Standing Committee on Public Accounts - April 17, 2023

Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.

I would like to thank the Committee for the invitation to appear today.

With me is Tom Oommen, Director General, Analysis and Outreach, at the Canadian Transportation Agency.

The Agency's mandate is based on the Canada Transportation Act and contributes to the National Transportation Policy, which strives for an accessible, competitive, economic and efficient national transportation system that serves the needs of participants and communities, and in which people trust.

We have three main roles. We help ensure that the national transportation system runs efficiently and smoothly in the interests of all Canadians, particularly in the area of rail and marine transportation. We provide consumer protection for air passengers. Finally, we protect the fundamental right of persons with disabilities to an accessible transportation network.

The Agency has a dual role. First, we are the economic regulator of the transportation industry. We make and implement regulations. We issue determinations, for example on Canadian ownership of airlines. We also monitor and enforce legislation and regulations.

Second, we are an administrative tribunal. We provide access to justice by resolving various disputes between regulated industry and its users, either informally or formally through adjudication.

Accessibility has always been and continues to be a priority for us. I would like to start by acknowledging that barriers do still exist for persons with disabilities in the transportation sector. And despite the progress made over the last few years, there is still work to be done.

Following two years of consultation, the Accessible Transportation for Persons with Disabilities Regulations came into force in phases between 2020 and 2022. These new regulations integrated two previously existing regulations and six voluntary codes of practice and cover large transportation service providers. The Agency is currently working on proposed regulations that would apply to small ones.

The Agency also developed the Accessible Transportation Planning and Reporting Regulations, which came into force at the end of 2021. These are designed to ensure that the various members of the transportation industry plan how they intend to improve accessibility, in consultation with persons with disabilities, and demonstrate how this translates into concrete results.

To ensure continuous communications with persons with disabilities, we have established an accessibility advisory committee. This group, which meets at least twice a year, brings together members of disability rights groups and also industry. This forum lets us get input on projects, priorities and regulations, and provides us with an opportunity to share information on our activities.

The Agency encourages everyone to bring forward complaints if they believe a service provider hasn't respected its accessibility-related obligations. In most cases—97% of the time—the Agency is able to help resolve those complaints through informal processes such as mediation. All accessibility complaints are prioritized, and I am pleased to inform you that we currently have no backlog with respect to accessibility complaints. We monitor compliance with the regulations and investigate all incidents involving people with disabilities that are brought to our attention, whether it be via media, for example, or other sources.

Beyond the specifics of our regulations, I believe it's also crucial for transportation service providers to instill a culture of accessibility at all levels of their organizations. There is an opportunity currently to ensure that new and existing staff are provided quality training on accessibility, and that each and every individual is imbued with a culture of respect. I emphasize this at all my meetings with industry executives.

We’re proud of the work we're doing at the Agency, and we recognize that action must be taken beyond our authority to eliminate barriers in transportation. We’ve therefore taken a leadership role on the international stage. For example, to improve the handling of mobility aids, we have led three research projects in collaboration with the National Research Council and Transport Canada. And our work has been an important contribution to recent International Air Transportation Association guidelines on mobility aids.

Additionally, the Agency, representing Canada, is chairing an ICAO—International Civil Aviation Organization—initiative to develop a compendium of accessibility statutes, regulations and best practices of various countries. The compendium can be used as a reference for countries looking to develop or improve their regulations, and it will inform ICAO's direction on improving accessibility.

Throughout the audit, we have collaborated fully with the Auditor General representatives, and we welcome their findings and recommendations. We're committed to implementing the plan of action which is identified in the report.

Thank you very much. I will be pleased to answer questions.

The OAG report identifies findings as it relates to the limited types and number of inspections as well as the leveraging of complaint data to prevent barriers to accessibility.

