Registration is now open for the 63rd BusVic Maintenance Conference and Trade Show, to be held over two days at the Pullman Albert Park in Melbourne from Monday, July 3
Leading education and networking event, the BusVic conference program reflects the present and future policy, management, safety, operational and technical issues confronting bus operators, with authoritative speakers on each topic at each session.
BusVic executive director Chris Lowe says delegates will be treated to a program jam-packed with insightful speakers and practical product demonstrations.
“I’m very pleased with the programme that our committee has developed this year,” he says.
“Demand Responsive Transport is a key issue for the industry right now and it’s great we’ve got authoritative speakers like Dr John Stone to share his perspectives on it.”
University of Melbourne School of Design senior lecturer in transport planning John Stone will discuss the latest trends in demand responsive transport and where he thinks the bus industry is headed. BusVic has also once again managed to secure a first-class lineup of speakers.
Victoria’s Minister for Roads, Road Safety and Ports Luke Donnellan will open the conference and Steve Sammartino, one of Australia’s most respected futurists and business technologists, will be the opening keynote speaker.
Anna Meares OAM will open the second day of the conference. Meares is the only athlete in Australian Olympic history from any sport to win individual medals at four consecutive Olympic Games.
The two conference streams will be accompanied by a trade exhibition featuring practical demonstrations from suppliers that add value to a bus operator’s business, including manufacturers, seating and upholstery, scheduling, bus washing, signs and technology, energy, spare parts, fuels and oils, and more.
Networking events will be held within the exhibit, allowing delegates and suppliers plenty of opportunity and time to connect. There is also an event app which enables exhibitors to provide detailed information and engage with event delegates.
The event will also host BusVic’s annual gala dinner, held at 6.30pm on Monday, July 3.
Comedian Lawrence Mooney will entertain delegates, as he did some years ago when the event was held at Moonee Valley Racecourse.
The gala dinner will also see industry personnel presented with awards, including a very special inductee to BusVic’s honorary life membership for 2017.
Useful ideas for all
The first of the information sessions kicks off at 11am and delegates have the choice to attend either the Maintenance & Technical Stream presentations or the Management Stream sessions on the main stage.
The first management stream session will see Stone speak about demand responsive public transport.
The consumers’ growing desire for demand-responsive transport options is causing the contracting and regulatory environment to change.
This session will present how the transport sharing economy has emerged, where it is heading, and a view on the role of demand-responsive transport (DRT) in various settings.
Operators will get insights into what the future of bus and other transport service provision and contracting might look like.
The first Maintenance & Technical Stream presentation will cover workshop design, health and safety.
It will also focus on what needs to be considered when designing a workshop and cover policy, standard practice and training to mitigate the potential risks in the workshop and using heavy equipment.
Most Maintenance & Technical Stream workshops will be followed by a question and answer session or a panel discussion.
The first Management Stream session on day two will see Victorian Government Emergency Management Commissioner Craig Lapsley discuss the role of route and school buses operators in the event of an emergency.
Delegates can participate in two hypothetical workshops that aim to increase operators’ awareness of their obligations in the event of an emergency.
This discussion will be led by executives from Emergency Management Victoria (EMV), Victoria Police and Public Transport Victoria (PTV).
The first Maintenance & Technical Stream workshop on day two will be on the topic of bus rollaway prevention.
Transport Safety Victoria (TSV) has undertaken a project to identify ways to eliminate or minimise the risks of bus rollaways.
TSV details the document it has released to assist industry to build its capacity to manage the safety risks arising from bus rollaways.
This year’s Maintenance Conference and Trade Show has something for everyone and a focus on keeping delegates up to speed on key areas of the industry that are rapidly evoloving.
There are several package and pricing options for the 2017 Maintenance Conference, all of which are now available on www.busvic.asn.au or by contacting 03 9645 3300. Registrations close on June 26, 2017.