By Matt Graveline
City Hall Bureau
Ottawa is trying to become more accessible to its disabled residents but there are obstacles still ahead.
Late last month, city council approved recommendations from its corporate services committee to implement the 2007 City of Ottawa Municipal Accessibility Plan.
Ottawa is moving towards complete access for those with disabilities by 2025, a goal set by the provincial government.
Some of the plan’s 12 initiatives for 2007 include installing 25 pedestrian signals at new and renovated traffic intersections, removing 1,300 barriers that restrict those with accessibility needs from using city facilities and purchasing 100 additional low-floor buses.
The transit purchase was already pre-approved by council to be included in the budget while the two other initiatives are still being looked at by committees.
Two of the programs that are in limbo until the budget passes are the Sno-Go program and the community pass pilot project.
The community pass pilot project started last year was used by 4,300 individuals.
The community project is a discounted pass for people with disabilities explains Mary Reid, corporate accessibility specialist.
The transit committee will recommend to council that the community pass project be maintained in the upcoming budget.
Sno-Go is a program the city wants to begin this year, Reid says. Community organizations would remove snow from the property of those who are unable to do it themselves.
“This is a real commitment to make sure everyone has the same opportunities,” says Reid. “The key word is inclusive.”
Despite the fact that these two initiatives are still subject to the 2007 budget deliberations, Reid says the mayor’s proposed tax freeze does not necessarily mean council will cut the programs.
“Don’t translate zero increase into these programs being cut. I wouldn’t make that equation,” she says.
But the yearly plan is only one way that the city is trying to reach its goal of making its services more accessible.
Priority seating is an accessibility bylaw that has been in the works for some time now through transit services.
The final draft budget goes before the transit committee for approval in March.
It states that those who need the front seats for mobility purposes and have priority seating cards get the seats. If someone without a card is in front seats and will not move, Riley says they will be fined.
But some don’t believe that the bylaw deals with the need for proper seating effectively.
In November, city council’s seniors’ advisory committee voted to put a motion before corporate services to slow down the bus schedule so that people with accessibility needs will be able to find a seat before the bus pulls out.
But Julie Tremblay, the advisory committee co-ordinator, says the committee is holding off on the motion until they receive more information from the bylaw group.
“We are just trying to get the word out,” she says. “If we are not satisfied we will let the motion go forward. If we are satisfied, we will disregard the motion.”
Joel Koffman, OC Transpo’s scheduling and analysis manager, says the bylaw will not include bus scheduling but he is willing to talk to the committee.
“We want the scheduling to work,” he says. “With more low-floor buses, it will slow things down a bit anyways.”
Despite some possible obstacles in budget accommodation and transit services, Reid says the city is on the right track to making Ottawa a completely accessible city for the disabled.
“We are definitely ahead of many municipalities in regards to [the provincial goal],” she says.
“When [the province] applies more standards, we will be ready for them.”