Before Part 3 of the Principal Act, the following Part is inserted:

PART 2A - Safety Requirements

33C.     Interpretation of Part 2A

In this Part –

party in the chain of responsibility , for an on-demand passenger transport service, means each of the following persons:

(a) an accredited operator of the service;

(b) a relevant responsible person for an accredited operator of the service;

(c) an affiliated operator in relation to a booking service provider who is an accredited operator in relation to the service;

(d) a driver of a vehicle used for the provision of the service;

(e) a registered operator of a vehicle used in the provision of the service;

safety duty means a duty specified in section 33G , section 33H , section 33I or section 33J .

33D.     Reasonably practicable

In this Part, reasonably practicable, in relation to a safety duty of a person, is a reference to what is, or what was at a particular time, reasonably able to be done by the person in relation to ensuring safety, taking into account and weighing up all relevant matters including –

(a) the likelihood of the hazard or the risk concerned occurring; and

(b) the degree of harm that might result from the hazard or risk; and

(c) what the person knows, or ought reasonably to know, about –

(i) the hazard or risk; and

(ii) ways of eliminating or minimising the hazard or risk; and

(d) the availability and suitability of ways to eliminate or minimise the risk; and

(e) after assessing the extent of the risk and the available ways of eliminating or minimising the risk – the cost associated with the available ways of eliminating or minimising the risk, including whether the cost is grossly disproportionate to the risk.

33E.     Principles of shared responsibility

(1)  The safety of the operations of an on-demand transport service is the shared responsibility of each person who is a party in the chain of responsibility in relation to the on-demand transport service.

(2)  The level and nature of a person’s responsibility for an activity depends on –

(a) the functions that the person performs or is required to perform, whether exclusively or occasionally; and

(b) the nature of the safety risks created by the carrying out of the activity; and

(c) the person’s capacity to control, eliminate or minimise the risks.

33F.     Principles applying to safety duties

(1)  A safety duty of a person may not be transferred to another person.

(2)  A person may have more than one safety duty by virtue of being a person to whom more than one provision of this Part applies.

(3)  More than one person may concurrently have the same safety duty and each person must comply with the safety duty even if another person has the same safety duty.

(4)  If more than one person has a safety duty for the same matter, each person –

(a) retains responsibility for the person’s safety duty in relation to the matter; and

(b) must discharge the person’s safety duty to the extent to which the person –

(i) has the capacity to influence and control the matter; or

(ii) would have had that capacity but for an agreement or arrangement purporting to limit or remove that capacity.

33G.     Safety duties of accredited operators and relevant responsible persons

(1)  In this section, a reference to an accredited operator does not include a reference to an affiliated operator.

(2)  It is a safety duty of an accredited operator in relation to an on-demand passenger transport service, and of a relevant responsible person in relation to an accredited operator of an on-demand passenger transport service –

(a) to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, the safety of the drivers of vehicles while the drivers are providing the on-demand passenger transport service; and

(b) to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, the safety of other road users while vehicles are being used for the purposes of the on-demand passenger transport service; and

(c) to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, the safety of passengers of vehicles while the vehicles are being used to provide the on-demand passenger transport service.

(3)  Without limiting subsection (2) , an accredited operator of an on-demand passenger transport service, and a relevant responsible person in relation to an accredited operator of an on-demand passenger transport service, must –

(a) eliminate risks to safety, so far as is reasonably practicable; and

(b) if it is not reasonably practicable to eliminate risks to safety, minimise those risks so far as is reasonably practicable.

(4)  It is a safety duty of a person who is an accredited operator in relation to an on-demand passenger transport service, and of a relevant responsible person in relation to an accredited operator of an on-demand passenger transport service, to ensure that the person’s conduct does not directly or indirectly cause or encourage another person to fail to comply, in relation to the on-demand passenger transport service, with a safety duty imposed on that other person.

(5)  It is a safety duty of an accredited operator in relation to an on-demand passenger transport service, and of a relevant responsible person in relation to an accredited operator of an on-demand passenger transport service, to ensure that –

(a) the provisions of this Act, or of any other law, that relate to the safe use of a vehicle; and

(b) any safety, security and related standards approved by the Commission under section 16  –

are complied with by the accredited operator or relevant responsible person, respectively, and to ensure, to the relevant extent, that each other person involved in the provision of the on-demand passenger transport service complies with such provisions or standards.

(6)  For the purposes of subsection (5) , the relevant extent to which an accredited operator or relevant responsible person is to ensure that each other person involved in the provision of the on-demand passenger transport service complies with such provisions or standards is the extent to which the accredited operator or relevant responsible person is able to control or influence compliance with those provisions or standards by the other person.

33H.     Safety duty of affiliated operators and relevant responsible persons

(1)  It is a safety duty of an affiliated operator in relation to a booking service provider, and of a relevant responsible person in relation to an affiliated operator –

(a) to take reasonable care that the acts or omissions, of both the affiliated operator and the relevant responsible person, in the course of providing an on-demand passenger transport service, do not adversely affect the safety of other persons; and

(b) to comply, so far as the affiliated operator or relevant responsible person is reasonably able, with any reasonable instruction that is given by the booking service provider to ensure that –

(i) the provisions of this Act, or of any other law, that relate to the safe use of a vehicle; or

(ii) any safety, security and related standards approved by the Commission under section 16  –

are complied with; and

(c) to co-operate with any reasonable policy or procedure, of the booking service provider, in connection with the safe and secure provision of the on-demand passenger service.

