From: kali [kali@spin.net.au]
Sent: Thursday, 18 May 2000
22:26
To: disabdis@hreoc.gov.au
To HREOC
from Kali
Wilde
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!