Accessibility and transitions

August 28, 2015 Christopher Lytle MA CDS Accessibility Standards, Employee Relations, Health and Safety, HR Policies and Procedures, Human Resources, Human Rights, Integrated Accessibility Regulation, Standard for Customer Service, Standard for Employment, Standard for Transportation

There is an accessibility consideration that I have been thinking about for quite some time which isn’t covered under the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA) is the accessibility of transition. It was a thought that started around the same time as when the new subways started to show up in Toronto, and the height and width became a new barrier for some people who rely on transit to get to and from work.

The accessibility of transitions could be represented by the area or time in which a person with a disability moves from element to element. So, the gap in which someone must cross to get from the subway to the platform or the time it takes to transfer a mobility device from the street corner to a bus could be viewed in terms of this inquiry.  What I find very interesting is that after transit systems have on-boarded accessible vehicles to allow for the transportation of people with disabilities, the aspect of time might not have been viewed as a mitigating factor.

This might seem benign, but if the schedule of a transit system is set so that it allows for a certain window of time for people to board and to get from stop to stop, the effect of lowering a ramp and securing a wheelchair might throw off the carefully timed schedule of the transit system. The problem is not that of the person with a disability. I’d venture to suggest that the process of transition from stop and pick up does not recognize that, for people with disabilities, accommodation might also equate more time.

As you know, the AODA makes  suggestions that accommodation be delivered in a timely manner but in terms of providing smooth transition from one physical element to another it falls short.  While this works for things like the exchange of information and accommodation requests, it doesn’t do very much for improving transit organization.

The impact is two-fold. For employees who need to get work in Ontario, a scheduled bus might be only chance they get to connect with other transit in order to arrive on time. For people with disabilities either being late for work or being seen as the cause of a delay is how stigma perpetuates itself.   This is just a thought piece, but I think it is wise to bring it into the mix because conversations like these are important to have.

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Christopher Lytle MA CDS

Principle Consultant and Owner at Christopher Lytle Consulting (CLC)

Christopher Lytle MA CDS, is the principle consultant and owner of Christopher Lytle Consulting (CLC). CLC consults on human rights and helps organizations incorporate requirements for the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA). Christopher has been involved with disability and human rights issues for ten years. During this time he has participated in the drafting of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and has been involved in its subsequent promotion and implementation in Canada as well as several countries in Africa, Central America, Asia and Europe. He has held a seat on the board of directors for the Canadian Council for International Cooperation (CCIC) as a representative of theCouncil of Canadians with Disabilities' (CCD) International Human Rights Committee and hehas spearheaded numerous capacity building projects with the purpose of promoting human rights, equality and accessibility. Read more

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Latest posts by Christopher Lytle MA CDS (see all)

• Disability as a variable – A new optic - November 29, 2016
• Intersectionality: Re-think your pre-think - August 31, 2016
• Definition of disability and the Ontario Human Rights Commission - July 29, 2016

accessibility, accessibility barriers, Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, accommodation be delivered in a timely manner, AODA, Disability, duty to accommodate, information and accommodation requests, mobility device, on-boarded accessible vehicles, public transit, The accessibility of transitions, time in which a person with a disability moves from element to element, transportation of people with disabilities

No obligation to let employee smoke marijuana at work as a form of accommodation Baby, you can drive my car!