(2)  It is a safety duty of a person who is an affiliated operator, or a relevant responsible person in relation to an affiliated operator, to ensure that the operator or person’s conduct does not directly or indirectly cause or encourage another person to fail to comply, in relation to an on-demand passenger transport service, with a safety duty imposed on that other person.

33I.     Safety duty of driver

(1)  It is a safety duty of a driver of a vehicle used to provide an on-demand passenger transport service –

(a) to take reasonable care for his or her own safety while providing the on-demand passenger transport service; and

(b) to take reasonable care that his or her own acts or omissions, while providing the on-demand passenger transport service, do not adversely affect the safety of other persons; and

(c) to comply, so far as the driver is reasonably able, with any reasonable instruction that is given by the accredited operator providing the on-demand passenger transport service to ensure that –

(i) the provisions of this Act, or of any other law, that relate to the safe use of a vehicle; or

(ii) any safety, security and related standards approved by the Commission under section 16  –

are complied with; and

(d) to co-operate with any reasonable policy or procedure, of the accredited operator providing the on-demand passenger transport service, in connection with the safe and secure provision of the on-demand passenger service.

(2)  It is a safety duty of a person who is a driver of a vehicle used to provide an on-demand passenger transport service to ensure that the person’s conduct does not directly or indirectly cause or encourage another person to fail to comply, in relation to the on-demand passenger transport service, with a safety duty imposed on that other person.

33J.     Safety duty of registered operator of vehicle

(1)  It is a safety duty of a registered operator of a vehicle used in the provision of an on-demand passenger transport service –

(a) to take reasonable care that his or her own acts or omissions in relation to the vehicle do not adversely affect the safety of other persons; and

(b) to comply, so far as the registered operator is reasonably able, with any reasonable instruction that is given by the accredited operator of the on-demand passenger transport service to ensure that –

(i) the provisions of this Act, or of any other law, that relate to the safe use of a vehicle; or

(ii) any safety, security and related standards approved by the Commission under section 16  –

are complied with; and

(c) to co-operate with any reasonable policy or procedure, of the accredited operator providing the on-demand passenger transport service, in connection with the provision of the on-demand passenger service.

(2)  It is a safety duty of each person who is a registered operator of a vehicle used to provide an on-demand passenger transport service to ensure that the person’s conduct does not directly or indirectly cause or encourage another person to fail to comply, in relation to the on-demand passenger transport service, with a safety duty imposed on that other person.

33K.     Offences

(1)  A person on whom a safety duty is imposed must not, without reasonable excuse, engage in conduct, or fail to engage in conduct, in relation to the operation of on-demand passenger transport services, if –

(a) the conduct, or failure to engage in the conduct, exposes a person to a risk of death, serious injury or serious illness; and

(b) the person is reckless as to the risk that the conduct, or failure to engage in the conduct, poses of the death, serious injury or serious illness of a person.

Penalty:  Fine not exceeding –

(a) $3 000 000 for a body corporate or body politic; or

(b) $300 000 for an individual or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 5 years, or both.

(2)  A person on whom a safety duty is imposed must not, by failing to comply with the duty, expose a person to a risk of death, serious injury or serious illness.

Penalty:  Fine not exceeding –

(a) $1 500 000 for a body corporate or body politic; or

(b) $150 000 for an individual.

(3)  A person on whom a safety duty is imposed must not fail to comply with the duty.

Penalty:  Fine not exceeding –

(a) $500 000 for a body corporate or body politic; or

(b) $50 000 for an individual.

33L.     Relationship with certain safety legislation

(1)  If a provision of this Act and a provision of the Work Health and Safety Act 2012 deal with the same matter and it is possible to comply with both provisions, a person must comply with both provisions.

(2)  However, to the extent it is not possible to comply with both provisions, a person must comply with the provision of the Work Health and Safety Act 2012 .

(3)  Evidence of a relevant contravention of this Act is admissible in any proceeding for an offence under the Work Health and Safety Act 2012 .

(4)  If an act, omission or circumstance constitutes an offence under this Act and the Work Health and Safety Act 2012 , the offender is not liable to be punished twice for the same offence.

(5)  Compliance with this Act or the regulations, or any requirement imposed under this Act or the regulations, is not, in itself, evidence that a person has complied with the Work Health and Safety Act 2012 or with a common law duty of care.

33M.     Duty to advise Commission of accidents, incidents and notifiable findings

(1)  An accredited operator must notify the Commission of –

(a) an accident or incident, of a type of accident or incident that is prescribed, in relation to the passenger transport service operated by the accredited operator; and

(b) any steps taken to prevent the recurrence of such an accident or incident.

Penalty:  Fine not exceeding –

(a) 50 penalty units for a body corporate or body politic; or

(b) 25 penalty units for an individual.

(2)  An accredited operator must notify the Commission of –

(a) a finding, made by a person or body, that –

(i) relates to an accident or incident in relation to the passenger transport service that is operated by the accredited operator; and

(ii) is of a kind of finding that is prescribed; and

(b) if the finding relates to a failure to comply with –

(i) a provision of this Act, the regulations, or another Act, that relates to the safe use of motor vehicles; or

(ii) a provision of any safety, security and related standards approved by the Commission under section 16  –

the steps taken to prevent a recurrence of the failure to comply with the provision.

Penalty:  Fine not exceeding –

(a) 50 penalty units for a body corporate or body politic; or

(b) 25 penalty units for an individual.