84-735: The Bus Safety Act 2009 (also BSA) is a law enacted by the Parliament of the State of Victoria , Australia and is the prime statute regulating the safety of bus operations in Victoria. The Act was developed as part of the Transport Legislation Review conducted by the Department of Transport between 2004 and 2010 and is aimed at preventing deaths and injuries arising from bus operations in Victoria and establishes
168-535: A safety culture . The framework of safety duties in the Act seeks to give practical effect to the so-called " chain of responsibility " concept in the bus safety sector. It seeks to identify the parties who are in a sufficient position of control over risks, in this case to safety , and to allocate responsibility by law accordingly. Penalties for a breach of safety duties are potentially high, with maximum penalties reflecting those that can be imposed on duty holders in
252-424: A bus, subsequent modifications, including reducing the number of seats, will not alter its status under the scheme. Accordingly, a bus built with 10 seats remains a bus even if some of those seats are removed. This ensures that safety regulation is not avoided by making alterations to the vehicle. Some flexibility is provided by allowing for vehicles and services to be opted in or out of the definition. For example,
336-756: A child, 307 convicts, 17 convicts' wives, and seven children). They had been sent from England in HMS ; Calcutta under the command of Captain Daniel Woodriff , principally out of fear that the French, who had been exploring the area, might establish their own settlement and thereby challenge British rights to the continent. In 1826, Colonel Stewart, Captain Samuel Wright, and Lieutenant Burchell were sent in HMS Fly (Captain Wetherall) and
420-600: A commercial bus service or local bus service safely." Matters relevant to satisfying that test include whether the applicant has completed an approved training course and any other matters prescribed by regulations or declared by the Safety Director. In addition to safety duties, the requirement to be accredited was continued by the BSA for operators of commercial services which use medium to large buses, as well as local councils which use medium to large buses to provide
504-794: A cooler, mountain climate in the centre of the state. Winters along the coast of the state, particularly around Melbourne , are relatively mild ( see chart ). The coastal plain south of the Great Dividing Range has Victoria's mildest climate. Air from the Southern Ocean helps reduce the heat of summer and the cold of winter. Melbourne and other large cities are located in this temperate region. The Mallee and upper Wimmera are Victoria's warmest regions with hot winds blowing from nearby semi-deserts. Average temperatures exceed 32 °C (90 °F) during summer and 15 °C (59 °F) in winter. Except at cool mountain elevations,
588-649: A human hearth excavated in 1971 was radiocarbon-dated to about 31,000 years BP , making Keilor one of the earliest sites of human habitation in Australia. A cranium found at the site has been dated at between 12,000 and 14,700 years BP . Archaeological sites in Tasmania and on the Bass Strait Islands have been dated to between 20,000 to 35,000 years ago when sea levels were 130 metres below present level allowing First Nations Peoples to move across
672-570: A kangaroo hunting ground. Creation stories describe how Bunjil was responsible for the formation of the bay, or the bay was flooded when the Yarra River was created. Victoria, like Queensland , was named after Queen Victoria , who had been on the British throne for 14 years when the colony was established in 1851. After the founding of the colony of New South Wales in 1788, Australia was divided into an eastern half named New South Wales and
756-486: A local service that is available to the general public. The accreditation scheme under previous legislation was streamlined and strengthened by the Bus Safety Act to focus more clearly on safety. It no longer focuses on business competence, and reduced the regulatory burden by relieving accredited operators of the need to obtain periodic renewal of their accreditation. New probity standards were also introduced by
840-491: A modern "best practice" regulatory framework to assist in maintaining and improving the Victorian bus industry's good safety record. The Act continued regulatory control over the operation of large buses and introduced safety standards for the small or mini-bus sector which comprises 40% of the Victorian bus fleet. Controls over large and small buses comprise permissions such as accreditation and registration. In addition,
