Siemens train in Metro Trains Melbourne Livery

The Department of Transport (DOT) was the

government agency A government agency or state agency, sometimes an appointed commission, is a permanent or semi-permanent organization in the machinery of government (bureaucracy) that is responsible for the oversight and administration of specific functions, s ...

responsible for the coordination, integration and regulation of the transport system in the

State State most commonly refers to: * State (polity), a centralized political organization that regulates law and society within a territory **Sovereign state, a sovereign polity in international law, commonly referred to as a country **Nation state, a ...

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Queen Victoria (1819–1901), Queen of the United Kingdom and Empress of India * Victoria (state), a state of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, a provincial capital * Victoria, Seychelles, the capi ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

. The department generated planning, policy, and legislation for transport in Victoria. As a result, the department drove the integration of Victoria's transport land and water transport systems and the delivery of public transport, road and port services and associated activities across the State. The department's stated mission was "Building a safer, fairer and greener transport system for all Victorians to create a more prosperous and connected community." The DOt was abolished and its functions absorbed by the new

Department of Transport, Planning and Local Infrastructure Department may refer to: * Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility Government and military * Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...

in April 2013.

Ministerial portfolios

At the time of its abolition, the Department of Transport supported three Ministerial portfolios, the Minister for Public Transport, the Minister for Roads (the Hon Terry Mulder MLA) and the Minister for Ports (the Hon David Hodgett MLA). It also supported one Parliamentary Secretary for Transport ( Mr Gary Blackwood MLA).

Governance

Melbourne--swanston-dock-container-ships

The Department of Transport was established in 2008 and assumed the transport portfolio responsibilities of the former Department of Infrastructure. The activities and powers of the Department of Transport were governed by both the portfolios of its Ministers, the Minister for Public Transport, the Minister for Roads, the Minister for Ports and by the

Transport Integration Act The Transport Integration Act 2010 (the Act) is a law enacted by the Parliament of Victoria, Parliament of the State of Victoria, Australia. The Act is the prime transport statute in Victoria (Australia), Victoria, having replaced major parts ...

2010. The department initially started its operation under the

Transport Act 1983 The Transport Act 1983 was the main statute establishing government transport organisations and regulating land transport activities in the State of Victoria, Australia for 27 years from mid-1983 to mid-2010. The act was used as the vehicle for ...

, which contained an old and minimalist policy framework for the department and parts of the broader transport portfolio. The development of the Transport Integration Act after a comprehensive process driven by the Transport Legislation Review provided policy and organisational coherence to the Victorian transport portfolio by clarifying the central coordinating role of the Department of Transport. It also provided the department and its statutory authorities and offices with a clear and modern policy framework and new organisational charters. The charter of the department was made up of its objects and functions set out in the Transport Integration Act and these commenced in June 2010. The Secretary of the Department of Transport was Jim Betts who was promoted to the role from the office of

Director of Public Transport The Director of Public Transport (also referred to as the Director, or the DPT) was the head of the Public Transport Division (PTD) of the Department of Transport (Victoria, 2008-2013), Victorian Department of Transport. PTD was the government ...

Objects

The objects of the department were set out in the Transport Integration Act as: ::"(a) ensure that a transport system is provided consistent with the vision statement and the transport system objectives; ::(b) determine strategic policies which specify priorities for the transport system that address current and future challenges; ::(c) ensure in collaboration with transport bodies and other bodies that policies and plans for an integrated and sustainable transport system are developed, aligned and implemented."

