Staff Report #6 – Annual Accessibility Plan Update

Staff Report #6

November 25, 2020

To All Commissioners

Re: Annual Accessibility Plan Update

Recommendation

That the report be NOTED and FILED.

Background

Consistent with the requirements of the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA) regulations, the Commission’s Accessibility Plan was updated in 2019, and covers the period of 2020-2025. The plan was developed in consultation with the Accessible Public Transit Service Advisory Committee (APTSAC), and included public feedback gathered through drop in sessions, online survey and customer contacts. The final 2020-2025 Accessibility Plan was approved by the Commission at the November 28, 2019 meeting.

Consistent with initiatives on the Commission’s 2020 Work Program, a number of initiatives included for completion in 2020 on the Accessibility Plan were deferred as the result of the pandemic declaration and resulting impacts on the organization. Scheduled meetings with the Accessible Public Transit Service Advisory Committee (APTSAC) were also put on hold subsequent to the declaration of the pandemic. Administration has remained in contact with the Chair of the Committee as well as Committee members to ensure there were no issues from a Committee perspective that required a meeting during this period. As the table below indicates, the projects which would have involved consultation and recommendations from the APTSAC have been deferred due to COVID related issues. It is anticipated that APTSAC meetings will recommence virtually in the new year as the deferred projects are restarted.

The following table provides an overview of the initiatives from the 2020-2025 Accessibility Plan which were scheduled to be addressed as part of the 2020 work program as well as a status of each, noting further detail with respect to those initiatives that have been deferred is provided later in the report.

Status of 2020 Accessibility Plan Initiatives

The following provides greater detail with respect to the projects listed above that have been deferred due to COVID.

Consult with APTSAC on Marketing Initiatives – This consultation was intended to take place throughout the year as various marketing initiatives were considered. All marketing initiatives, with the exception of those communications specifically related to the pandemic were put on hold beginning in March 2020, and have not been resumed. This project will be placed on the Accessibility section of the 2021 Work Program for consideration.

Consult public re communication of temporary disruptions – This consultation was intended to gather feedback from the public with respect to the manner in which the communication relating to temporary service disruptions is disseminated. Given the resource issues associated with dealing with the pandemic, this initiative was deferred for consideration on the Accessibility section of the 2021 Work Program.

Communications campaign re: priority seating and service animals – This program is a partnership between the Ontario Public Transit Association and the Ministry of Seniors and Accessibility, intended to provide a uniform and consistent communications campaign to all Ontario transit systems, with a focus on priority seating and service animals. Given the need for pandemic specific communications on-board throughout the pandemic period, the parties agreed to defer this program until 2021. This initiative will be included in the Accessibility section of the 2021 Work Program.

Implement Smart Card Readers on Specialized – This program was deferred due to limited access to the system provider during the pandemic period. Discussions with the provider have resumed and it is anticipated this project will commence in early 2021.

Utilize non-accommodated data to plan for service expansion – Service expansion plans for 2020 were deferred for consideration in 2021 given the impacts of COVID on both ridership as well as budget. Additionally, during the period of the pandemic (March to current), service levels on the specialized service have been such that virtually all trip requests have been accommodated. As such, when this analysis is undertaken, it will rely on data from 2019. Should service expansion for 2021 be approved, this program will be implemented in an effort to ensure resources are being applied when they are most needed.

Consult APTSAC on service integration opportunities – Service expansion plans for 2020 were deferred for consideration in 2021 given the impacts of COVID on both ridership as well as budget as were consideration of any service integration opportunities. Should service expansion for 2021 be approved, this program will be implemented in an effort to ensure resources are being applied when they are most needed.

A further requirement of the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA) is for conventional transit service providers to hold an annual public meeting to allow the public, including persons with disabilities, the opportunity to participate in a review of the accessibility plan and provide feedback. Compliance with this requirement has traditionally been handled through the annual drop-in sessions which are attended by members of staff as well as the Commission where the Accessibility Plan and progress against same is one of the key themes. As previously indicated in Staff Report #7, dated October 28, 2020, the annual drop in session has been deferred to 2021 given the pandemic and related restrictions surrounding public gatherings.

Subsequent to Commission review, the status update included in this report will be posted on the corporate website consistent with requirements under the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, and the public will be encouraged to provide any feedback relating to the Plan and/or the annual update via email or phone. Feedback gathered will be compiled and shared with both the APTSAC and the Commission at a future date.

Recommended by:

Kelly S. Paleczny, General Manager