Decision No. 372-AT-A-1999

June 25, 1999

June 25, 1999

APPLICATION by Elliott Richman, pursuant to subsection 172(1) of the Canada Transportation Act, S.C., 1996, c. 10, concerning the absence, in Air Canada's timetable effective November 1, 1998, of a TTY (telephone-teletype for persons who are deaf or hard of hearing) 1-800 reservation number for use in the United States of America.

File No. U 3570/99-12


APPLICATION

Elliott Richman filed an application with the Canadian Transportation Agency (hereinafter the Agency) with respect to the matter set out in the title. The application was received on February 25, 1999.

Air Canada filed an answer to the application on April 1, 1999, and Mr. Richman filed his reply on April 1, 1999. Additional comments were filed by Air Canada.

ISSUE

The issue to be addressed is whether the absence, in Air Canada's timetable, of a TTY number for use by the public in the United States constituted an undue obstacle to Mr. Richman's mobility and, if so, what corrective measures should be taken.

FACTS

Mr. Richman is deaf and uses a TTY to communicate. He travelled between Halifax, Nova Scotia, and New York City, New York, via Montréal, Quebec, in November 1998. In New York, he was not able to contact Air Canada by TTY to confirm his return reservation because the carrier's timetable listed a TTY 1-800 number for use in Canada only.

POSITIONS OF THE PARTIES

Mr. Richman submits that, since all his telecommunications are made only through a TTY, the lack of a United States TTY 1-800 number in Air Canada's timetable subjected him to an undue hardship. The applicant states that his complaint will be satisfactorily resolved when Air Canada provides a toll-free TTY reservation number for use by the public in both Canada and the United States. Mr. Richman also asks that the wording of the TTY listing in Air Canada's timetable be modified to include travellers who are deaf.

By letter dated April 1, 1999, Air Canada recognizes that its timetable incorrectly indicated that the service was only available in Canada. The carrier advises that its TTY system is also available in the United States and that its proper functioning has recently been verified by its Tampa-based call centre. In its response, Air Canada also states that its spring 1999 timetable will be corrected accordingly, and that all new published material containing information on TTYs will indicate that this service is also available in the United States as well as in Canada.

By E-mail dated April 1, 1999, Mr. Richman advises that he is mostly satisfied with the measures undertaken by Air Canada to resolve his complaint. He provides comments and recommendations with respect to the wording used in the Air Canada timetable in order to better identify that the TTY services are for the deaf and hard of hearing.

By letter dated April 15, 1999, Air Canada acknowledges Mr. Richman's recommendations and advises that they will be taken into account in the publication of its spring 1999 timetable.

ANALYSIS AND FINDINGS

In making its findings, the Agency has considered all the material submitted by the parties during the pleadings.

While it is noted that the Air Canada TTY 1-800 number listed in the public timetable in effect in November 1998 could be used both in Canada and the United States, the Agency is of the opinion that the fact that the number in question was not actually listed as being available for toll-free calls from the United States constituted an obstacle. The Agency further finds the obstacle to be undue in that it resulted from an absence of proper information to the public and that it could have been easily avoided by the carrier by listing the TTY 1-800 number as being also available for communication from the United States.

These findings are also consistent with the Agency's position expressed in its report entitled Communications Barriers: A Look at Barriers to Communication Facing Persons with Disabilities who Travel by Air, released on November 20, 1997. This report was issued in response to consumer concerns and following consultation with air carriers, airports and groups and individuals who represented persons with sensory or cognitive disabilities. It contains twenty-five (25) recommendations made to the air industry as well as measures put forward by the Agency to ensure implementation of its recommendations. The Agency established in Recommendation 2 that all air carriers must outline in a clear and concise Alternative Format Policy how they will provide to persons with disabilities information that is otherwise available to the general public. In this respect, it was recommended among other things that this policy always provide for an alternative way to communicate with the carrier in public communications, such as a TTY number to contact the carrier for information, and that the TTY number be displayed along with the voice number in seat sale advertisements or other information. The report further recommends that, in refresher training, emphasis be placed on the importance of personnel having a working knowledge of services and policies offered by air carriers including communication of information issues.

CONCLUSION

The Agency finds that there was an undue obstacle to Mr. Richman's mobility. However, in light of the corrective measures undertaken by Air Canada, no further action is contemplated in this matter.

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