a common origin or common destination, or both, and

the service is not provided in accordance with a fixed schedule.

Chief Investigator means the Chief Investigator of the Office of Transport Safety Investigations appointed under section 45 of the Transport Administration Act 1988.

close associate—see section 13.

community transport service—see section 6.

driver of a vehicle means the person who drives the vehicle or, if it is an aircraft or a vessel, is the pilot of the aircraft or the master for the time being of the vessel and drive a vehicle includes pilot an aircraft or vessel.

driver authority means an authority to drive a vehicle granted under Part 4.

fare includes any consideration paid or given to use a public passenger service (whether or not it is paid or given to the operator or driver), but does not include a consideration of a kind prescribed by the regulations for the purposes of this definition.

ferry means—

a vessel that seats more than 8 adults, or

a vessel of any class prescribed by the regulations for the purposes of this definition.

ferry service means a public passenger service provided by means of a ferry.

licensed means licensed under this Act for the time being.

motor vehicle means a vehicle that is built to be propelled by a motor that forms part of the vehicle, but does not include an aircraft, a train or a vessel.

operate a public passenger service means to carry on the business of providing the service.

passenger—see section 5 (6).

passenger service contract means a contract entered into under Division 1 of Part 3.

premises include a vehicle.

public passenger service—see section 5 (1).

rail passenger service means the carriage of passengers for a fare by train, but does not include any rail passenger service of a class prescribed for the purposes of this definition.

railway has the same meaning as it has in the Rail Safety National Law (NSW), but does not include a railway to which that Law does not apply.

railway operations has the same meaning as it has in the Rail Safety National Law (NSW), but does not include any thing to which that Law does not apply.

railway premises has the same meaning as it has in the Rail Safety National Law (NSW), and includes a vehicle being used by the operator of a rail passenger service for the carriage of passengers in connection with that service, but does not include any railway premises to which that Law does not apply.

regular air service—see section 7 (4).

regulated air route means an air route declared to be a regulated air route under section 7 (2).

road means a road within the meaning of section 4 (1) of the Road Transport Act 2013 (other than a road that is the subject of a declaration made under section 18 (1) (b) of that Act relating to all of the provisions of that Act).

road related area means a road related area within the meaning of section 4 (1) of the Road Transport Act 2013 (other than a road related area that is the subject of a declaration made under section 18 (1) (b) of that Act relating to all of the provisions of that Act).

smartcard has the same meaning as in the Passenger Transport Act 1990.

smartcard reader has the same meaning as in the Passenger Transport Act 1990.

Sydney Metro means Sydney Metro constituted under the Transport Administration Act 1988.

tourist service means a public passenger service provided by a bus or ferry or other vehicle prescribed by the regulations for the purposes of this definition that is a pre-booked service designed to transport tourists to destinations on a publicly available itinerary, or a service designed to transport tourists where the journeys of each passenger have a common origin or destination (or both).

train has the same meaning as in the Rail Safety National Law (NSW), and includes a vehicle being used by the operator of a rail passenger service for the carriage of passengers in connection with that service.

Note.

A train is defined as being 2 or more units of rolling stock coupled together, at least 1 of which is a locomotive or other self-propelled unit or a unit of rolling stock that is a locomotive or other self-propelled unit. Rolling stock includes a light rail vehicle.

Transport for NSW or TfNSW means Transport for NSW constituted under the Transport Administration Act 1988.

transport safety employee means an operator of a bus service or ferry service who performs transport safety work and any of the following persons who performs transport safety work for the operator—

an employee or contractor of the operator,

a person who performs the work on a voluntary basis for the operator (irrespective of whether the person receives out-of-pocket expenses).

transport safety inquiry means an inquiry under Division 3 of Part 8.

transport safety investigation means an investigation under section 133.

transport safety investigator means a transport safety investigator appointed under section 146.

transport safety work means any of the following classes of work carried out in relation to a bus service or a ferry service—

work relating to the driving or operation of a vehicle, the loading or disembarking of passengers, the movement of a vehicle or the berthing of a vessel,

work relating to the repair, maintenance or upgrading of vehicles, terminals, wharves or maintenance facilities,

work involving the development, management or monitoring of safe working systems for public passenger services,

any other work that is prescribed by the regulations as transport safety work.

vehicle includes an aircraft, a train, or a vessel.

Note.

The Interpretation Act 1987 contains definitions and other provisions that affect the interpretation and application of this Act.