924-583: A new multi-member proportional representation system. The State of Victoria was divided into eight electorates with each electorate represented by five representatives elected by Single Transferable Vote . The total number of upper house members was reduced from 44 to 40 and their term of office is now the same as the lower house members—four years. Elections for the Victorian Parliament are now fixed and occur in November every four years. Prior to
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#17327984751191008-533: A range of climates and geographical features from its temperate coastal and central regions to the Victorian Alps in the northeast and the semi-arid northwest. The majority of the Victorian population is concentrated in the central-south area surrounding Port Phillip , and in particular within the metropolitan area of Greater Melbourne , Victoria's state capital and largest city and also Australia's second-largest city , where over three-quarters of
1092-543: A rate of 8,227 per 100,000 people, up 4.4% on the previous year. While there have been some dips along the way, the rate of recorded offences have increased year on year since 2011, when the figure was 6,937.7 offences per 100,000 people. Victoria has a parliamentary form of government based on the Westminster System . Legislative power resides in the Parliament consisting of the Governor (the representative of
1176-569: A vehicle that would otherwise be a bus, but is licensed as a taxi, is excluded so that the operator is not subject to double regulation. In order to foster more proactive risk management in the bus industry, Part 3 of the BSA imposes performance-based duties of care on all industry participants who are in a position to influence the safety of the operation - what is called the ' chain of responsibility '. Safety duties apply to all bus services, both commercial and non-commercial, and to all buses regardless of seating capacity. The primary duty holder under
1260-519: A western half named New Holland , under the administration of the colonial government in Sydney. The first British settlement in the area later known as Victoria was established in October 1803 under Lieutenant-Governor David Collins at Sullivan Bay on Port Phillip. It consisted of 402 people (five government officials, nine officers of marines, two drummers, and 39 privates, five soldiers' wives and
1344-504: A wide range of sentencing options after a finding of guilt is made in relation to a safety offence. These, too, were made available by the BSA in relation to bus safety offences. The compliance -related provisions to support the Bus Safety Act were not included in that Act. Instead, they were included in the Transport (Compliance and Miscellaneous) Act 1983 as part of the holistic restructuring of Victorian transport legislation driven by
1428-518: Is at 39°12' S, which passes through Boundary Islet in the Bass Strait for 85 metres. Victoria contains many topographically, geologically and climatically diverse areas, ranging from the wet, temperate climate of Gippsland in the southeast to the snow-covered Victorian alpine areas which rise to almost 2,000 m (6,600 ft), with Mount Bogong the highest peak at 1,986 m (6,516 ft). There are extensive semi-arid plains to
1512-608: Is bordered by New South Wales to the north and South Australia to the west and is bounded by the Bass Strait to the south (with the exception of a small land border with Tasmania located along Boundary Islet ), the Great Australian Bight portion of the Southern Ocean to the southwest, and the Tasman Sea (a marginal sea of the South Pacific Ocean ) to the southeast. The state encompasses
1596-399: Is divided into distinct geographic regions , most commonly for the purposes of economic development , while others for land management (agriculture or conservation) and for censusing (statistical or meteorological) or electoral purposes. The most commonly used regions are those created by the state government for the purposes of economic development . In addition to Greater Melbourne ,
1680-828: Is heavier. Rainfall is most reliable in Gippsland and the Western District , making them both leading farming areas. Victoria's highest recorded daily rainfall was 377.8 mm (14.87 in) at Tidal River in Wilsons Promontory National Park on 23 March 2011. At March 2024 Victoria had a population of 6,959,200. The Australian Bureau of Statistics estimates that the population may well reach 10.3 million by 2051. Victoria's founding Anglo-Celtic population has been supplemented by successive waves of migrants from Southern and Eastern Europe , Asia and, most recently, Africa and