More specifically, according to their report, the OAG identified the following:

CTA

Limited types and number of inspections:

• Due to COVID-19, the Agency relied mostly on virtual inspections, which limited the types and numbers of barriers identified.
• Based on a sample of 14 transportation service provider inspections, between April 2021 and August 2022, the Agency identified a number of barriers and worked with the transportation service providers to remove some of these barriers.
• The agency was following up with transportation service providers on other cases to ensure that they removed the outstanding barriers identified.
• While the virtual and on‑site inspections looked at how services were designed, in accordance with the regulations, they did not test the actual service delivery.
• The Agency only has the equivalent of 4 full-time employees who supported the enforcement program related to accessible transportation, which is not enough.

The organizations did not leverage complaint data to prevent barriers to accessibility

• Lack of access to complaint data received by transportation service providers as the Agency does not have the authority to require them to provide their complaint data.
• This limited the Agency's ability to fully understand the total number and nature of complaints and thus identify and address potential barriers to accessible
• This creates an additional risk that the Agency is not focusing its limited resources on the areas of highest risk and that barriers could remain

The OAG concluded that:

• The Agency did not sufficiently contribute to identifying, removing, and preventing transportation barriers for persons with disabilities through its monitoring and enforcement activities of the new regulations. While the agency identified and contributed to removing certain barriers, there were limitations in the type and volume of inspections it could conduct to progress toward barrier‑free travel. The agency also lacked the authority to access complaint data from the transportation service providers to improve its oversight.

VIA

• conducted an inclusive consultation for their accessibility plan but subsequent actions and decisions weren't well documented
• conducted an inclusive consultation for other projects such as service dog relief area and the design of its new train fleet but had not consistently used this approach for the design of its website
• 17% (55 of 333) of the web accessibility standards criteria tested on VIA's website did not meet the standards
• PWDs were not consulted on the current online information layout
• training program are mostly complete but had at least one gap in each of the program
• did not consult PWDs on the training offered to its management
• Consultations on thetraining content for client-service staff did not fully meet the good practices
• 39% of managers and executives did not complete the training on time and 17% had not completed it at all
• did not analyze available complaint data as a whole to detect patterns and gain a more in‑depth understanding of the barriers faced by persons with different types of disabilities.

CATSA

• conducted good consultation on accessibility plan
• 15% (35 of 241) of the web accessibility standards criteria tested on VIA's website did not meet the standards
• specific information on screening procedures and available accessibility services was hard to find on its website
• training program are mostly complete, but did not address the role of a support person
• prohibited from divulging security sensitive information that can be embedded in training related to screening procedures. Therefore, it was limited in the type and nature of consultative approach it could conduct on its training content.
• did not initially realize that personnel involved in decision making needed to be trained until they were subject to a CTA compliance verification review.
• after getting clarification from the Canadian Transportation Agency about the training requirements for this category of employees in July 2021, the Canadian Air Transport Security Authority developed a corrective action plan with updated deadlines as directed by the Canadian Transportation Agency.
• Almost one third of managers and executives were late completing training
• categorization of complaint data limited its ability to analyze the data to identify long‑term issues.

Overview

One of the CTA's core mandates is to protect the fundamental right of persons with disabilities to accessible transportation services. The ATPDR help do this by providing a set of clear, consistent accessibility requirements for all types of federally-regulated transportation.

The ATPDR covers the following areas:

• Communications;
• Training;
• Services;
• Fleets and equipment (technical requirements only);
• Terminals; and
• Security screening and border clearance.

All provisions of the ATPDR – over 200 – have been in force since July 2022. These are new regulations, with different provisions coming into force between July 2020 and July 2022. 

The CTA has also developed material (guidance and best practices) to make sure the requirements of the ATPDR are as clear as possible for persons with disabilities and for industry.

Application of the ATPDR

The ATPDR apply to the following, with some exceptions:

• Air: Large airlines operating within Canada, from Canada to a destination in a foreign country, or from a destination in a foreign country to Canada (over 1 million passengers per year in each of preceding two calendar years).
• Rail: VIA Rail and Amtrak operations in Canada.
• Ferries: Ferries weighing at least 1,000 gross tonnes that operate across the national, provincial, or territorial borders and offer on-board services for passengers.
• Buses: Mega Bus operations in Canada.
• Terminals: Airports located in a national, provincial, or territorial capital or that have served more than 200,000 passengers during each of the preceding two calendar years; 
• Canadian transportation terminals used by the above rail, ferry and bus carriers; and Canadian ports used by cruise ships.

