Letter-writing campaign pushes for accessible transit
Passengers with disabilities say they are like ‘prisoners’ in their communities
REGINA Through a letter-writing campaign, a passionate group of former STC passengers are trying to put pressure on the provincial government to create an alternative accessible transportation service in Saskatchewan.
The letters are being sent to the Saskatchewan Human Rights Commission (SHRC) with the hopes that the commission will make an official recommendation to the government to do something to fill a gap in transportation services, especially for people with disabilities.
“I do want people to know that STC meant a lot to us,” said group member Tina Millar. “We do realize it won’t come back, but we are hoping that something will come out of this and people realize that transportation is a need in this province.”
For Charlene Eger, who relies on a wheelchair to get around, the shutdown of STC and the impending shutdown of Greyhound passenger services in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba is upsetting and frustrating. She said that with her parents two-and-a-half hours away in Moosomin, the upcoming Thanksgiving weekend is a prime example of why. “It’s very frustrating because if I wanted to go to (my) mom and dad’s … my parents would have to come in and pick me up,” she said.
STC never went to Moosomin, but Greyhound did, and it’s what she relied on to visit her parents.
“I want to be more independent, and I was up until STC disappeared and now I’m hooped again come (end of) October when Greyhound’s done,” she said.
Since the controversial shutdown of the Saskatchewan Transportation Company in May 2017, the group — made up of people with and without disabilities — tries to meet once a month.
They’ve attended question period at the Saskatchewan legislature twice since then, and intend to go back some time in November to continue voicing their concerns, including the fact that alternative passenger services like Dical Transport and Riders Express are not wheelchair accessible and don’t travel to as many communities as STC once did.
As part of their efforts, the group is encouraging Saskatchewan residents to sign one of two prewritten letters: One if you have a disability that requires the use of a wheelchair and one for allies.
The letters were drafted with the help of human-rights lawyer Larry Kowalchuk.
“Under the Saskatchewan Human Rights Code, disability is a prohibited ground for discrimination, and to deny access to a service to any individual on a prohibited ground of discrimination is a discriminatory practice,” the letters read.
“I am unable to visit family and friends or attend meetings or cultural events outside my community,” reads the letter for those who use wheelchairs. “I am, essentially, a prisoner in my community.”
Dical Transport confirmed Tuesday its passenger vehicles are not wheelchair accessible.
Shauna Hardy, a branch manager with Riders Express, said its 14-passenger buses are not wheelchair accessible, but that the company is in the process of getting a couple of larger buses that will be. Hardy said those buses should be running by mid- October.
Eger counts herself lucky she doesn’t have regular medical appointments that she has to travel for, but said she knows many who do who must now find someone with a wheelchair-accessible vehicle to drive them or take a taxi, which is difficult for low-income individuals.
“I’m getting as many people as I can that are in wheelchairs to sign
I want to be more independent, and I was up until STC disappeared and now I’m hooped again.
these letters to push the Human Rights Commission to do something with the government to get this (service) back,” she said.
Copies of the letters can be found on Regina Coun. Andrew Steven’s Facebook page. Residents can also contact Eger at charlene.eger30@gmail.com to arrange to get a copy of the letter.