Decision No. 453-AT-A-1999
July 30, 1999
APPLICATION by Elliott Richman pursuant to subsection 172(1) of the Canada Transportation Act, S.C., 1996, c. 10., concerning the provision of TTY pay phones (telephone-teletype used by persons with a hearing impairment) at the Ottawa Macdonald-Cartier International Airport.
File No. U 3570/99-17
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 March 14, 1999.
On April 21, 1999, the Ottawa Macdonald-Cartier International Airport Authority (hereinafter the OAA) filed its answer to the complaint and Mr. Richman provided his reply on May 18, 1999.
Pursuant to subsection 29(1) of the Canada Transportation Act (hereinafter the CTA), the Agency is required to make its decision no later than 120 days after the application is received unless the parties have agreed to an extension. In this case, the parties have agreed to an extension of the deadline until August 12, 1999.
ISSUE
The issue to be addressed is whether the absence of at least one TTY pay phone at all banks of telephones with three or more pay phones at the Ottawa Macdonald-Cartier International Airport (hereinafter Ottawa Airport) constituted an undue obstacle to Mr. Richman's mobility and, if so, what corrective measures should be taken.
FACTS
Mr. Richman is deaf and requires the use of a TTY. He travelled to Ottawa in December 1998.
At the time of Mr. Richman's travel, the OAA had three TTYs in the Ottawa Airport: one located in the Domestic/International arrivals and departures area; one in the United States departures hold room; and the other in the public area of the passenger baggage retrieval area. Prior to July 1998, only one TTY was available to the travelling public in the public area of the passenger baggage retrieval area. Following an earlier complaint with respect to the number of TTY pay phones at the Ottawa Airport, the Agency determined in Decision No. 360-AT-A-1998 that, given the type of operation at the Ottawa Airport, the provision of only one TTY constituted an undue obstacle to the travelling public requiring the use of these services. Pursuant to that Decision, the OAA was required to install two additional TTY pay phones beyond the security check points, one in the Domestic/International area and one in the United States Departure area. The installation of the two additional TTYs was completed on July 15, 1998.
POSITIONS OF THE PARTIES
Mr. Richman submits that his complaint is based on the fact that the current number of TTYs at the Ottawa Airport is not consistent with the Recommendation adopted by the Minister of Transport's Advisory Committee on Accessible Transportation (hereinafter ACAT) at the November 16 and 17, 1998 meeting, which states that:
Further to the ACAT recommendation related to TTY's forwarded at its July 1998 meeting, it is also recommended that in transportation terminals in Canada each public pay phone bank of three or more pay phones contain at least one TTY. (hereinafter the ACAT recommendation)
Mr. Richman is of the opinion that the TTY facilities at the Ottawa Airport are not adequate. He submits that out of eight banks of telephone with three or more pay phones in the Domestic arrivals and Departures area, only one is equipped with a TTY pay phone. Mr. Richman is of the view that this limited number of TTYs constitutes an undue hardship for those, including himself, who require the use of a TTY. He submits that there should be at least one TTY pay phone at every bank of telephones with three or more pay phones throughout the airport.
Mr. Richman recognizes that as a result of the Agency's Decision No. 360-AT-A-1998, the OAA had increased the number of TTYs from one to three. However, he questions why the process of going from one to three TTY pay phones should be any different from going from one to eight TTY pay phones. According to Mr. Richman, the cost of installing TTY pay phones is insignificant when considering all other airport capital expenses. He submits that there is no financial reason preventing the OAA from installing at least one TTY pay phone in every bank of pay phones with three or more pay phones.
With respect to the inconsistency between the number of TTYs currently available at the Ottawa Airport and the ACAT recommendation, the OAA submits that it has met the requirements of the Agency's Decision No. 360-AT-A-1998. The OAA adds that the contract it has with its telephone provider expires on August 31, 1999, and as part of the new contract, it will review the possibility of requiring the new service provider to arrange for additional TTYs at the airport.
ANALYSIS AND FINDINGS
In making its findings, the Agency has considered all of the evidence submitted by the parties during the pleadings.
The Agency is aware of the recommendations made by ACAT with respect to the issue of TTYs in airports. ACAT is an industry consumer advisory committee to the Minister of Transport which makes recommendations on policy issues to the Minister. ACAT recommendations to the Minister may eventually result in changes to transportation policy. In this case, however, no such change in policy has been adopted.
The Agency, as an independent administrative tribunal with a mandate to remove undue obstacles in the federal transportation network, must analyse the positions submitted by the parties on a case by case basis to determine if there were undue obstacles to the mobility of persons with disabilities.
Mr. Richman's complaint is based on his view that, as a general principle, the provision of anything less than one TTY at each bank of telephones with three or more pay phones is an undue obstacle to his mobility. In Decision No. 360-AT-A-1998, the Agency found that in view of the size, configuration and nature of operations at the Ottawa Airport, a minimum of three TTY's was required to ensure access to TTYs in each of the three separate areas of the airport: the public departures/arrivals area, the secured international/domestic area, and the secured United States of America departures area. While recognizing that this is a minimum requirement and that there is always room for improvement of services, the Agency does not find that the absence of a TTY pay phone at each bank of three or more pay phones constitutes an undue obstacle to the mobility of travellers with disabilities.
The Agency notes, however, that since the contract with its current telephone provider expires on August 31, 1999, the OAA intends to review with the new service provider the possibility for the installation of additional TTYs at the airport. The Agency acknowledges and encourages this initiative.
CONCLUSION
The Agency finds that the absence of one TTY at each bank of three or more pay phones at the Ottawa Airport does not constitute an undue obstacle to the mobility of travellers with disabilities.
Members
- Michael Sutton, ing. - P. Eng.
- Mary-Jane Bennett
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