CTA Launches Consultation on Accessible Transportation Guidelines for Medium and Small Transportation Service Providers

GATINEAU, QC, Dec. 3, 2020 /CNW/ - On this International Day of Persons with Disabilities, the Canadian Transportation Agency (CTA) is launching a consultation to support the development of new accessible transportation guidelines for medium and small Transportation Service Providers (TSPs). 

These new guidelines will set out what is expected of TSPs in meeting their human rights obligations to travellers with disabilities under Part V of the Canada Transportation Act. Before it begins developing the guidelines, the CTA wants to hear from persons with disabilities, TSPs, members of the public and other interested stakeholders on what should be included.

The CTA's objective is to have the new guidelines in place in 2021. The guidelines will then be used as a basis for developing binding regulations for medium and small TSPs, to be put in place in 2022.

On June 25, 2020, the CTA's new Accessible Transportation for Persons with Disabilities Regulations (ATPDR) came into force. They establish modern and legally binding accessibility requirements, for larger TSPs, with respect to services, technical standards for equipment, communications, training, and security and border screening. 

Building on these regulations, the CTA launched public consultations on a second phase of the ATPDR. On November 26, 2020, the CTA released its "What We Heard" report, summarizing the input received, which highlighted the need for additional guidance with regard to medium and small TSPs.

How to submit input

All submissions must be sent to consultations@otc-cta.gc.ca by March 31, 2021. They will be considered public documents and will be posted on the CTA's website in the official language in which they were received, along with the name of the individual or organization that submitted them.

More detailed information on the questions the CTA is seeking feedback on is available in the Discussion Paper.

Quote

"The finalization of comprehensive accessibility regulations for larger transportation service providers was a major step towards ensuring that the fundamental right to barrier-free transportation is realized for Canadians with disabilities. We are now moving forward with the development of guidance and standards for medium and smaller transportation service providers, and look forward to receiving input from persons with disabilities, industry, members of the public and other interested stakeholders. Working together, we can make Canada's national transportation system the most accessible in the world."

- Scott Streiner, Chair and CEO of the Canadian Transportation Agency

About the CTA

The Canadian Transportation Agency is an independent, quasi-judicial tribunal and regulator that has, with respect to all matters necessary for the exercise of its jurisdiction, all the powers of a superior court. The CTA has three core mandates: helping to keep the national transportation system running efficiently and smoothly, protecting the fundamental right of persons with disabilities to accessible transportation services, and providing consumer protection for air passengers. To help advance these mandates, the CTA makes and enforces ground rules that establish the rights and responsibilities of transportation service providers and users and level the playing field among competitors, resolves disputes using a range of tools from facilitation and mediation to arbitration and adjudication, and ensures that transportation providers and users are aware of their rights and responsibilities and how the CTA can help them.



www.otc-cta.gc.ca

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SOURCE Canadian Transportation Agency