Accessible Beaches
In partnership with Life Saving Victoria and several local Life Saving Clubs, we deliver Accessible Beaches initiatives at five locations along the Great Ocean Road each year.
During peak season we provide beach and river access matting, beach wheelchairs (bookings required), accessible parking and toilets at locations across Fishermans Beach in Torquay, Anglesea Riverbank, Point Roadknight, Lorne Beach and Apollo Bay.
Access matting is installed from early January to mid-April at each location.
Wheelchairs are available for free hire in 1.5 hour slots (longer time slots may be available on request).
Fishermans Beach in Torquay is not a patrolled beach therefore it is not recommended to swim at this location, the beach wheelchair is ideal for enjoying the beach at Fishermans Beach.
For swimming and entry to the water we recommend visiting Lorne during patrol times. Patrol times and locations can be found at the Beachsafe website.
Bookings are required and must be made two business days prior by emailing info@greatoceanroadauthority.vic.gov.au. Please be aware that the beach wheelchair doesn’t fit into disabled toilets due to extra wide wheels.
A Liberty Swing is also available at the Torquay Foreshore Play Park.
Please note:
To ensure the matting is not washed away or damaged by storms, we are unable to extend the matting below the high tide line.
A member of our team checks the placement of all beach access matting twice weekly and after storms. During strong winds, large amounts of sand can deposit during a couple of hours, and while we endeavour to do our best to ensure the matting remains accessible to all, during these times it is not always possible to keep the matting clear of loose wind-blown sand.
For urgent maintenance issues such as inaccessible access matting, we ask the community to please call us on 1300 736 533 to report any issues.
For further details on each of the Accessible Beaches initiatives, please see below.