History of the Bus Industry Confederation

The Bus Industry Confederation (BIC) had its beginnings in its predecessor, the Australian Bus and Coach Association (ABCA), which was established in 1981 with membership initially comprising bus and coach private operators and later all state bus representative bodies.

In 1994, the ABCA was renamed the Bus Industry Confederation Inc (BIC) under the Associations Incorporation Act 1981 (Victoria). The transition was completed in 1996, during which time bus industry suppliers also became members.

  • In 2002, the BIC secretariat was established in Canberra to create and provide a stronger voice for the sector in national policy making and advocacy in federal and state parliaments. Michael Apps was appointed as its inaugural Executive Director at this time.
  • The Australian Public Transport Industrial Association (APTIA) is the industrial arm of BIC and was formed at a meeting of Bus and Coach Operators and their State Associations on August 24 2009. On 31 January 2010, APTIA was registered under the Fair Work (Registered Organisations) Act 2009, as a federally registered organisation.
  • In 2014, the BIC became the National member of the Bus Australia Network which also includes State members: BusNSW, BusSA, BusWA, TasBus and QBIC.
  • Since establishing our office in Canberra in 2002, the BIC has positioned itself as the unifying national voice for the bus and coach industry in Australia.
  • Through the creation and continual development of our moving people vision and strategy, the BIC has been a lead organisation in identifying and defining the role of the Commonwealth Government in how we move people and integrate transport and planning in our cities.
  • Our social inclusion agenda, has assisted the BIC in identifying the relationship between social inclusion and transport in Australian cities and regions.

Watch the video for an historical snapshot of the Bus Industry Confederation, bus industry representation and the role of Government from 2003 to 2015…