Functions

The Transport Integration Act provided that the "...principal function of the Department is to assist the Minister in the administration of this Act and other transport legislation..." Other functions conferred on the Department include - * being the lead in strategic policy, advice and legislation relating to the transport system and related matters other than road safety * coordinating the development of regulatory policy and legislation relating to the transport system and related matters * leading in the improvement of the transport system, including in the procurement, development, construction and commissioning of new transport infrastructure and services * establishing a medium and long term planning framework for all forms of transport for the delivery of an integrated transport system * providing independent advice to the Minister in relation to proposals and initiatives of other transport bodies * developing strategies, plans, standards, performance indicators, programs and projects relating to the transport system * seeking to ensure, in collaboration with the Public Transport Development Authority, the Roads Corporation and Municipal Councils, that access to road and rail is balanced in a manner consistent with Government policies and strategies for public transport and freight * coordinating corporate planning and budgets to assist transport bodies with development, alignment, implementation and monitoring of their corporate plans and budgets * undertaking operational activities including transport system operations, asset management and project management * collecting transport data and undertake research into the transport system * providing corporate, financial management, property and other specialist services to transport bodies * providing assistance to public entities and private bodies to construct or improve transport facilities * carrying out efficiently and effectively any contract entered into by the Minister on behalf of the Crown * representing transport interests in liaising with other Victorian, Commonwealth and other jurisdiction's Departments and agencies, including in relation to regulatory reform and funding. The Act also provided the Secretary of the department with a range of specific powers including the power to enter into any agreement or contract.

Particular responsibilities

The Transport Integration Act imposed a range of responsibilities on the Department of Transport, including: * preparation of Victoria's transport plan and revising that plan periodically * coordination of agencies' corporate plans across the transport portfolios * taking the lead in policy and legislation review including projects such as the Transport Legislation Review

Transport portfolio agencies

DOT oversaw and coordinated the activities of the state agencies responsible for the transport system in

. These agencies were divided into three main types - statutory offices, statutory authorities and independent transport safety agencies. Together with DOT, the agencies provided, managed and regulated transport system activities in

including - * heavy and light rail systems including

trains A train (from Old French , from Latin">-4; we might wonder whether there's a point at which it's appropriate to talk of the beginnings of French, that is, when it wa ... , from Latin , "to pull, to draw") is a series of connected vehicles th ...

and

trams A tram (also known as a streetcar or trolley in Canada and the United States) is an urban rail transit in which Rolling stock, vehicles, whether individual railcars or multiple-unit trains, run on tramway tracks on urban public streets; some ...

* roads systems and

vehicles A vehicle () is a machine designed for self-propulsion, usually to transport people, cargo, or both. The term "vehicle" typically refers to land vehicles such as human-powered vehicles (e.g. bicycles, tricycles, velomobiles), animal-powered tr ...

including

cars A car, or an automobile, is a motor vehicle with wheels. Most definitions of cars state that they run primarily on roads, seat one to eight people, have four wheels, and mainly transport people rather than cargo. There are around one billio ...

truck A truck or lorry is a motor vehicle designed to transport freight, carry specialized payloads, or perform other utilitarian work. Trucks vary greatly in size, power, and configuration, but the vast majority feature body-on-frame construct ...

s and

bicycles A bicycle, also called a pedal cycle, bike, push-bike or cycle, is a human-powered or motor-assisted, pedal-driven, single-track vehicle, with two wheels attached to a frame, one behind the other. A is called a cyclist, or bicyclist. ...

port A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Hamburg, Manch ...

s and

waterways A waterway is any navigable body of water. Broad distinctions are useful to avoid ambiguity, and disambiguation will be of varying importance depending on the nuance of the equivalent word in other ways. A first distinction is necessary betw ...

including commercial

ships A ship is a large vessel that travels the world's oceans and other navigable waterways, carrying cargo or passengers, or in support of specialized missions, such as defense, research and fishing. Ships are generally distinguished from boats, ...

and recreational

vessels Vessel(s) or the Vessel may refer to: Biology *Blood vessel, a part of the circulatory system and function to transport blood throughout the body *Lymphatic vessel, a thin walled, valved structure that carries lymph *Vessel element, a narrow wat ...

* some

air transport Aviation includes the activities surrounding mechanical flight and the aircraft industry. ''Aircraft'' include fixed-wing and rotary-wing types, morphable wings, wing-less lifting bodies, as well as lighter-than-air aircraft such as hot ai ...

systems.

