Not everyone is thrilled with the introduction of double-decker buses on some busy downtown routes.
While some may be captivated by the look of Ottawa’s new double-deckers, disability advocates worry that these buses may not be equipped for all riders.
Last week, eight of 75 double-decker buses hit the streets for the first time, transporting people on express routes between downtown and places like Kanata, Orléans and Barrhaven.
This latest addition to OC Transpo’s fleet cost $72 million but is expected to lower operational costs while allowing up to 20 more commuters per bus, according to the transit service’s website.
But as the buses gradually enter regular routes, Catherine Gardner, a member of the city’s accessibility advisory committee, is concerned for disabled riders, like herself.
“The first seat is right across from the stairs,” she says. “So what happens is, when you come to a stop, you have everyone coming down the stairs trying to get out the door, (and) you’ve got the person with the disability trying to get out of their spot and you’ve got people trying to get on.”
Currently, the buses only allow passengers to load from the front doors, so disabled and elderly commuters, or those with strollers, must walk to the middle of the bus in order to reach accessible seating.
Still, David Pepper, manager of business and operational services at OC Transpo, wrote in an e-mail that the double-decker bus is “fully compliant with regulations under the Access for Ontarians with Disabilities Act.”
This act states that disability seating will be located as close as practicable to the entrances of vehicles.
Pepper added that OC Transpo hosted an opportunity for the members of the city’s accessibility advisory committee to view and board a double-decker bus.
“Members of the committee were pleased with the available space for mobility devices and priority seating on the first level and offered recommendations regarding additional required directional signs for wheelchair position and the stairways,” wrote Pepper, who added that these concerns were addressed before the buses were introduced last week.
Bob Brown, a quadriplegic and chair of the subcommittee on accessible transportation, says he contributed to these recommendations. He recalled two of the main issues to be related to handles and stop buttons.
He says disabled riders are not able to put their whole arm through the handle provided next to the accessibility seating and have to reach behind them in order to request a stop, which Brown would like to see changed.
“All in all, I didn’t see any major problems,” says Brown. “But I think some chairs will have trouble. It’s a little bit tighter making the corner off the ramp near the driver.”
This may not be the only problem passengers may have when trying to get on and off the bus.
Although only in its second day of operation, one bus experienced technical problems, which passenger Tristan Lee-Coughlin says prevented it from being able to lower its ramp.
“It was something to do with the hydraulics,” he said.
Over the next few weeks, OC Transpo will be introducing double-decker buses to 10 more routes and anticipates all 75 of them will be in service by April 2013.