1764-431: Is influenced and often controlled by the actions of other parties. Concerns arose that transport laws had often focussed on the actions of drivers while failing to sufficiently recognise and regulate the actions of other key parties. Chain of responsibility laws therefore seek to provide that these other parties cannot encourage, create incentives for, demand or allow drivers to undertake unlawful actions. In recent years,
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#17327984751191848-425: Is located 10 km (6 mi) south of Bendigo . Due to its central location and the region's historical ties to the gold rush, the town is widely regarded as the "Heart of Gold". The state's capital, Melbourne, contains about 70% of the state's population and dominates its economy, media, and culture. For other cities and towns, see list of localities (Victoria) and local government areas of Victoria . Victoria
1932-459: Is particularly strong in Bendigo and its environs. In 1854 at Ballarat, an armed rebellion against the government of Victoria was made by miners protesting against mining taxes (the " Eureka Stockade "). This was crushed by British troops, but the confrontation persuaded the colonial authorities to reform the administration of mining concessions (reducing the hated mining licence fees) and extend
2016-496: Is reasonably practicable'. This familiar practicability formula is borrowed from Victoria's Rail Safety Act (and the subsequent national model Rail Safety Bill) and the Occupational Health and Safety Act 2004. Duties of this kind are a key aspect of modern safety regulation and tend to create a shared safety awareness, a proactive approach to safety management and adaptability to new circumstances - in other words,
2100-471: The Australian Bureau of Statistics as being a population cluster of 1,000 or more people. The below figures broadly represent the populations of the contiguous built-up areas of each city: Victoria has a varied climate that ranges from semi-arid temperate with hot summers in the north-west, to temperate and cool along the coast. Victoria's main land feature, the Great Dividing Range, produces
2184-708: The Australian Senate . At state level, the Parliament of Victoria consists of the Legislative Assembly and the Legislative Council . The Labor Party , led by Jacinta Allan as premier , has governed Victoria since 2014. The Governor of Victoria , the representative of the monarch in the state, is currently Margaret Gardner . Victoria is divided into 79 local government areas , as well as several unincorporated areas which
2268-600: The Middle East . Victoria's population is ageing in proportion with the average of the remainder of the Australian population. About 72% of Victorians are Australian-born. This figure falls to around 66% in Melbourne but rises to higher than 95% in some rural areas in the north west of the state. Less than 1% of Victorians identify themselves as Aboriginal . More than 75% of Victorians live in Melbourne, located in
2352-400: The Transport Legislation Review . The compliance support scheme centres on provisions which enable the appointment of authorised officers, the conferral of coercive powers and the availability of a range of administrative and court-based sanctions. The key elements are - Victoria (Australia) Victoria , commonly abbreviated as Vic , is a state in southeastern Australia. It is
2436-609: The Victoria State Government has divided Victoria into five regions covering all parts of the state. The five regional Victoria divisions are: The Australian Bureau of Meteorology defines regions for its own purposes, some of which share names with the economic regions, even though the exact boundaries may not correlate. As of November 2014, they are: This is a list of places in the Australian state of Victoria by population. Urban centres are defined by
2520-627: The Yorta Yorta . There were more than 30 Aboriginal languages spoken in the area prior to European colonisation. In 1770 James Cook claimed the east coast of the Australian continent for the Kingdom of Great Britain . The first European settlement in the area occurred in 1803 at Sullivan Bay . Much of Victoria was included in 1836 in the Port Phillip District of New South Wales. Named in honour of Queen Victoria , Victoria
2604-674: The electoral franchise . The following year, the Imperial Parliament granted Victoria responsible government with the passage of the Colony of Victoria Act 1855. Some of the leaders of the Eureka rebellion went on to become members of the Victorian Parliament. In 1857, reflecting the growing presence of Irish Catholic immigrants, John O'Shanassy became the colony's second Premier with the former Young Irelander , Charles Gavan Duffy as his deputy. Melbourne's Protestant establishment