Statutory offices

The statutory offices included - * the

* the Transport Infrastructure Development Agent. These agencies were part of the Department of Transport but each had a distinct

statutory A statute is a law or formal written enactment of a legislature. Statutes typically declare, command or prohibit something. Statutes are distinguished from court law and unwritten law (also known as common law) in that they are the expressed wil ...

charter and powers.

Statutory authorities

The statutory authorities are - * the Roads Corporation (VicRoads) * the

Public Transport Victoria Public Transport Victoria (PTV) is the brand name for public transport in the Australian state of Victoria. It was previously the trading name of the Public Transport Development Authority (PTDA), a now-defunct statutory authority in Victo ...

(PT) * Victorian Rail Track (VicTrack) * V/Line Corporation (V/Line) * the

Taxi Services Commission Commercial Passenger Vehicles Victoria (CPVV), until 2 June 2018 called the Taxi Services Commission (TSC), is the Government agency responsible for the regulation of the taxi and hire car industries in the State (Australia), State of Victoria ...

* the Linking Melbourne Authority * the

Port of Melbourne Corporation The Port of Melbourne Corporation (PoMC) is a statutory body established by the Victorian Government to develop and manage the Port of Melbourne, Australia's busiest container port. The Corporation commenced operations on 1 July 2003, when it t ...

* the

Port of Hastings Development Authority The Port of Hastings Corporation is an authority of the Government of Victoria, Australia. The authority is responsible for the development and management of the port of Hastings located in Western Port Bay approximately 72 kilometres to the sout ...

* the Victorian Regional Channels Authority * the

Transport Ticketing Authority The Transport Ticketing Authority (TTA) was a statutory authority within the Department of Transport in the State Government of Victoria, Australia. It was established in June 2003 to manage Victoria's interest in the OneLink Metcard public tran ...

* the Regional Rail Link Authority. These agencies were structurally separate from the Department of Transport.

Transport for Victoria Transport for Victoria is a statutory office of the Department of Transport and Planning that is responsible for the planning and coordination of all transport systems in Victoria, Australia. It acts as an umbrella agency for Public Transport V ...

, a new

statutory authority A statutory body or statutory authority is a body set up by law (statute) that is authorised to implement certain legislation on behalf of the relevant country or state, sometimes by being empowered or delegated to set rules (for example reg ...

, would eventually be created in 2016, combining planning functions of Public Transport Victoria and VicRoads as well as functions of other agencies.

Independent transport safety agencies

The independent transport safety agencies are - * the

Director, Transport Safety The Director, Transport Safety, who operates as Transport Safety Victoria, is the independent Government agency responsible for bus and marine safety in the State of Victoria, Australia. The position was created as a statutory office by the ...

( Transport Safety Victoria) * the

Chief Investigator, Transport Safety The Chief Investigator, Transport Safety (the Chief Investigator) is the independent Government agency responsible for investigation of safety-related trends and incidents in the rail, bus and marine industries in the State of Victoria, Australi ...

. These agencies were part of the Department of Transport but were functionally independent and reported to the relevant Ministers.Section 194,

Transport Integration Act 2010 The Transport Integration Act 2010 (the Act) is a law enacted by the Parliament of the State of Victoria, Australia. The Act is the prime transport statute in Victoria, having replaced major parts of the '' Transport Act 1983'', which was ren ...

. The Director, Transport Safety has oversight of safety regulation schemes and industry performance under the schemes, while the Chief Investigator, Transport Safety is responsible for no blame or just culture inquiries and investigations in the transport sector.

References

External links

Department of Transport website

Government of Victoria website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Government Of Victoria (Australia)

Transport Transport (in British English) or transportation (in American English) is the intentional Motion, movement of humans, animals, and cargo, goods from one location to another. Mode of transport, Modes of transport include aviation, air, land tr ...

Ministries established in 2008 2008 establishments in Australia 2013 disestablishments in Australia Defunct transport organisations based in Australia Ministries disestablished in 2013 History of transport in Victoria (state)