Ontario is supposed to be fully accessible by Jan. 1, but advocates say it's 'nowhere close'
The Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act outlines standards in 5 areas of daily life
In the new year, Ontario is supposed to be fully accessible for disabled people, but advocates say the province is "nowhere near" meeting standards it created 20 years ago.
In 2005, the Ontario Legislature enacted the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA). It set a 20-year goal to meet standards in five areas that affect everyday life: information and communication, employment, transportation, customer service and the design of public spaces.
"We are nowhere close to being accessible by 2025 and we've been warning the government about this for years," said David Lepofsky, chair of the AODA Alliance.
Lepofsky was part of the group of disability advocates that lobbied Dalton McGuinty's government to enact the AODA in 2005.
Since then, he's continued the fight to have standards fully implemented by Jan. 1, 2025.
Those standards cover everything from accessible transportation, including having wheelchair-accessible buses and taxis, to accessible buildings with sufficient elevators, automatic doors and wheelchair ramps.
The legislation applies to all organizations and businesses with 20 employees or more.
Failure to meet standards can result in a fine of up to $100,000 per day for a business or organization, and up to $50,000 a day for a director at that organization.
Outside of physical accommodations for disabled people, the legislation also outlines equitable hiring practices and implementing accessible technology within an organization.
That technology extends to websites, where things like alternative text, which describes photos, and compatibility with screen readers are part of the standard.
The customer service standard means organizations need to train their staff to properly accommodate people with disabilities.
"You want to treat them like equals. Don't talk down to them," said Nadine Law, a disability advocate from Sudbury.
Their [Ontario government] record is abysmal.- David Lepofsky
Lepofsky argues that in addition to falling short on meeting the five existing standards under the legislation, there should be others.
"We've pressed for reforms in the area of health-care," he said.
"Patients with disabilities face too many barriers in the health-care system, just as students with disabilities face too many barriers in the education system. So we pressed for the government to enact a health-care accessibility standard."
But despite recommendations from two independent reviews to both strengthen existing standards and add new ones – such as health and education – Lepofsky says Ontario Premier Doug Ford's government has sat on its hands.
"Their record is abysmal," he said.
In an email to CBC News, Wallace Pidgeon, director of communications for Seniors and Accessibility Minister Raymond Cho, said "Ontario is meeting, achieving, or exceeding the AODA standards across the province."
Pidgeon said in the email that under the current government, Ontario has had "historic spending" on infrastructure to improve accessibility, which includes school upgrades, new and retrofitted hospitals and long-term care facilities, as well as public transit upgrades including over 2,200 new accessible buses being delivered province-wide.
He added that all 444 municipalities in Ontario must have accessibility plans in place to meet the AODA standards.
In Timmins, city council will vote Tuesday evening to approve its five-year accessibility plan which touches on the five standards.
The plan outlines things the city has already done to improve accessibility, such as redesigning its transit building to make it more accessible. And it includes future plans to improve accessibility, such as a redesign of the local arena, the McIntyre Community Centre in 2025.
WATCH| Disability advocate in Sudbury calls for the city to have an accessibility committee
In Sudbury, city council is voting on Tuesday to approve an accessibility consultation policy.
The policy would require the city's accessibility panel to consult on any new municipal buildings, upgrades or programs to make sure they meet AODA standards.
"What I'm hearing is that they're happier that they're not brought in midway through a project, but at the beginning of the project," Sudbury Mayor Paul Lefebvre said about the city's accessibility panel.
But disability advocate Nadine Law argues the city should have an accessibility committee, as opposed to a panel.
"With a committee everything is transparent," she said.
"You've got minutes that are taken and they should be available on the website for the public to see."
Other cities in northeastern Ontario, including North Bay, Sault Ste. Marie and Timmins have accessibility committees.
Lefebvre said the city's clerk is currently exploring the benefits of a committee instead of a panel.
"I think we'll always be focused on the result of what we're getting," he said. "Certainly the way that we get there is important as well."
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