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2688-505: The pink heath (state flower), Leadbeater's possum (state animal) and the helmeted honeyeater (state bird). Ecological communities include Victorian Volcanic Plain grasslands , Northern Plains Grassland and Gippsland Plains Grassy Woodland , all of which are critically endangered. According to Geoscience Australia , the geographic centre of Victoria is located in Mandurang at 36° 51' 15"S, 144° 16' 52" E. The small rural locality
2772-546: The population growth peak of 1969–72. In 2017, Victoria recorded a TFR of 1.724. The "average Victorian" according to the demographic statistics may be described as follows: In the year ending September 2020, the statistics were skewed by the introduction of six new public safety offences relating to the COVID-19 pandemic in Australia . Total offences numbered 551,710, with 32,713 of these being breaches of Chief Health Officer Directions. The total offences occurred at
2856-438: The safety director regulatory tools including improvement notices (which require a duty holder to remedy a safety breach) and, in more critical circumstances, prohibition notices (which enable the safety director to prohibit the duty holder from carrying out an unsafe activity until the situation is remedied). In each case, failure to comply with the notice is an offence. The Rail Safety Act and Road Safety Act 1986 give courts
2940-494: The 2006 election, the Legislative Council consisted of 44 members elected to eight-year terms from 22 two-member electorates. Chain of responsibility The chain of responsibility is a policy concept used in Australian transport legislation to place legal obligations on parties in the transport supply chain or across transport industries generally. The concept was initially developed to apply in
3024-410: The 2016 census, 72.2% of Victorians speak English at home. Speakers of other languages include Mandarin (3.2%), Italian (1.9%), Greek (1.9%), Vietnamese (1.7%), and Arabic (1.3%). In the 2016 Census, 47.9% of Victorians described themselves as Christian , 10.6% stated that they followed other religions and 32.1% stated that they had no religion or held secular or other spiritual beliefs. In
3108-440: The 2016 census, the most commonly nominated ancestries were: 0.8% of the population, or 47,788 people, identified as Indigenous Australians ( Aboriginal Australians and Torres Strait Islanders ) in 2016. At the 2016 census, 64.9% of residents were born in Australia. The other most common countries of birth were England (2.9%), India (2.9%), Mainland China (2.7%), New Zealand (1.6%) and Vietnam (1.4%). As of
3192-499: The Act introduced broad based "safety duties" for bus operators and all others who have a significant role in providing both commercial and non-commercial bus services. The Act also extended the range of enforcement powers and sanctions available to the safety regulator - the Director, Transport Safety operating as Transport Safety Victoria - and operates to encourage greater safety awareness across all types of bus operations. The Act
3276-449: The Act to be registered with the safety regulator , enabling the regulator to take proactive compliance steps or responsive action as necessary. In addition, the specific guidance contained in codes of practice can enhance compliance by operators of these services. The BSA enables the safety director to apply to the bus sector the wide array of enforcement powers and sanctions , consistent with modern safety schemes. These provisions give
3360-483: The Act was the extension of coverage to small buses. The former Public Transport Competition Act regime focused exclusively on large buses. The BSA extended the definition of 'bus' in line with the Australian Design Rules, which define a bus as a passenger vehicle with 10 or more seating positions including the driver. The definition refers to buses 'as built'. This means that if a vehicle is built as
3444-421: The BSA by the regulator. The purpose of accreditation is to attest that a person who operates a commercial bus service or a local bus service has demonstrated the competence and capacity to manage the risks to safety associated with their bus operations. The matters applicants are required to demonstrate under the scheme are that they have, "...and will continue to have, the competence and capacity to operate
Bus Safety Act 2009 - Misplaced Pages Continue
3528-510: The BSA, with the inclusion of disqualification offences - essentially past criminal convictions which, depending on their seriousness, may disqualify an applicant from obtaining accreditation thereby excluding the person from operating a bus. Additional effort required in demonstrating safety competence to the regulator, and the additional regulator vigilance involved in accreditation, are reasonably required for commercial and local services that include medium to large buses - those services that are