Customs and immigration processes of the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) and security screening processes of the Canadian Air Transport Security Authority (CATSA) in terminals.

Requirements

Service

• carriers have to accept service dogs for carriage.
• carriers have to establish a "buffer zone" upon request of a person who has a disability as a result of a severe allergy 
• if a person with a disability requires more than one passenger seat due to disability-related needs – for example, because they travel with a support person or a service dog – carriers have to provide additional, adjacent passenger seating at no extra cost (domestic only)
• helping a passenger who is at the terminal for boarding get from the curbside zone outside to the check-in area inside, and then from check-in to boarding;
• helping a passenger who has de-boarded at the terminal get from the general public area inside to the curbside zone outside;
• helping with wheelchairs, baggage, and navigating the terminal as part of this curbside assistance;
• carriers must ensure the safe storage and transportation of mobility aids, and their temporary and permanent replacement, where required;
• ensuring ground transportation services are accessible if the terminal has entered into an agreement with service providers;

Communications

• key announcements and other communications to inform the public have to be provided in accessible formats;
• automated self-service kiosks, which must comply with CSA specifications;
• telecommunications systems for reservations and information.
• carriers to clarify the size and weight of mobility aids that their fleets can carry in cargo holds and baggage compartments.
• prominently post information about the terminal's accessibility, including any accessible intra-terminal or ground transportation.
• publish a notice, including on their website, that they are subject to the ATPDR and the provisions that apply to them, in addition to the services that they offer to persons with disabilities and any related conditions.

Training

• training must cover key human rights principles regarding dignity, equal opportunities, barrier-free access, and autonomy;
• employees and contractors must complete required job-specific training within 60 days of starting their duties, and refresher training must be provided at least once every three years;
• untrained personnel have to be supervised by trained personnel until they receive training;
• transportation service providers have to give a description of their training program to the CTA and any person upon request (unless the information is confidential or otherwise sensitive);
• new training requirements will apply to employees or contractors who assist passengers with on-board entertainment systems and automated self-service kiosks; and
• the regulations require transportation service providers to consult with persons with disabilities when developing training programs and the principal teaching methods.

Technical Requirements

• National Standard of Canada (CSA) specifications for the accessible design of their fleets and equipment. These specifications cover such elements as washrooms, elevators, doors, and operating controls. Many of these provisions apply to future purchases or modifications
• transfer seats, mobility aid spaces, and mobility aid storage space, lifts and ramps, window emergency exits, and accessible washrooms;
• the availability of passenger safety information in accessible formats (i.e., in large print and Braille or using an electronic device) and on-board wheelchairs on trains; and
• tactile row markers, armrests, and call buttons.
• Accessible on-board entertainment systems.
• Relief areas for service dogs

Requirements for the Canada Border Services Agency and Canadian Air Transport Security Authority

• provide assistance to persons with disabilities, when requested;
• where applicable, help persons with disabilities complete their declaration card, or accept a verbal declaration instead;
• screen a person and their disability aid at the same time, or promptly return the disability aid if it requires separate screening
• provide instructions in writing or, if possible, in American Sign Language or Langue des signes Québécois, where requested; and,
• ensure any signs they produce and display are accessible.
• offering an alternate line designed to move people more quickly through the process when they have difficulty waiting in line and any support person travelling with them.

CATSA and CBSA

Requirements related to security screening and border clearance, training, and communication, apply to CATSA and CBSA

Enforcement

• The CTA is responsible for enforcing the ATPDR, including through administrative monetary penalties of up to $250,000.
• The CTA can also, in resolving a complaint, award a person compensation if they experienced physical or psychological pain and suffering because a transportation service provider has contravened the regulations.

