Multi Purpose Taxi Program
The Multi Purpose Taxi Program makes it easier for Victorians with a severe and permanent disability to afford taxis.
Information on this page
Brochure
This brochure is a summary of the Multi Purpose Taxi Program and the content on this page.
About the Multi Purpose Taxi Program
The Multi Purpose Taxi Program makes transport more accessible for Victorians with a severe and permanent disability. See Who can become a member below.
The Multi Purpose Taxi Program gives members half price taxi fares. It pays up to $60 per trip. Some members have a yearly limit. See Yearly limit below. |  |  Example of a Multi Purpose Taxi Program card |
Members are given a card. They have to show the card when they first get into a taxi. See
Using your card below.
The cards cost $16.50 and are valid for six years.
Travel can be for any reason. Trips that are covered by insurance or other funding are not covered by the Multi Purpose Taxi Program. See
Trips not covered below.
Victorian members can get the same discount interstate for a limited number of taxi trips. See
Using your card interstate below.
Changes to the program
On 13 December 2008, the trip cap doubled from $30 to $60 per trip, while the annual subsidy cap that most members have has doubled from $1,090 to $2,180 (pro-rata).
The changes are part of a
broader reform package announced by the Victorian Government to improve taxi services.
Who can become a member
The Government wants to make sure that the Multi Purpose Taxi Program is helping the people who most need it. You can become a member of the Multi Purpose Taxi Program if you:
- live in Victoria, and
- have a severe and permanent disability, and
- have a disability that means you can't use public transport by yourself.
To become a member you also need to either:
- use a wheelchair all the time, or
- hold a Department of Veterans’ Affairs Pensioner Concession Card or gold Repatriation Health Card, or
- hold certain Pensioner Concession or Health Care Cards from Centrelink, or
- be able to show you have financial hardship by providing financial information.
For more information, see the application form under
How to apply below or
contact the Victorian Taxi Directorate.
How to apply
To become a member of the Multi Purpose Taxi Program, both you and your doctor have to fill in an application form. Once the form has been filled in, send it to the Victorian Taxi Directorate. The address is on the form.
You can download the membership application form and an information booklet. You can download them as PDF files or as Rich Text Format (RTF) files. You can also
contact the Victorian Taxi Directorate to have them sent to you.
It is also important to read the
VTD privacy statement and
Multi Purpose Taxi Program terms and conditions.
The Victorian Taxi Directorate will decide if you can become a member. The Victorian Taxi Directorate may ask you or your doctor for more information to help it decide.
The Victorian Taxi Directorate may ask you to see an independent doctor or have medical tests to confirm the information you gave in your application. Normally you will be asked to pay for this.
Yearly limit
Members can travel in any licensed Victorian taxi and pay half fare. A maximum discount of $60 per trip and $2,180 per year (pro-rata) applies.
Members don't have the yearly limit if they have:
- a Department of Veterans' Affairs Pensioner Concession Card that is endorsed Extreme Disablement Adjustment (EDA) or Totally and Permanently Incapacitated (TPI).
Members who have the yearly limit but can show that they need a higher limit can apply for one. To apply for a higher limit, fill in an application form and send it to the
Victorian Taxi Directorate. The address is on the form.
You can download the yearly limit application form and an information booklet. You can download them as PDF files or as Rich Text Format (RTF) files. You can also
contact the Victorian Taxi Directorate to have them sent to you.
Priority will be given to members who need a higher limit because of:
- employment
- visits to health care providers such as doctors, physiotherapists and podiatrists
- education, training or day programs
- volunteer work of more than eight hours a week with a recognised community service
- regular visits to a spouse or partner in a nursing home
- financial hardship
- other exceptional circumstances, which will be considered on a case by case basis.
Members who received a higher limit in the 2007–08 financial year will receive the same amount for the 2008–09 financial year. The 2008–09 financial year is from 1 July 2008 to 30 June 2009.
If members don't need the higher limit for the 2008–09 financial year, they must tell the
Victorian Taxi Directorate as soon as possible.
If members need an even higher limit for the 2009–09 financial year, they should fill in and send a new yearly limit Exceptional Circumstances—Application for Additional Subsidy form.
Booking a taxi
To book a taxi, contact your local taxi depot. See the
Yellow Pages telephone directory for contact numbers.
To book a wheelchair-accessible taxi:
- in Melbourne, call:
- Silver Top Taxis on 8413 7202
- Yellow Cabs on 13 6294
and ask for a wheelchair-accessible taxi.
- in regional areas, call your local taxi depot and ask for a wheelchair-accessible taxi. See the Yellow Pages telephone directory for contact numbers.
Members can still use their Multi Purpose Taxi Program card in a taxi even if they didn't book the taxi through a taxi depot.
Using your card
Give your card to the driver when you first get into a taxi. Get your card back from the driver at the end of the trip.
If your card doesn't work,
contact the Victorian Taxi Directorate. If your card doesn't work, you can still make the trip. Sometimes the driver can use a paper voucher. Sometimes you will have to pay the full fare, ask the taxi driver for a receipt, and
contact the Victorian Taxi Directorate.
If you use a wheelchair or mobility aid, you don't need to pay extra to have it lifted into the taxi.
Always ask the taxi driver for a receipt. Keep all the receipts for at least six months.
See the
Multi Purpose Taxi Program terms and conditions for more information.
Trips not covered
You can't use your card if the trip is:
- covered by insurance, or
- covered by another Government organisation, such as the Transport Accident Commission, the Department of Veterans' Affairs, the Department of Education and Training or the Department of Human Services.
The trips aren't covered no matter whether they are paid for directly by the government organisation or if you claim their cost back later.
Using your card interstate
Victorian members can get the same discount when they travel in taxis in other states for a limited number of trips. At least two weeks before travelling interstate,
contact the Victorian Taxi Directorate to get the number of interstate vouchers you will need. You can get 10 vouchers for each seven days that you will be away. You can get a maximum of 50 vouchers for each interstate trip.
Renewing your card
Six weeks before your card expires, a bill for a new card will be automatically sent to you. A new card costs $16.50 and is valid for six years. When you get your new card, destroy the old card. The old card won't work after its expiry date.
It is important that you tell the Victorian Taxi Directorate if:
- you change your address, or else the bill for a new card will be sent to your old address; or
- your circumstances have changed; for example, if you can no longer sign your name or you now use a wheelchair all the time.
Paying for your card
You can pay for your card:
- in person at any post office
- by phone on 131 816
- online at Post Billpay
- by mail to the address on the bill.
Lost or stolen cards
If your card is lost or stolen, immediately
contact the Victorian Taxi Directorate. Your old card will be cancelled. A new card will be ordered for you. The new card will cost $16.50. If there are special circumstances, you may not have to pay for the new card.
The card has security features to help stop the card being used if it is lost or stolen. The security features will only work if you report the loss to the Victorian Taxi Directorate.
More information
For more information,
contact the Victorian Taxi Directorate.