Exemption Application by ORTA Individual Comment
I support the following comments and submit my comment regarding the proposed exemption to the Olympic Road Traffic Authority.
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 and 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 infrastructure? Why?
The NSW government have also stated at ATC 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.
I therefore, do not support the granting of the exemption.
WE WILL RIDE - AND WITHOUT COMPROMISE!
Kevin Murfitt
Disability Liaison Officer
Division of Student Life, Student Services
Deakin University, Geelong 3217
Phone: 03 52271428 Fax: 03 5227 2829
Mobile: 0427 425424
email: kfm@deakin.edu.au
<http://www.deakin.edu.au/>http://www.deakin.edu.au/
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