ATPDR Phase II

• The CTA created in the summer of 2022 a small advisory committee composed of representatives of persons with disabilities and small transportation service providers, to help the CTA to develop our consultation plan for the Phase II of the ATPDR, which will extend to the small TSPs.
• The consultation plan was shared with the AAC members for input.
• The first step of the plan is a series of small group discussions, in order to learn about the operational reality of the small TSPs and about the lived experience of persons with disabilities travelling with small TSPs.
• For the first step of the consultation, there will be a series of virtual meetings in April and May 2023, and then an in-person site visit in the spring or the fall.
• Following the April/May small group discussions, we will draft and circulate a consultation paper for wider public consultation.
• We are hoping to go to CGI in the spring/summer 2024 and in CGII in the spring/summer 2025

CTA's Issuance of NOVs with AMPS: April 1, 2022 - March 24, 2023
Comparison With Other Government Regulators

• From April 2022 to March 24, 2023, the CTA (with 355 employees as of March 2021 and 7 DEOs) issued 32 NoVs with an AMP for a total amount of $722,880.
• In comparing the CTA with other regulators with similar employee size:
  • Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada (401 employees as of March 2021) issued 12 NoVs with an AMP for a total amount of $2,621,932.50.
  • Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (541 employees as of March 2021) issued 14 NoVs with an AMP for a total of $575,977.98.
  • Canada Energy Regulator (553 employees as of March 2021) issued 3 NoVs with an AMP for a total amount of $168,000.
• In comparing the CTA with other regulators with larger employee size:
  • Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (862 employees as of March 2021) issued 1 NoV with an AMP of $24,760.
  • Canadian Food Inspection Agency (6,539 employees as of March 2021) issued 143 NoVs with an AMP for a total amount of $1,339,100.
  • Health Canada (Pest Control Products) (9,204 employees as of March 2021) issued 4 NoVs with an AMP for a total amount of $60,000.
  • Transport Canada (6,339 employees as of March 2021)
    • Civil Aviation for non-corporate issued 50 AMPs for a total amount of $94,590.75.
    • Civil Aviation for corporate issued 28 AMPs for a total amount of $695,720.
    • Marine Safety and Security for non-corporate issued 27 AMPs for a total amount of $116,613.50.
    • Marine Safety and Security for corporate issued 3 AMPs for a total amount of $71,000.
    • Rail Safety issued 15 AMPs for a total amount of $1,677,743.

Sources

CTA:

Enforcement actions taken by the CTA’s enforcement officers | Canadian Transportation Agency (otc-cta.gc.ca)

FINTRAC:

Public notice of administrative monetary penalties (canada.ca)

CRTC:

Enforcement actions | CRTC

Canada Energy Regulator:

CER – Reports on Compliance and Enforcement (cer-rec.gc.ca)

Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission:

Regulatory actions - Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission

Canadian Food Inspection Agency:

Administrative Monetary Penalties (AMPs) - Canadian Food Inspection Agency (canada.ca)

Health Canada:

Enforcement Bulletins - Canada.ca

Transport Canada:
Civil Aviation:

Aviation offences and enforcement (canada.ca)

Marine Safety and Security Enforcement:

Administrative Enforcement Action Summaries (canada.ca)

Railway Administrative Monetary Penalties:

Railway Administrative Monetary Penalties (canada.ca)

In 2021-2022 a costing exercise concluded that total resources assigned to accessibility related mandates were approximately $6.4M, of which $1.9M stems from DCB activities and $4.5M stems from DRB activities.

2023 Funding announcement:

• March 14, 2023
• supplementary funding of $75.9 million over three years for air passenger protection
• (Approximately $25 million per year over reference level of $34 million per year.)

1. What will the CTA do with the additional funds?

The Canadian Transportation Agency (CTA) has already been reviewing its current complaint resolution process to identify and make process improvements to ensure it makes the best use of the resources provided to it by the government.

The additional funds will allow the CTA to increase its dispute resolution capacity and resolve complaints more quickly. Additional employees will be hired and further improvements to its current complaint management system will be made by leveraging the use of technology to digitize and automate some of its activities. All these efforts will result in a higher number of complaints being processed on a yearly basis, as compared to previous years. Ultimately, the funds being provided will allow the CTA to better manage incoming complaints as well as tackle the existing backlog of air travel (APPR) complaints, which will result in a reduction of wait times for those filing air travel complaints with the CTA.

