National AccessAbility Week – Message from the Chair

May 26, 2025 – Gatineau, QC – Canadian Transportation Agency

As we recognize National AccessAbility Week from May 25 to May 31, 2025, I am proud to reflect on the Canadian Transportation Agency's (CTA) ongoing commitment to help achieve consistent, cohesive, and connected transportation services for persons with disabilities.

The CTA is dedicated to ensuring that transportation services are accessible to all Canadians. Our efforts include:

• Engaging with the community to understand their experiences and needs, ensuring that our policies and services reflect their insights
• Continuing to enforce our regulations, to help ensure that transportation services are barrier-free
• Providing comprehensive training for our staff on accessibility and disability inclusion, fostering a culture of understanding and respect.

One of our key focuses continues to be issues related to mobility aids, as this remains the highest volume of complaints we receive. We have been actively working with stakeholders on several fronts to raise awareness on the importance of mobility aids and the services provided to passengers who rely on them. For example, in partnership with the National Research Council Canada and Transport Canada, earlier this year job aids for transportation industry mobility aid handlers, consisting of visual aids to help them quickly recall their training during operations, were developed. Mobility aids are the extension of a person’s body and need to be protected and returned to the people who depend on them so that they can complete their travel journey autonomously.

On a more global level, we are supporting the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) to improve accessibility for aviation internationally. As part of this work I recently participated in a panel at the ICAO Facilitation Conference. This was a great forum to discuss the approach to advancing accessibility in international aviation and it highlighted the importance of increased awareness and continued collaboration. We have also been working with our partners to help ICAO develop a comprehensive accessibility strategy. I am optimistic that this work will be an important step in creating 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.

We also remain committed to eliminating barriers within our own walls. We collaborated with the Rick Hansen Foundation to enhance accessibility and inclusivity for all our employees. I’m proud to say that in 2023, we received a gold accessibility certification of our offices by the foundation following that enriching collaboration.

As we look to the future, we remain committed to creating a seamless travel experience for all Canadians, where accessibility is not just an add-on but an integral part of the transportation system. Government, industry, Canadians, we must all work together to achieve this reality, and we must always make sure that persons with disabilities themselves are at the heart of improving accessibility.

France Pégeot
Chair & CEO of the Canadian Transportation Agency