3612-510: The Bass Strait islands became separated from mainland Australia around 12,000 BP, when the sea level was approximately 50m below present levels. Port Phillip was flooded by post-glacial rising sea levels between 8,000 and 6,000 years ago. Oral history and creation stories from the Wada wurrung , Woiwurrung and Bun wurrung languages describe the flooding of the bay. Hobsons Bay was once
3696-435: The Bus Safety Act is the operator of the bus service, as the person who has effective responsibility and control over the whole operation. Safety duties are also imposed on a range of other people including - All of these persons can clearly affect bus safety. They are required to ensure that, in carrying out their activities, they eliminate risks to health and safety if 'practicable' - or work to reduce those risks 'so far as
3780-668: The King), the executive (the Government), and two legislative chambers. The Parliament of Victoria consists of the lower house Legislative Assembly , the upper house Legislative Council and the monarch . Eighty-eight members of the Legislative Assembly are elected to four-year terms from single-member electorates. In November 2006, the Victorian Legislative Council elections were held under
3864-467: The Transport (Passenger Vehicles) Regulations 2005. Compared with best practice regimes, the previous scheme was outmoded and inadequate. Some of the problems with the previous regime were - The Act is divided into nine parts: The Bus Safety Act regulates the safety compliance of most bus transport in Victoria including buses operated both commercially and non commercially. A major change made by
3948-414: The brigs Dragon and Amity , took a number of convicts and a small force composed of detachments of the 3rd and 93rd regiments. The expedition landed at Settlement Point (now Corinella ), on the eastern side of Western Port Bay, which was the headquarters until the abandonment of Western Port at the insistence of Governor Darling about 12 months afterwards. Victoria's next settlement was at Portland , on
4032-428: The centre of Victoria. Average temperatures are less than 9 °C (48 °F) in winter and below 0 °C (32 °F) in the highest parts of the ranges. The state's lowest minimum temperature of −11.7 °C (10.9 °F) was recorded at Omeo on 15 June 1965, and again at Falls Creek on 3 July 1970. Temperature extremes for the state are listed in the table below: Rainfall in Victoria increases from south to
4116-656: The chain of responsibility concept has been widely used as a basis for the reform of transport laws in the State of Victoria . A major review of policy and legislation in that State, the Transport Legislation Review , has led to the concept being adapted for use in a number of new statutes including the Rail Safety Act 2006 , the Bus Safety Act 2009 and the Marine Safety Act 2010. Victoria faced
4200-602: The country's first federal capital. Victoria's northern border follows a straight line from Cape Howe to the start of the Murray River and then follows the Murray River as the remainder of the northern border. On the Murray River, the border is the southern bank of the river. This precise definition was not established until 1980, when a ruling by Justice Ninian Stephen of the High Court of Australia settled
4284-874: The culturally diverse population live (35.1% of inhabitants being immigrants ). The state is also home to four of Australia's 20 largest cities : Melbourne , Geelong , Ballarat and Bendigo . Victoria is home to numerous Aboriginal groups, including the Boonwurrung , the Bratauolung , the Djadjawurrung , the Gunai , the Gunditjmara , the Taungurung , the Wathaurong , the Wurundjeri , and
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#17327984751194368-418: The duty can, however, vary according to the party covered. For example, a bus safety worker is required to take "...reasonable measures to ensure the safety of persons who may be affected by the acts or omissions of the bus safety worker." Part 4 of the Bus Safety Act contains provision for two permissioning schemes - an accreditation scheme and a registration scheme. These schemes apply according to whether
4452-412: The following key elements - The Bus Safety Act was developed as a response to growing bus operations and the emergence of a greater safety risks and in recognition of the deficiencies of the previous regulatory scheme. Before the BSA, bus safety in Victoria was regulated by an operator accreditation scheme in the former Public Transport Competition Act 1995 and by miscellaneous prescriptive offences in
