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 booking trips on specialized transit in Ontario and Manitoba.
Booking Trips on Specialized Transit in Ontario and Manitoba
The AODA’s Transportation Standards and the Accessible Transportation Standard of the Accessibility for Manitobans Act (AMA) both require specialized transit companies to have the same hours of operation as conventional transit companies. For example, a company offering both conventional and specialized transit must offer the same hours of operation for both forms of transit. Alternatively, if conventional and specialized transit are offered by different companies in the same location, the specialized transit company must operate during the same hours as conventional transit. In both cases, specialized transit companies can offer additional hours of service. However, specialized transit companies cannot offer fewer hours of operation than the conventional transit companies in the same locations.
Moreover, specialized transit companies can require passengers to book their trips in advance. The standards do not mandate that companies must use advanced booking. However, companies that do require advanced booking must allow passengers to book on the day of travel, whenever possible. When booking on the day of travel is not possible, companies must allow passengers to book up to three (3) hours before the end of the day before the day of travel.
In addition, companies cannot limit passengers’ use of services through:
- Restricting the number of bookings a passenger can make
- Any other policy or practice that would limit passengers’ use of services
Furthermore, companies must inform passengers about service delays for trips booked in advance. A service delay is more than thirty (30) minutes after a trip was scheduled to take place. Companies must inform a passenger about the length of a delay, in a format accessible to the passenger.
Differences
Ontario specialized transit companies must allow passengers to book their trips in accessible ways. In contrast, the Manitoba standard does not require companies to have accessible ways for passengers to book trips. However, under Manitoba’s Information and Communication Standard, all organizations, including specialized transit companies, must provide information in accessible formats or with communication supports.
In addition, Manitoba companies cannot limit passengers’ use of services by prioritizing certain:
- Places passengers are going
- Reasons passengers are travelling
Conversely, Ontario’s standards do not prevent companies from limiting passengers’ use of services in this way.