Accessibility remains a problem
Thirty-five years ago, our province led the way with a brand new Buildings Accessibility Act & Regulations.
Those of us involved with creating the Act were delighted.
We breathed a collective sigh of relief that our work was done and things would now improve for individuals with physical disabilities.
After all these years, why isn’t this province more accessible?
Simply put, our provincial and municipal governments have no vision. • Where once there was progress there is now blatant political indifference: • Why are emergency exits in schools not wheelchair accessible • Why are accessible schools being closed and students moved into inaccessible ones • Why are occupancy permits provided to businesses that have not passed an accessibility inspection • Why are businesses allowed to block access to ramps, curb cuts or walkways? • Why are accessible washrooms made inaccessible by the poor placement of toilet paper, hand towels, hand soap, and mirrors? • Why are many ramps too steep, have steps at the bottom or top, have no handrails or an unusable turning radius • Why are so many automated door openers turned off or broken • Why are accessible registration counters in health care facilities so cluttered with equipment that a wheelchair user cannot access them • Why are blue zone parking spaces so inaccessible in their design • Why is the Terry Fox Memorial located behind a locked gate, making it inaccessible to individuals using wheelchairs • Why doesn’t Services NL have a formal complaint process in place for consumers using public buildings deemed to be accessible? • Why doesn’t our Provincial Government take progressive steps to overhaul our outdated and ineffective Buildings Accessibility Act & Regulations
• Why isn’t the Minister of Services NL implementing the recommendations of the Buildings Accessibility Advisory Board • Why isn’t our government doing more to support contractors, developers and business owners to understand the need for and how to create accessible spaces? • Why isn’t our government implementing commitments under the 2011 Provincial Strategy for the Inclusion of Persons with Disabilities?
So many questions so few answers! Joanne MacDonald O.C., O.N.L., LL.D St. John’s