The additional funding will also increase our compliance monitoring and enforcement capacity, where additional staff will be hired.

• Agency's accessibility mandate dates from 1988.
• Accessibility mandate recognized as a human rights mandate by Supreme Court of Canada.
• Early 1990s, important regulations made by Agency regarding accessibility: Part VII (terms and conditions of carriage of persons) of the Air Transportation Regulations (ATR) and the Personnel Training for the Assistance of Persons with Disabilities (PTR).
• In addition, Agency leveraged voluntary codes of practice —developed in collaboration with industry and the disability community from the late 1990s to the early 2000s —as another means of addressing accessibility issues.
• Furthermore, over the years, Agency issued a number of important decisions with respect to accessibility (retrofit of VIA Rail cars (CCD Via), allergy buffer zones, 1P1F).
• The ATPDR which came into force in phases between 2020 and 2022, consolidated existing regulations, codes of practice, and important Agency decisions, in a single regulation that applies to large transportation service providers.
• The ATPRR (reporting and planning regulations)  came into effect in 2021. They require government entities to develop and publish an accessibility plan.

Resolution of Mobility Aid Issues (media reports, tips, help line, etc.) 

Regulations involved:

• Accessible Transportation for Persons with Disabilities Regulations (ATPDR) (large TSPs) 
• Part VII of the Air Transportation Regulations (ATR) (small TSPs),
• Airlines required to safely transport mobility aids and to provide assistance related to mobility aids, such as passenger transfers.
• If damaged or lost, the TSP is required to quickly repair, replace or reimburse, and to immediately provide a temporary replacement. 

Minister Qualtrough was active in the media to discuss a case of a damaged wheelchair ( in the Fall):

•  [Redacted]

What the Agency can do under its authority:

• When a complaint is received:
  • After the passenger has tried to resolve their problem directly with the TSP, they may file a complaint with the CTA to initiate one of our dispute resolution processes
  • Mediation (all accessibility cases) often resolve the issue at 96%(121 of 126 cases) 
  • If unsuccessful, then it can go to Adjudication
  • Tribunal may order corrective measures and/or compensation
  • Accessibility complaints are prioritized in our dispute resolution processes, and there is no backlog.
• When no complaint is filed, but we are aware of an incident:
  • We ask our enforcement team to look into the incident.
  • Enforcement team regularly conducts full investigations of incidents reported in the media. 
  • For example:
    •   [Redacted]
      •  [Redacted] 
      •  [Redacted]
  •  [Redacted]
  • If the regulations had been violated, they have the authority to issue a Notice of Violation and impose a fine on the TSP. 

Research – Safe storage and transportation of mobility aids (air)

• Mobility Aids and Travel
  • Published in 2019
  • International working group led by Agency
  • Provided recommendations on issues regarding safe storage and transportation of mobility aids on aircraft, including the development of guidelines for safe securement and containment of mobility aids.
• Safe Securement and Containment of Mobility Aids during Transport project
  • Published in 2022
  • In collaboration with CTA, the NRC, and TC, in response to "Mobility Aids and Air Travel Report" recommendations
  • In-depth research and analysis of securement and containment of mobility aids in the cargo holds of aircraft
  • Includes:
    • Functional guidelines related to the individual handling of mobility aids,
    • Guidelines for handling at a systems level
    • Cargo hold door dimensions tool to determine whether a given mobility aid is able to fit through the cargo door of various aircraft.
• Special Service Request (SSR) Codes Report
  • (Note: SSR codes are associated with passengers' electronic files to share information about accommodations that may be required)
  • Published in 2022
  • International working group led by Agency, in collaboration with NRC
  • Applies to mobility aids and to other issues related to air travel of persons with disabilities
  • Recommendations to IATA and its member airlines regarding enhancing consistency of SSRs and other challenges associated with the use of SSR codes
• IATA
  • Adopted several recommendations from the above studies in its official
  • "Guidance on the Transport of Mobility Aids" for use by its member airlines (published February 2023)
• Plans for future (mobility aids):
  • We have begun work with the National Airlines Council of Canada (NACC) and its members, which we will expand to include the Canadian Airports Council (CAC) and its members, as well as associations representing persons with disabilities to create a Canadian working group on mobility aids.
    • The purpose is to coordinate work domestically and internationally on mobility aids from a Canadian perspective.
  • We will also continue liaising with IATA to ensure that their guidance on mobility aids is shared with ICAO members and forms part of the on-going work on accessibility at ICAO.
  • We will work with Accessibility Standards Canada to incorporate mobility aids into the new Accessible Travel Journey Standard that they will be developing, as a complement to the regulations.
  • We will also identify and focus on any remaining gaps that may be found through our on-going activities:
    • compliance monitoring and enforcement,
    • complaints resolution,
    • research, and
    • concerns brought to our attention by person with disabilities.

