Joint ICAO/ACI/IATA Symposium on Accessibility in International Civil Aviation - December 2, 2024

Opening Remarks: Panel on Importance of Global Collaboration, Mutual Standards and Practices

Inclusive and Universally Accessible Air Transport for Persons with Disabilities and Reduced Mobility

ICAO headquarters, Montréal

Check Against Delivery

I would like to thank ICAO, ACI and IATA for organizing this symposium and for inviting me to participate in this panel on the importance of global collaboration, mutual standards and practices.

The organization I represent, the Canadian Transportation Agency, is both an economic regulator of the transportation industry in Canada and an administrative tribunal that resolves disputes between travellers and transportation service providers. A key part of our mandate is accessible transportation.

Today, I'd like to cover three points. I will speak about some of the progress that has been made to improve accessibility in civil aviation, the work currently being done, including the development of a world-wide strategy, and the importance of strong partnerships to achieve consistent, cohesive, and connected services in air travel for persons with disabilities.

Progress in Canada

Accessibility is a priority for the Agency and for Canada, and in 2019 Canada passed legislation with the goal of making Canada barrier-free for people with disabilities by 2040.

Full and equal participation in contemporary life is not possible if, because of a disability, you can't get from your home to your work, visit with family and friends, or travel domestically or internationally. Transportation connects us to each other and to the world, and the "us" should include everyone.

Canada has made significant strides to advance accessibly, including its regulations for Accessible Transportation for Persons With Disabilities Regulations. These world-leading regulations cover all the steps of the travel journey and apply to the areas that persons with disabilities told us matter the most to them. This includes communications, services, equipment and infrastructure, and training to airline and airport staff. They also cover our one-person, one-fare policy which requires, for domestic travel, and free of charge, carriers to provide an additional seat for persons with disabilities when it is needed for accommodation.

I also know from our engagement with the Canadian industry that they are actively pursuing improvements. This includes some airlines creating new roles in their organizations, which are specifically responsible for advancing accessibility in their operations. It also includes, at major airports across Canada, the introduction of facilitators to support persons with disabilities during security screening. I think these are good initiatives that will have real positive impacts for persons with disabilities.

We are proud of the work we have done in Canada and we also acknowledge that there is still more work that must be done.

International work in progress

Since its inception in 1944, ICAO has played a key role in bringing its members together to co-operate, to share, and to build a stronger global civil aviation system. Through the establishment and maintenance of international Standards and Recommended Practices in particular, the world has been able to benefit from key improvements in areas that are important to us all, including safety, security, efficiency, economic development, and environmental protection. The ICAO General Assembly Resolution on Accessibility in International Civil Aviation was adopted in the Fall of 2022 ensures passengers with disabilities have access to safe, reliable and dignified travel and freedom of movement.

We believe that accessibility for persons with disabilities must become an overarching priority for ICAO. We are not starting from zero though, ICAO's Working Group on Accessible Aviation is working on a compendium of the regulations, standards and best accessibility practices around the world which we hope will encourage their wider adoption. Having an understanding of what currently exists and what are some of the best practices from around the world will be a good starting point for alignment and progress.

The working group will also be proposing updates to the accessibility-related Standards and Recommended Practices. In Canada, we have recognized that the safe transportation of mobility aids and the training of employees have been areas where we have seen the need for more attention, and, I would encourage that the work on the Standards and Recommended Practices place a special focus on mobility aids and training. Substantive progress in these two areas would drastically improve air travel for many persons with disabilities.

We are also working with partners in supporting ICAO to develop a comprehensive accessibility strategy for international aviation. I think we all aspire to an inclusive global aviation system that empowers and connects people worldwide, where all individuals, including persons with disabilities, can access and use air transportation without barriers. The Strategy will be an important step in framing the vision and a path forward to achieving that reality.

I believe that we should recognize explicitly that this means ensuring that persons with disabilities are allowed to exercise choice and autonomy, with access to infrastructure and support where needed.

I believe that we should also recognize the principle that ICAO members should not only implement accessibility through improvements in each of their own regulatory frameworks, but work towards adopting best practices from other ICAO members so that accessibility is harmonized across international borders, allowing persons with disabilities to travel as seamlessly as possible across those borders.

The strategy will send an important signal about the importance of accessibility in civil aviation and our collective commitment to push forward.

Partnerships

Our common goal should be to have an ambitious, but achievable path forward at the global level that will deliver concrete results for people with disabilities.

Achieving consistent, cohesive, and connected services in air travel for persons with disabilities requires a comprehensive and inclusive approach.

ICAO is a natural forum for such work and for sharing and building on the individual successes of ICAO members. However, to really advance this work, partnerships are needed both domestically and internationally. Strong partnerships are needed between the industry, persons with disabilities and government and international organizations alike. In Canada, we believe strongly in the principle “Nothing about us without us”. Engagement with persons with disabilities is at the heart of improving accessibility. This is one of the reasons we established our own Accessibility Advisory Committee, which includes over 40 representatives of both persons with disabilities and industry, and has been an active contributor and participant in supporting and advancing our accessibility projects.

Conclusion

We look forward to working with ICAO members, industry, persons with disabilities, as well as other partners to advance accessibility in air transportation so that all passengers can have access to a safe, reliable and dignified travel.

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