Access Taxis

The Hon. J.S. LEE (14:41): I seek leave to make a brief explanation before asking the Minister for Transport and Infrastructure a question regarding accessible transport.

Leave granted.

The Hon. J.S. LEE: Recent reports have highlighted serious failures in accessible transport, including a case where a wheelchair user was left stranded at a major Adelaide event and forced to travel several kilometres without appropriate transport. Advocacy groups argue that without a clear matrix and accountability, inclusion remains tokenistic. There are calls by members of public advocacy groups for measurable standards, including a minimum percentage of transport services designated for disability access. My questions to the minister are:

1. Will the minister commit to introducing measurable standards for disability transport access to ensure accountability and prevent vulnerable South Australians from being left behind?

2. Will the government include in its measure a minimum percentage of transport services that are designated for disability access?

3. Does the minister accept that without a clear matrix and stronger safeguards the current system risks continuing to fail those who rely on it most?

The Hon. E.S. BOURKE (Minister for Infrastructure and Transport, Minister for Autism) (14:43): I thank the honourable member for her question today. It is a really important area and one that I have dedicated quite a bit of time to. This is a space in which there are quite a number of people in this industry. Rightfully, there are some with one organisation and others with another organisation. What I always find is the best way to sort through an issue and hear the feedback is to bring everyone to the one table. That is exactly what I will be doing in the coming week, because we do not want our most vulnerable left on the side of the road.

As a government, we have taken pretty strong steps in this space and implemented changes to make sure that we didn't have just a handful of drivers getting particular pickups because they had maybe created a relationship and that client was only calling that one particular taxi service. What we have said is there are no more preferential taxi call ins: calls go into a central pool and whichever taxi is closest is there to provide that service. That has been an important change.

It has been acknowledged not only by the industry but also by the union that that was a significant improvement to make, because it means it is the closest taxi that is providing the service, so that they are getting there faster. We know that it is working. We have seen that the average wait time for Access Taxis has improved to just seven minutes, with 98 per cent of the trips picked up within 30 minutes. That has been a big improvement from where we were, and that has come about because a tough decision was made by the previous minister and it is working.

What we need to make sure of is that we don't have this uncertainty going forward. That is why I am bringing everyone to the table next week to have a conversation. I appreciate them making themselves available to do just that. What we do not want is vulnerable people being left on the side of the road. When you buy an Access licence plate, you know that the priority of that licence is to pick up vulnerable people. That is the priority that they should be focusing on.