Media – Folding Wheelchair

Regulations

• ATPDR:
  • S.43 An air or bus carrier must make every reasonable effort to permit a person with a disability who uses a walker or manual folding wheelchair to store it on board the aircraft or bus.
  • Ss. 2b) For greater certainty, nothing in these Regulations is to be construed as requiring any person to do anything that jeopardizes security, public health or public safety.
• TSPs have to respect dimension restrictions of storage compartments
  • E.g., some storage compartments contain height restriction lines which carriers cannot exceed for safety

Situation in media:

• Air Canada refused to store a wheelchair in the cabin of their aircraft when requested to do so by a passenger.

CTA Actions:

• The ATPDR (s. 43) states that air carriers must make every reasonable effort to permit a person with a disability who uses a manual folding wheelchair to store it on board the aircraft.
• We reached out to Air Canada and the passenger.
• It appears that it was a battery operated wheelchair, not a manual folding wheelchair.
• Air Canada therefore stored the wheelchair as priority baggage as required by the ATPDR (s. 40(1)).
• Based on a preliminary assessment, we have not identified any further related potential violations, but we continue to look into the matter.

Compliance - (CMED)

Compliance & Enforcement Update:

• In 2022, the Enforcement team completed a comprehensive verification initiative (referred to as the ATPDR Compliance Strategy) involving 41 transportation service providers (TSPs) in the air, rail, marine and interprovincial bus modes with the highest passenger volumes, to evaluate their compliance with more than 120 ATPDR provisions across the four obligation areas: training, services, communication and technical.
• Many of the TSPs were found to have deficiencies in their programs. The Agency worked with those entities to develop corrective action plans to identify how all deficiencies were to be addressed, and by when.
• CTA designated enforcement officers (DEOs) have been monitoring progress, ensuring these plans and the commitments contained therein have been implemented. We anticipate that all transportation service providers will be brought into full compliance in the coming weeks.
• As a result of this comprehensive initiative we identified that:
  • The most prevalent deficiencies were related to the ATPDR training requirements, including:
    • The overall quality of the training programs, e.g. keeping the training current when changes are made to operations and policies;
    • The content of the training programs, e.g. around the role of a 'support person', training related to the handling of mobility aids, and how to provide physical assistance.
  • We also observed issues related to communications requirements, including the requirement for TSPs to publish prescribed information on their websites about how people can access their services. Additionally, we identified issues with public announcements not being provided in both an audio and visual format at the gate or boarding areas as required.
  • Other issues were observed with certain technical requirements related to designated relief areas for service dogs – specifically around signage not being tactile and in Braille, and a lack of signage providing directions to the area.
• In response to these observations, we have launched a four-part compliance promotion initiative to provide guidance and compliance self-assessment tools to assist TSPs in understanding and assessing their compliance with the regulations. Compliance promotion material related to the Training obligations was sent to TSPs in late-March 2023.
• As travel has resumed following the pandemic, the Enforcement team conducted onsite inspections to ensure compliance with accessibility requirements at:
  • 2 cruise ship ports (in Vancouver and Victoria)
  • 17 airports (including those in provincial capitals and other large Canadian centres; these recent inspections identified issues with respect to service dog relief areas and self-service kiosks)
• Additionally, the Enforcement team is following up to ensure that CBSA and CATSA consistently display accessible signage at airport locations across Canada.

