By Miranda Chant
January 24, 2022
The London Transit Commission (LTC) is asking its riders to consider the needs of others as it launches a new campaign aimed at raising awareness of accessibility features on city buses.
The LTC is one of several transit systems across the province participating in the EnAbling Change campaign from the Ontario Public Transit Association. Through on-board messaging and social media posts, the campaign will highlight accessibility features such as priority seating and service animal policies. It will also encourage riders to consider giving up their seat to individuals with visible and non-visible disabilities.
The colourful ads that will be posted to social media as of Monday, were designed in consultation with the accessible public transit service advisory committee to make sure messaging and visuals are both appropriate and clear, the LTC said.
General Manager Kelly Paleczny stated that London Transit is excited to be a part of the new initiative.
“The Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA) has gone a long way in improving accessibility across all sectors in Ontario. Through the 5 year review of the transportation standards, a lack of awareness for the various requirements in place was identified as a key issue, and recommendations for additional public outreach were made by the review committee,” said Paleczny. “This campaign is intended to not only raise awareness about the various accessibility measures in place on public transit, but also as a gentle reminder that every transit rider has a role to play in ensuring they are followed.”
The campaign will use the hashtags “AccessibleTransitMatters”, “TransitAccessibilityMatters”, and “TransitAccessibility” to spread the word on social media.