Newcastle Transport has joined the Hidden Disability Sunflower initiative

Not all disabilities are visible, such as autism, chronic pain, dementia, anxiety, visual or hearing impairment. Living with a hidden disability can make daily life more demanding for many people, but it can also be difficult for others to identify.

Here at Newcastle Transport, our aim is to ensure everyone travelling on our network feels safe and supported, can travel with confidence, and has a positive journey on board.

By wearing a Sunflower lanyard on board our bus, ferry or light rail services, customers can discreetly let our team know that they may need more time or extra support during their journey.

“This is a great initiative to raise awareness, as there are many people out there that have hidden disabilities. As a Bus Operator, hidden disabilities can be hard to identify, making it challenging to provide these customers with the support they may need,” said Bus Operator Paul Picton.

“Public transport is for everyone. We want all our passengers to travel on the bus, ferry and light rail network with confidence.”

“The sunflower lanyard will discreetly inform us that a customer may need more time to board or alight or may need some support during their journey.

“We encourage customers who need further support on public transport to collect a sunflower lanyard for free from the lost property desk at Hamilton Bus Depot.”

Bus Operator Don Shorter understands the benefit of the Sunflower initiative, not just as a bus driver, but also from his own personal experience as a father.

“I’m really excited about KDH getting behind this initiative, and I think it’s really important to get the message out to everyone.”

“From my personal experience, people with a disability do not want to be seen as different. This initiative is great in that it subtly lets others know that they may need some additional help without drawing too much attention.”

Director of Hidden Disabilities Sunflower, Aus/NZ, Justin Bruce said he was delighted to see the sunflower symbol bloom in the Hunter.

“Our aim is to build a more tolerant, patient, accepting, accessible and inclusive society by removing barriers, educating, and empowering Australians to be “Sunflower-Friendly.”

“The Sunflower symbol simply makes the ‘invisible visible’ but it is the passion and dedication of organisations like Keolis Downer that together we can ensure essential services like public transport are accessible to everyone.”

“We are grateful to Keolis Downer for pioneering this across the Hunter region and wish them all the success they deserve for their commitment to inclusivity,” said Director of Hidden Disabilities Sunflower Aus/NZ, Justin Bruce.”

Sunflower lanyards are available for free collection at Hamilton Bus Depot at 89 Denison Street, Hamilton.

Sunflower lanyards are also available at train stations including, Newcastle Interchange and Broadmeadow Station

Find out more about the Sunflower initiative here.