Notes included in this Act do not form part of this Act.

In this Act, public passenger service means the transport, by a motor vehicle, vessel, aircraft, train, or other vehicle prescribed by the regulations for the purposes of this definition, of passengers within, or partly within, New South Wales for a fare.

A community transport service is also a public passenger service for the purposes of this Act.

The regulations may provide that the provision of any transport prescribed by the regulations for the purposes of this section is or is not a public passenger service.

A road-ferry service under the control of a roads authority under the Roads Act 1993 is not a public passenger service.

A service providing transport by a motor vehicle that is generally conducted on land that is not a road or road related area is not a public passenger service.

Subject to this Act, a passenger service under the Point to Point Transport (Taxis and Hire Vehicles) Act 2016 is not a public passenger service.

In this Act, passenger does not include a transport safety employee employed with respect to a public passenger service or any person carrying out work for the operator of a public passenger service, or any authorised officer or transport safety investigator, while carrying out work or on duty in that capacity.

In this Act, community transport service means the transport, by a vehicle, of specified individuals or specified classes of individuals under a community transport agreement entered into by the operator of the service with TfNSW.

In this Act, air transport service means a public passenger service that consists of transport by an aircraft on a regular air service for a regulated air route.

The Minister may, by order published in the Gazette, declare a specified air route from a place in New South Wales to another place in New South Wales to be a regulated air route.

In determining whether to make an order the Minister must have regard to the following matters—

the needs of the public of New South Wales as a whole, and of the public of any area or district, for air transport services along the route,

fostering competition between airlines in relation to the route,

the effect, if any, on the maintenance and development of adequate and reasonable public air transport services within New South Wales of the operation of aircraft over the route,

the effect, if any, on the economic development of, or on the environment in, any area or district within New South Wales, of the operation of aircraft over the route.

A service is a regular air service for the purposes of this section if it is provided—

in accordance with a fixed schedule, or

on 5 or more occasions within any period of 28 days.

This Act is to be construed as operating to the full extent of, but so as not to exceed, the legislative power of the State.

If a provision of this Act, or the application of a provision of this Act to a person, subject matter or circumstance, would, but for this section, be construed as being in excess of the legislative power of the State—

it is a valid provision to the extent to which it is not in excess of the power, and

the remainder of this Act, and the application of the provision to other persons, subject matters or circumstances, is not affected.

This section applies to this Act in addition to, and without limiting the effect of, any provision of this Act.

This Act binds the Crown in right of New South Wales and, in so far as the legislative power of the Parliament of New South Wales permits, the Crown in all its other capacities.

For the purposes of this Act, a person is a close associate of an applicant for accreditation as an operator, or an operator, of a public passenger service if the person—

holds or will hold any relevant financial interest, or is or will be entitled to exercise any relevant power (whether in the person’s own right or on behalf of any other person), in the business of the applicant or operator that is or will be carried on under the authority of the accreditation, and by virtue of that interest or power is or will be able (in the opinion of TfNSW) to exercise a significant influence over or with respect to the management or operation of that business, or

holds or will hold any relevant position, whether in the person’s own right or on behalf of any other person, in the business of the applicant or operator that is or will be carried on under the authority of the accreditation, or

is or will be engaged as a contractor or employed in the business of the applicant or operator that is or will be carried on under the authority of the accreditation.

For the purposes of this section, a financial institution is not a close associate by reason only of having a relevant financial interest in relation to a business.

The provisions of this section extend to relevant financial interests and relevant powers even if those interests and powers are not payable, exercisable or otherwise enforceable as a matter of law or equity, but are nevertheless payable, exercisable or otherwise enforceable as a matter of fact.

In this section—

relevant financial interest, in relation to a business, means—

any share in the capital of the business, or

any entitlement to receive any income derived from the business, or to receive any other financial benefit or financial advantage from the carrying on of the business, whether the entitlement arises at law or in equity or otherwise, or

any entitlement to receive any rent, profit or other income in connection with the use or occupation of premises on which the business is or is to be carried on (such as, for example, an entitlement of the owner of the premises at which the business is carried on to receive rent as lessor of the premises).

relevant position means—

the position of director, manager or corporate secretary, or

any other position, however designated, if it is an executive position.

relevant power means any power, whether exercisable by voting or otherwise and whether exercisable alone or in association with others—

to participate in any directorial, managerial or executive decision, or

to elect or appoint any person to any relevant position.