4536-453: The heavy vehicle industry in regulated areas such as speeding , fatigue and mass, loading and dimension. It has since spread to other transport sectors, particularly in Victoria where it has been applied in laws which apply to the rail, bus, marine and taxi industries. The chain of responsibility concept initially developed out of a recognition that unlawful behaviour by truck drivers
4620-492: The inland monthly temperatures are 2–7 °C (4–13 °F) warmer than around Melbourne (see chart). Victoria's highest maximum temperature of 48.8 °C (119.8 °F) was recorded in Hopetoun on 7 February 2009, during the 2009 southeastern Australia heat wave . The Victorian Alps in the northeast are the coldest part of Victoria. The Alps are part of the Great Dividing Range mountain system extending east–west through
4704-494: The level of responsibility each party has for creating and managing safety risks. Similar approaches were taken by the Transport Legislation Review in its work which led to new statutes in Victoria in the bus, marine and taxi industries. The Victorian work has had influence beyond that State. Following the enactment of the Victorian Rail Safety Act in early 2006, Australian Transport Ministers approved
4788-447: The most visible are spending the most time on the road, carrying the largest number of passengers and usually serving the general public. These services intrinsically have a higher safety risk. Therefore, it was important that the new accreditation scheme promotes and maintains public confidence in these services. Significantly, the BSA makes it clear that the concept of 'commercial' includes so-called 'courtesy services' - that is, where
4872-407: The nation's rail safety regime directions and suggested that a similar approach, particularly focusing on performance-based duties, be taken with all road transport. The typical formulation of a safety duty specifies that persons covered by Part 3 of the Act must satisfy in this category is that they must "so far as is reasonably practicable, ensure the safety of the bus service". The formulation of
4956-475: The national capital in 1927. The state continued to grow strongly through various periods of the 20th and 21st centuries due to high levels of international and interstate migration. Melbourne hosts a number of museums, art galleries, and theatres; in 2016 a sports marketing company named it the world's sporting capital. Victoria has 38 seats in the Australian House of Representatives and 12 seats in
5040-574: The northeast, with higher averages in areas of high altitude. Mean annual rainfall exceeds 1,800 millimetres (71 inches) in some parts of the northeast but is less than 280 mm (11 in) in the Mallee. Rain is heaviest in the Otway Ranges and Gippsland in southern Victoria and in the mountainous northeast. Snow generally falls only in the mountains and hills in the centre of the state. Rain falls most frequently in winter, but summer precipitation
5124-468: The operator runs a commercial service for profit or a local bus service or a not for profit service such as those typically offered by clubs and associations. The BSA seeks to strike a balance between the need to ensure that non commercial bus services are operated safely without requiring onerous requirements and therefore threatening the viability of community services, such as buses provided by local councils, clubs or community organisations. This led to
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#17327984751195208-458: The passenger is carried free because they have paid for a service to which the transport is ancillary - with hotel shuttles the most familiar example. The Bus Safety Act does not require accreditation for operators of non-commercial bus services, or services that rely exclusively on minibuses - buses with 10-12 seats. These services are, however, subject to the same range of safety duties as applies to other bus services. They are also required by
5292-596: The problem of ageing and inadequate transport legislation which failed to reflect modern policy. During his second reading speech for a new rail safety statute in Victoria , the then Minister for Transport explained that - As a result, the Minister explained that - The Rail Safety Act which emerged from that process therefore imposes a chain of responsibility across all key parties in the rail industry in Victoria who can influence safety outcomes. Accountability at law and sanctions and penalties are allocated according to
