She fell metres from the depot - but the tribunal says that walk wasn't work

A bus driver who fell walking to her car after a shift has lost her compensation appeal - and the ruling matters for employers running staff car parks.

Alicia Kras drove buses for Torrens Transit Services. On July 11, 2024, she finished her afternoon shift around 5.45pm, parked her bus, stopped at her locker and checked the next day's roster. She then waited inside the main building for her partner to walk her out. Together they left through the depot gate and set off along a public footpath toward the Park 'n' Ride car park, which Torrens Transit leased for staff.

About 50 metres along, where the footpath met a driveway, her foot caught on a raised, uneven section. Her ankle rolled. She fell backward and fractured her right wrist.

Kras claimed compensation under South Australia's Return to Work Act 2014. The Return to Work Corporation rejected the claim, saying it wasn't a work injury. She asked the Tribunal to review that decision, lost at trial, and appealed to the Full Bench. On June 2, 2026, she lost again.

The case turns on a question every HR and safety lead wrestles with: when does the workplace end and the commute begin?

Kras argued the walk was bound up with her job. She said staff on intermediate shifts were told to use the Park 'n' Ride, that the employer leased both the depot and the car park, and that a padlocked gate forced her onto the footpath to reach her car. The journey, she...

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