Decision No. 627-AT-MV-2000

Follow-up - Decision No. 46-AT-MV-2004

October 10, 2000

File No. U 3570/00-34

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APPLICATION

On May 22, 2000, Steven Fletcher filed with the Canadian Transportation Agency (hereinafter the Agency) the application set out in the title.

On July 7, 2000, Transport Canada Airports (hereinafter TCA), which owns and operates Fredericton Airport, filed its answer to the application. At the request of Agency staff, additional comments were filed by TCA on August 8, 2000. Mr. Fletcher did not reply to the answer.

Pursuant to subsection 29(1) of the Canada Transportation Act, the Agency is required to make its decision no later than 120 days after the application is received unless the parties agree to an extension. In this case, the parties have agreed to an extension of the deadline until October 10, 2000.

ISSUE

The issue to be addressed is whether the level of service provided to Mr. Fletcher when he attempted to secure accessible ground transportation from Fredericton Airport constituted an undue obstacle to his mobility and, if so, what corrective measures should be taken.

FACTS

Mr. Fletcher is quadriplegic and uses a large motorized wheelchair which requires specialized vehicles for ground transportation. He had planned to travel to Fredericton on June 6, 2000. In the planning stage of his trip, Mr. Fletcher contacted Dial-a-Bus and Super Wheels Ltd. (hereinafter Super Wheels), two companies who provide accessible ground transportation in the Fredericton aera. However, as he was not successful in making a reservation with either of these companies, he cancelled his trip.

Fredericton Airport is located in Lincoln, New Brunswick, outside of the limits of the city of Fredericton. The provision of ground transportation services at Fredericton Airport is awarded following a public tendering process. All bids must meet the standards for accessible ground transportation services established in CAN/CSA-D409-92 Motor Vehicles for the Transportation of Persons with Physical Disabilities. Checker Cab is currently the contracted ground transportation services provider at Fredericton Airport. While the contract stipulates that Checker Cab is not required to have a specialized vehicle, it must enter into an agreement with a company that can provide accessible ground transportation services from the airport at the same cost as the current taxi fare. Checker Cab has an agreement with Super Wheels to provide these services to persons with disabilities when they are notified.

POSITIONS OF THE PARTIES

Mr. Fletcher submits that Checker Cab does not have any vehicles that allow passengers with disabilities to remain in their wheelchairs and that it uses the services of Super Wheels for the transportation of passengers that are unable to transfer from their wheelchairs. However, Mr. Fletcher submits that Super Wheels' vehicles cannot accommodate motorized wheelchairs such as the one he uses.

Mr. Fletcher also submits that upon contacting Fredericton Transit, he was told to call Dial-A-Bus, the bus transportation service for the city of Fredericton. He was informed that, although Dial-A-Bus could meet his needs, municipal by-laws prevented the company from providing services outside of the limits of the city of Fredericton.

Mr. Fletcher finds that this situation is highly ridiculous and he hopes that accessible ground transportation will be available next time he plans to visit Fredericton. Mr. Fletcher also points out that accessible ground transportation should not be limited to and from Fredericton Airport but should go beyond, namely to the local attractions within a reasonable distance from the city.

TCA states that it is unfortunate that Mr. Fletcher did not contact the Fredericton Airport authorities or Checker Cab concerning his ground transportation requirements. Had adequate notice been given, both the Fredericton Airport authorities and Checker Cab would have made every effort to ensure that his ground transportation needs were met.

TCA submits that a person requiring accessible ground transportation from Fredericton Airport should give a twenty-four hour notice in order for the responsible authorities to ensure that adequate arrangements are made. TCA explains that in establishing the required level of service, the Airport Manager determines the availability of similar service within the local community to establish an equitable level of service for the airport. Given the size of the community, TCA submits that it is recognized in the community, including by various local associations for disabled persons, that it is not economically feasible to demand that a taxi company have a specialized vehicle to transport persons with disabilities as part of the taxi fleet. TCA adds that given the availability of the equipment in the area, Checker Cab would have difficulty in accommodating persons who have a high-level quadriplegia. It is therefore even more important that a twenty-four hour notice be given to make alternative arrangements on a case by case basis.

TCA further explains that accessible ground transportation services in the city of Fredericton are available through Super Wheels as well as Dial-A-Bus. While Dial-A-Bus has restrictions as it must follow the municipal by-laws which specify that it can only operate within the city limits, TCA has learned that Dial-A-Bus has a charter licence allowing the specialized vehicle to go outside the city limits when such a vehicle is available.

