Route 902 hits MEL T1–T4 every 15–30 minutes
Public Bus Route 902 is the SmartBus orbital line that swings past Melbourne Airport’s T1, T2, T3 and T4 stops, then continues through Broadmeadows, Greensborough, Doncaster, Springvale and all the way down to Chelsea. It runs roughly every 15 minutes in daytime peaks and about every 30 minutes at night, so locals treat the airport like just another stop on a long suburban arc instead of detouring via Southern Cross or SkyBus.
This is a standard Myki service, so the same zone 2 daily cap of around AUD $10.60 (as at 2024) covers your airport ride plus anything else you tap into that day. You need a physical Myki card or Myki Money/Myki Pass loaded; there’s no cash on board, and the airport bus stop signs by T4 and T1 clearly show the orange SmartBus 902 logo and timetable columns with first/last trips.
On weekdays, the first 902 buses hit MEL around 5:00–5:30am and keep running past 11:00pm, with Public Transport Victoria publishing exact first/last trip times for each direction. The stops sit landside outside T1–T3 on Departure Drive and beside T4 on the ground level forecourt, so you walk 2–4 minutes from baggage claim in any terminal before you even see the orange real-time display showing the next three departures.
Expect a slow but predictable ride: Broadmeadows is about 20–25 minutes away, Greensborough around 60–70 minutes, and Chelsea can blow past 2 hours if you stay on to the end. The bus uses standard low-floor vehicles with two doors, a couple of priority seats up front, and room for airport-sized suitcases in the wheelchair/buggy bay when it’s free, but there’s no underfloor luggage hold and no toilets on board.
For arrivals into T2 after 10:00pm, check the 902 timetable on the PTV app before you buy a Myki at the airport’s SkyBus/transport counter near T2 arrivals; late-night headways can stretch to 30 minutes, and missing the last clockwise or anticlockwise run leaves you hunting for rideshare on Level 2 instead. Practical move: if you’re heading to the northeast or southeast suburbs, stay on the 902 to a rail hub like Greensborough, Nunawading, or Springvale, then swap to Metro Trains rather than backtracking into the CBD.