Platformed and Abandoned

Platformed and Abandoned: How Australia Keeps Failing Disabled Commuters – And Who Gets Away With It

By someone who’s watched the train leave the platform, again

The latest blow in Australia’s ongoing war on accessibility came courtesy of Melbourne’s much-lauded Metro Tunnel. Touted as a high-tech, future-proofed marvel, it turns out this $12.58-$14 billion piece of infrastructure can’t even line a platform up with a train. For wheelchair users, that means no independent access. For disability advocates, it’s déjà vu. And for everyone else – especially those watching how this debacle is reported – it’s business as usual.

Because that’s the real kicker: this keeps happening. Not because we don’t know how to fix it, but because we refuse to prioritise fixing it. And the media – particularly the Murdoch press – plays a starring role in making sure no one remembers whose fault it was last time.

A Timeline of Failing Up

Let’s roll the tape on just a few cases:

📍 2000 Sydney Olympics Rail Upgrades

Billions were spent upgrading train stations for the Sydney Games. Yet by 2004, reports from the Australian Human Rights Commission noted that over 40% of stations remained inaccessible without assistance. The media focused on “cost overruns” and “construction headaches” – not on the fact that a generation of Australians were effectively banned from using the train.

🚆 Regional V/Line Services (2008–2017)

The rollout of VLocity trains was lauded for revitalising regional travel. What got less airtime? The fact that the trains weren’t compatible with most existing platformsfor people using mobility aids. Inaccessible trains were put into service, while ramps were treated as optional accessories. Reporting praised “fast new trains” and “regional connectivity” while disability advocates were left to write complaint letters.

🛤 NSW’s New Intercity Fleet (2019)

The Berejiklian Government ordered brand-new double-decker trains – without consulting drivers or accessibility experts. The trains required driver-operated ramps – which unions warned would be unsafe and violate disability laws. Media? The Sydney Morning Herald ran with: “Unions Blocking Modern Trains”. Sky News framed it as a union tantrum. The fact that the trains weren’t independently accessible was barely a footnote.

🚇 Melbourne Metro Tunnel (2024–2025)

Now we’re here. Metro Tunnel platforms sit up to 50mm lower than train floors. The state government swears it meets standards. Disability advocates say: standards are wrong. Mainstream reporting? Herald Sun: “Teething problems.” The Australian: Crickets. Sky: Busy scolding Dan Andrews for resigning too smugly.

The Perpetual Cycle of Ideological Infrastructure

This isn’t just incompetence – it’s an ecosystem:

1. A Liberal government underfunds or fast-tracks projects to keep costs down, ignoring co-design and cutting corners.
2. Media lauds their fiscal discipline. “Tough choices,” they say. “Realistic priorities.”
3. Labor wins office, tries to fix or continue the project. It costs more.
4. Media howls: “Labor waste! Budget blowout! Bureaucratic bungling!”
5. Advocates are gaslit. Told to be “realistic,” “patient,” and that “perfect is the enemy of good.”
6. Disabled people remain on the margins – literally, waiting on the platform.

The Reporting Distortion Field

The fourth estate should serve the public. Instead, we get:

• Conservative governments painted as pragmatic, even when their short-termism creates long-term costs.
• Progressive governments painted as reckless, even when investing in essential services.
• Disability concerns treated as niche, instead of as central to public policy.

The media plays down systemic exclusion because acknowledging it means accepting that austerity is violent, not virtuous.

Who Benefits From This Mess?

Cynically? A few groups profit, or at least avoid accountability:

• Construction firms who win bids with incomplete accessibility plans.
• Politicians who get credit for opening flashy infrastructure without paying for full accessibility.
• Media outlets who sell headlines instead of truth.
• Middle managers who get promotions for “on time and on budget” – even when that budget didn’t include proper access.

Meanwhile, disabled people lose time, dignity, and independence. Every. Single. Day.

The Real Fix

Enough band-aids. Here’s the sledgehammer:

1. Mandate universal design and co-design by law, with disabled people at the planning table from day one.
2. Tie infrastructure funding to audited accessibility outcomes, not design intentions.
3. Impose penalties for non-compliance, and reward accessible design with public recognition.
4. Reform media regulation to call out bias in reporting public interest infrastructure.
5. Name and shame repeat offenders – be they firms, departments or ministers.

Final Stop: Accountability

We don’t lack technology. We lack will. And as long as partisan media protects power instead of people, and governments are rewarded for saving money instead of serving citizens, the cycle will continue.

Until then, those who need access most will be left behind. Again.

Or in our case, below the train platform, wondering why no one bothered to care.

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