The Transportation Standards under the AODA and the Transportation Standard under the Accessibility for Manitobans Act (AMA) both require organizations to make transportation accessible to people with disabilities. Moreover, both standards require many of the same processes and practices to ensure accessibility. However, there are many important differences between the standards. The third review of the AODA recommends that the Ontario government should coordinate with other provinces and the federal government to ensure that accessibility laws are consistent across Canada. Therefore, requirements in the AODA may one day change to align with mandates under the Accessibility for Manitobans Act. In this article, we will explore requirements for accessible transportation information in Ontario and Manitoba.
Accessible Transportation Information in Ontario and Manitoba
The AODA’s Transportation Standards and the Accessible Transportation Standard of the Accessibility for Manitobans Act (AMA) both require conventional and specialized transportation companies to inform the public about accessible equipment and features on their:
- Vehicles
- Routes
- Services
Moreover, companies must provide this information in accessible formats upon request. Furthermore, companies must have procedures in place to accommodate passengers when accessible equipment is not working. Companies should also inform passengers with disabilities about these procedures, so that passengers will know what will happen if equipment fails.
Companies must also ensure that the equipment is fixed as soon as possible.
Differences
In Manitoba, conventional and specialized transportation companies should also publish measures, policies, and practices about how they will:
- Estimate the demand for accessible transportation
- Reduce wait times for accessible transportation
On the contrary, only specialized transit companies in Ontario need to estimate demand and reduce wait times.
Furthermore, Manitoba transit companies must create and implement processes for receiving and responding to feedback about the accessibility of their transportation services. People should be able to offer feedback in accessible formats or with communication supports, upon request. Moreover, Manitoba companies must document their responses to feedback, and make these documents publicly available, upon request. In addition, companies must hold at least one (1) public meeting every year where passengers with disabilities can offer feedback on accessibility policies. A company offering both conventional and specialized transit should hold one (1) meeting for each type of transit.
In contrast, only conventional transit companies in Ontario need processes for receiving and responding to feedback. Likewise, only conventional transit companies need yearly public meetings. If a company offers both conventional and specialized transportation, its meeting can cover both types. However, Ontario does not require companies to hold meetings if they offer specialized but not conventional transit.
Finally, every Ontario conventional and specialized transit company needs to document all these policies in a multi-year accessibility plan. Moreover, companies must:
- Post plans on their websites
- Review and update the plans every five (5) years
- Consult people with disabilities as plans are:
- Created
- Reviewed
- Write yearly status reports that describe their progress toward implementing their plans
- Post yearly status reports on their websites
- Provide copies of plans and yearly status reports in accessible formats, upon request
Conversely, companies in Manitoba do not need to update the policies of accessible transportation they create.