From:
Jennifer Muir [jenny_muir@imagofilms.com]
Sent:
Wednesday, 24 May 2000 16:11
To:
disabdis@hreoc.gov.au
Subject:
PETITION
Below
is a document developed in response to an application for
exemption
to the
Disability
Discrimination Act (1992) ) (known as the DDA) by the Olympic
Road
Transport
Authority. This application has been
made to the Human Rights
and
Equal
Opportunities
Commission and essentially means that any accessible buses
already
in
existence
in other states (about 150 in Brisbane alone) will be sent to
Sydney
during the
8
week period of the Olympic and Paralympic Games in Sept/October to
transport
the
tourists
and visitors to Sydney, while people with disabilities in the
others
states have
had
no alternate arrangements made for
them!
We
strongly object to this proposed exemption and call on all people
with
disabilities,
their
families and supporters across the world as well as organisations
working
for and
supporting
people with disabilities to forward this protest document in
their
own
names,
to let HREOC know that we do not want this to happen, we do not
want
to
lose
what little transport options we have because of the short
sightedness
and lack of
proper
planning by the Olympic Committees, nor do we want to protect
those
who will
not
provide for our needs, so that the Olympic Road Traffic Authority
doesn't
get egg
on
its face during the forthcoming events!
This should have been
thought
about and
planned
for, many years ago, rather than expecting the disability
community
to go
without
transport in other areas of Australia during this time.
Register
your displeasure by sending this document under your own name
to
disabdis@hreoc.gov.au
The
Exemption Application by ORTA - reasons why we do not support an
exemption:
1.
The DDA has now been in existence since 1992 and Draft Accessible
Transport
Standards
were first approved by the Australian Transport Council as
'technically
feasible'
back in June 1996 - four years ago.
2.
Some State and Territory Governments have used those Standards as
benchmarks
and
have been purchasing only accessible buses since late 1994 early 95.
3.
Why is it, given that NSW Dept of Transport knew in August 1994 that
they
would
be
hosting the Olympics and paralympics, that they did not instigate a
similar
purchasing
policy as for example South Australia.
4.
Since late 1994, South Australia has purchased only accessible buses.
Their
total
fleet
is 750 and they re-stock at approximately 50 new buses per year or
1
every week.
5.
You don't have to be real smart to work out that the total
replacement
of the fleet
will
take about 14 & 1/2 years or that in 4 years they will have
approximately
200
accessible
buses.
6.
NSW has a much bigger fleet I understand, so the number of buses
purchased
each
year
would be greater than a small State like South Australia. Why is it
that
they have
not
purchased more accessible buses? How
many excuses have you heard
about
the
terrain
being very difficult or not being sure about which ramps to
purchase,
or
calming
devices preventing them from getting accessible buses??
7.
I don't believe they have been genuinely trying to address
accessibility
issues in
transport
and infrastructure to the full extent possible. In fact, there
has
been
considerable
pressure from particular lobby groups on the NSW Government
to
relax
from
the Transport Standards.
8.
This same lobby has also been the same isolated group which has
opposed
the
Accessible
Transport Standards moving forward even though all States and
territories
approved
the Standards in April 1999. This same lobby has been very
active
in
Canberra
with Ministers an senior public servants.
9.
8 years after the DDA, 4 years since the Transport Standards were
approved
by the
ATC
as technically feasible and 12 months down the track since they were
'finally'
approved
by ATC, we do not Accessible Transport Standards in Australia.
10.
Our understanding is that all Federal government Departments
supported
the
Accessible
Transport Standards moving forward except 1.
Further, that
this
delay in
one
government Department is due to 1 individual who is linked back to
the
lobby
group
mentioned above.
11.
The disability community is getting more frustrated and angrier by
the
day as these
long
and discriminatory delays hinder the long term development of a
fully
accessible
transport
system for Australia.
12.
An accessible transport system is vital for our aging society where
there
continues
to
be a proportional growth of our entire population with mobility
disabilities.
13.
If we don't plan to cater for this expansion (in the same way we
have
done so with
superannuation
etc to promote self funded retirees), transport operators
are
ignoring
their
biggest growth market in off-peak travel and at the same time
cause
long term
isolation
and waste of considerable human resources.
14.
An accessible transport system is essential if this Commonwealth
government
is
serious
about 'Welfare Reform' and enabling the full participation of
people
with a
disability
in employment, education and training and recreation.
Summary
If
the disability sector is being asked to comment on this proposed
exemption
for the
purpose
of supporting this exemption, we believe there will be a very
negative
response.
Why should the disability sector support this embarrassing
situation
where
both
the ORTA and the NSW government have demonstrated a lack of real
commitment
to implementing accessible transport and nfrastructure? Why?
The
New South Wales (NSW) government have also stated at Australian
Transport
Council
meetings that they would only support the DDA Transport
Standards
conditional
to Commonwealth funding. This is seen
yet again as a low
level
commitment
to accessible transport. This one
opportunity
to showcase to the world via the Olympics, a fairer, smarter
and
equitable
transport
system is now going to be lost.
The
only way that the disability sector could be persuaded to support
the
exemption
would
be for a real commitment by the NSW and Commonwealth governments
to
accessible
transport. That commitment could be
demonstrated by the
immediate
promulgation
of the Accessible Transport Standards in Federal Parliament
as
they were
approved
by the Australian Transport Council (ATC) on April 30, 1999.
The
world is watching you, Australia
I therefore, do not support the granting of
the exemption.
Anthony
Davison