TCA reiterates that ground transportation for persons with high-level quadriplegia is a problem not only for the Fredericton Airport authorities but also in the greater Fredericton area. However, as a result of a meeting held in June 2000, members of the Dial-A-Bus Advisory Committee, which includes the Canadian Paraplegic Association, York Manor, the City Director, the Premier's Council on the Status of Disabled Persons and TCA, have agreed to work more cooperatively to alleviate the situation. TCA also submits that a follow-up meeting is also planned for early fall 2000. TCA states that every effort is made to ensure that accessible ground transportation services are in place at Fredericton Airport and it will continue to work with the community to ensure that the needs of persons with disabilities are met.

ANALYSIS AND FINDINGS

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

The Agency recognizes the important role that accessible ground transportation must play in ensuring that travellers have access to seamless travel on the federal transportation network. Passengers with disabilities have many options available to them to travel to airports; however, ground services away from an airport are often restricted by exclusive contracts between service providers and airport operators. As such, the Agency and its predecessor, the National Transportation Agency, have taken a pragmatic and functional approach and interpreted the "federal transportation network" broadly to include ground transportation services from an airport in recognition of the integral role that they play in the network and to ensure that the network is accessible to persons with disabilities.

The Agency notes that TCA has entered into a contract with Checker Cab to ensure that accessible ground transportation services are provided from Fredericton Airport. Section 5.10 of the Ground Transportation Licence and article 2 of Appendix A to the said licence both read as follows:

Based on these provisions, the Agency recognizes that TCA has taken steps to ensure that a service capable of accommodating persons with disabilities is provided for at Fredericton Airport. The Agency notes, however, that Mr. Fletcher made considerable efforts prior to his trip to find accessible ground transportation that would meet his needs and while he did not contact the Airport Manager or Checker Cab, he did contact Super Wheels, the company sub-contracted by Checker Cab to provide accessible services.

According to Mr. Fletcher's application, Super Wheels advised Mr. Fletcher that he could not be accommodated given his inability to "bend forward" in order to clear the entrance of the vehicle. Had Super Wheels discussed this matter with Checker Cab or TCA, perhaps alternatives and options may have been considered to meet the needs of Mr. Fletcher.

The Agency is of the view that, based on the contract for the provision of accessible ground transportation at Fredericton Airport, the Airport Manager is responsible to ensure that its contractor, Checker Cab in this case, has procedures and policies in place to effectively provide the services contemplated in the contract. The Agency therefore finds that the failure to put in place such procedures and policies constitutes an obstacle to the mobility of Mr. Fletcher. The obstacle is found to be undue as options could have been explored to meet Mr. Fletcher's travel needs had proper procedures and policies been in place or had communication been initiated between the parties responsible for providing accessible services at Fredericton Airport.

The Agency considers that the Airport Manager should work with Checker Cab to develop an implementation plan to ensure that in the future, all requests which cannot be met that are brought directly to the attention of any subcontracted service provider are referred back to the responsible party for discussion and assessment.

The Agency notes that, as a result of this application, TCA entered into discussions in June 2000 with different organizations and that a follow-up meeting is planned for early fall 2000 so that resources in the community can work more cooperatively to provide accessible ground transportation services. The Agency encourages TCA to continue its dialogue with the City of Fredericton, community associations and service providers and to raise awareness on the services provided at Fredericton Airport and the points of contacts for such services.

CONCLUSION

Based on the above findings, the Agency finds that the lack of procedures and policies to effectively provide the services contemplated in the contract between TCA and Checker Cab did create an undue obstacle to Mr. Fletcher's mobility.

The Agency requires TCA to take the following measures within thirty (30) days from the date of this Decision:

• provide a report to the Agency on what contingency plans have been developed or other specific measures taken by TCA to prevent a recurrence of the situation experienced by Mr. Fletcher; and
• instruct Checker Cab to issue a bulletin to its employees and those of its subcontractors summarizing the incident experienced by Mr. Fletcher and reminding them of the importance of ensuring that all unusual requests for accessible ground transportation at Fredericton Airport be brought to the attention of the Airport Manager and its contracted ground service provider who may ensure that all options are pursued in finding accessible ground transportation at Fredericton Airport, and provide the Agency with a copy of that bulletin.

Following its review of the required material, the Agency will determine whether further action is required in this matter.