5376-561: The question as to which state had jurisdiction in the unlawful death of a man on an island in the middle of the river. The ruling clarified that no part of the watercourse is in Victoria. The border also rests at the southern end of the Great Dividing Range , which stretches along the east coast and terminates west of Ballarat. It is bordered by South Australia to the west and shares Australia's shortest land border with Tasmania . The official border between Victoria and Tasmania
5460-651: The rail sector and in the OH and S Act. Penalties vary among natural person and body corporate offenders. The general approach taken in the Act - to encourage a safety culture by imposing safety duties and risk management obligations on persons in a chain of responsibility - is strongly supported by the report on transport safety regulation released in October 2008 by the NSW Efficient Transportation Marketplace Working Group. The report effectively endorsed Victoria's and
5544-580: The region of southern Victoria and onto the land bridge of the Bassian plain to Tasmania by at least 35,000 years ago. During the Ice Age about 20,000 years BP , the area now the bay of Port Phillip would have been dry land, and the Yarra and Werribee rivers would have joined to flow through the heads then south and south west through the Bassian plain before meeting the ocean to the west. Tasmania and
5628-424: The requirement in the Act for the most risky bus services - commercial services and local services - to be subject to accreditation requires while less risky not for profit services were subject to a lesser registration obligation. The key party responsible for the direct operation of commercial bus services in Victoria , the bus operator, is not permitted to operate under the Act unless granted accreditation under
5712-410: The safety of bus transport, appropriate stakeholder involvement and the existence of a safety culture among bus service providers. The Act also contains a number of overarching policy principles relating to shared responsibility for safety, accountability for managing safety risks, enforcement , transparency , consistency and stakeholder involvement . . The Act establishes a regulatory scheme with
5796-425: The second-smallest state (after Tasmania ), with a land area of 227,444 km (87,817 sq mi); the second-most-populated state (after New South Wales ), with a population of over 6.9 million; and the most densely populated state in Australia (30.6 per km ). Victoria's economy is the second-largest among Australian states and is highly diversified, with service sectors predominating. Victoria
5880-622: The south west coast of what is now Victoria. Edward Henty settled Portland Bay in 1834. Melbourne was founded in 1835 by John Batman , who set up a base in Indented Head , and John Pascoe Fawkner . From settlement, the region around Melbourne was known as the Port Phillip District, a separately administered part of New South Wales. Shortly after, the site now known as Geelong was surveyed by Assistant Surveyor W. H. Smythe, three weeks after Melbourne. And in 1838, Geelong
5964-493: The state administers directly. The state of Victoria was home to many Aboriginal Australian nations that had occupied the land for tens of thousands of years before European settlement . According to Gary Presland , Aboriginal people have lived in Victoria for about 40,000 years, living a semi-nomadic existence of fishing, hunting and gathering, and farming eels. At the Keilor Archaeological Site ,
6048-666: The state's south. The greater Melbourne metropolitan area is home to an estimated 5,207,145 people. Urban centres outside Melbourne include Geelong , Ballarat , Bendigo , Shepparton , Mildura , Warrnambool , Wodonga and the Latrobe Valley . Victoria is Australia's most urbanised state: nearly 90% of residents living in cities and towns. State Government efforts to decentralise population have included an official campaign run since 2003 to encourage Victorians to settle in regional areas, however Melbourne continues to rapidly outpace these areas in terms of population growth. At
6132-523: The survey, 31.7% of Victorians stated they had no religion, Roman Catholics were 23.2%, 9.4% did not answer the question, 9% were Anglican and 3.5% were Eastern Orthodox . In 2017 the proportion of couples marrying in a civil ceremony in Victoria was 77.3%; the other 22.7% were married in a religious ceremony. The government predicts that nearly a quarter of Victorians will be aged over 60 by 2021. The 2016 census revealed that Australian median age has crept upward from 35 to 37 since 2001, which reflects
6216-566: The treaty is unknown, although it is believed to have been by the Merri Creek . According to historian Meyer Eidelson, it is generally believed to have occurred on the Merri near modern-day Rushall Station. On 1 July 1851, writs were issued for the election of the first Victorian Legislative Council, and the absolute independence of Victoria from New South Wales was established proclaiming a new Colony of Victoria. Days later, still in 1851 gold
6300-521: The west and northwest. There is an extensive series of river systems in Victoria. Most notable is the Murray River system. Other rivers include: Ovens River , Goulburn River , Patterson River , King River , Campaspe River , Loddon River , Wimmera River , Elgin River, Barwon River , Thomson River , Snowy River , Latrobe River , Yarra River , Maribyrnong River , Mitta River , Hopkins River , Merri River and Kiewa River . The state symbols include
6384-496: The world" and the largest gold nugget . In the decade 1851–1860 Victoria produced 20 million ounces of gold, one-third of the world's output. In 1855 the Geological Survey collected and determined the major ion chemistry for groundwater in Victoria. Immigrants arrived from all over the world to search for gold, especially from Ireland and China. By 1857, 26,000 Chinese miners worked in Victoria, and their legacy
6468-497: Was briefly Premier. In 1893 widespread bank failures brought to an end a sustained period of prosperity and of increasingly wild speculation in land and construction. Melbourne nonetheless retained, as the legacy of the gold rush, its status as Australia's primary financial centre and largest city. In 1901, Victoria became a state in the Commonwealth of Australia . While Canberra was being built, Melbourne served until 1927 as
6552-523: Was declared void as Batman did not have permission from the Crown to establish Melbourne. Today, the meaning and interpretation of this treaty is contested. Some argue it was a pretence for taking Aboriginal land in exchange for trinkets, while others argue it was significant in that it sought to recognise Aboriginal land rights . The exact location of the meeting between Batman and the Kulin men with whom he made
6636-434: Was discovered near Ballarat , and subsequently at Bendigo . Later discoveries occurred at many sites across Victoria. This triggered one of the largest gold rushes the world has ever seen. The colony grew rapidly in both population and economic power. In 10 years, the population of Victoria increased sevenfold from 76,000 to 540,000. All sorts of gold records were produced, including the "richest shallow alluvial goldfield in
6720-531: Was ill-prepared "to countenance so startling a novelty". In 1858–59, Melbourne Punch cartoons linked Duffy and O'Shanassy to the terrors of the French Revolution . In 1862 Duffy's Land Act attempted, but failed, through a system of extended pastoral licences, to break the land-holding monopoly of the so-called "squatter" class . In 1871, having led, on behalf of small farmers, opposition to Premier Sir James McCulloch 's land tax , Duffy, himself,
6804-657: Was officially declared a town, despite earlier European settlements dating back to 1826. On 6 June 1835, just under two years before Melbourne was officially recognised as a settlement, John Batman, the leader of the Port Phillip Association presented Wurundjeri Elders with a land use agreement. This document, now referred to as the Batman treaty , was later given to the British government to claim that local Aboriginal people had given Batman access to their land in exchange for goods and rations. The treaty itself
6888-563: Was passed in late March 2009 and commenced on 31 December 2010. The responsible Minister for the Act is the Minister for Public and Active Transport . The stated purpose of the Bus Safety Act Act is "...to provide for the safe operation of bus services in Victoria ". The objects of the Act center on the safety of bus operations, management of safety risks, continuous improvement in bus safety management, public confidence in
6972-466: Was separated from New South Wales and established as a separate Crown colony in 1851, achieving responsible government in 1855. The Victorian gold rush in the 1850s and 1860s significantly increased Victoria's population and wealth. By the time of Australian Federation in 1901, Melbourne had become the largest city in Australasia , and was the seat of Federal government until Canberra became
7056-659: Was the State's first dedicated statute on the subject and replaced provisions in the Public Transport Competition Act 1995 , which was renamed Bus Services Act 1995 . The Bus Safety Act forms part of the transport policy and legislation framework in Victoria set by the Transport Integration Act 2010 , and its provisions are subject to the overarching transport system vision, transport system objectives and decision making principles set out in that Act. The Bus Safety Act
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