ATPRR Updates:

• The Accessible Transportation Planning and Reporting Regulations (ATPRR) were brought into force in December 2021.
• All guidance material related to the ATPRR has been posted on the CTA's website, including the plain language summaries of the guides and the corresponding ASL and LSQ interpretations.
• The Enforcement team received all of the ATPRR notifications required from Class 1 TSPs (publicly-owned regulated entities), and is currently assessing the plans and feedback processes. To date, the Agency has issued a findings report to VIA Rail, which has resulted in a corrective action plan being finalized with the entity to ensure full compliance with the ATPRR.
• The Agency has begun reaching out to Class 2 TSPs (consisting of large regulated private sector entities with 100 or more employees) to remind them of the June deadline for their ATPRR publications and notifications.

WCAG Update:

• The Agency engaged an expert in Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) who reviewed the websites of the TSPs that were subject to the 2021-22 ATPDR Compliance Strategy, to ensure that they are compliant with the requirements of the regulations. DEOs will be following up with TSPs in regard to the results of the expert's review.
• The expert also reviewed the WCAG-related requirements of the Accessible Transportation Planning and Reporting Regulations (ATPRR) for all Class 1 entities.

Enforcement activities and how many NOV and AMPs overall, and how many NOV and AMP for accessibility - (CMED)

The CTA actively verifies compliance by TSPs in the air, rail, marine and interprovincial bus modes with their obligations under the ATPDR.

We continue to achieve success in removing barriers to travel by persons with disabilities by working with TSPs to ensure that they take corrective action when deficiencies are identified. These informal enforcement actions have led to positive outcomes, with TSPs progressing toward full compliance as a result of interventions by our enforcement team.

When required we also pursue formal enforcement actions. Since the beginning of 2022-23, the CTA has also levied a total of 5 Notices of Violation (NoV) in respect of 14 violations, for a total of $160,000 in Administrative Monetary Penalties (AMP) to TSPs for various violations of the ATPDR that had previously been brought to the attention of the TSPs but had not been addressed.

• Notices of Violation were issued in respect of the ATPDR, as follows:
  • to the Greater Toronto Airports Authority on February 16, 2023 in the amount of $36,000 related to their failure to have tactile and Braille signage indicating a designated area for service dogs to relieve themselves , and their failure to have a signage that indicates the direction to follow in order to access a designated relief area for service dogs. 
  • to WestJet on February 21, 2023 in the amount of $30,000 related to non-accessible software for self-service kiosks.
  • to the Calgary Airport Authority on March 3, 2023 in the amount of $44,000 related to their failure to have tactile and Braille signage indicating a designated area for service dogs to relieve themselves.
  • to the Aéroports de Montréal on March 23, 2023 in the amount of $36,000 related to their failure to have tactile and Braille signage indicating a designated area for service dogs to relieve themselves.
  • to the Ottawa Airport Authority on April 14, 2023 in the amount of $14,000 related to their failure to have a signage that indicates the direction to follow in order to access a designated relief area for service dogs.

Funding and FTES (budget and FTEs # before funding AND budget and FTEs after funding) – (CMED)

Since the 2021-22 fiscal year (the period referenced in the OAG audit), two experienced officers left the enforcement team. These employees have been replaced with 3 new enforcement officers to cover all aspects of the Agency's mandates. In addition, new funding has allowed the Agency to add 5 new employees to the enforcement team beginning in 2023-24. While it will take some time to fully train the new employees to reach the level of experienced officers, once trained, our capacity to enforce regulations across all Agency mandates will increase, including with respect to the accessibility mandate. Specifically, we anticipate the enforcement team's capacity to enforce the accessibility regulations will increase by more than 47% over the next 3 years.

How will the Chair work with her colleagues under the ACA and who does what?

• As per Accessible Canada Act (ACA), all organizations that deal with matters related to accessibility must work together to provide a "no-wrong door" (NWD) experience for complainants
• Organizations working under NWD principle:
  • Accessibility Commissioner and the Canadian Human Rights Commission
  • Canadian Transportation Agency
  • Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission
  • Federal Public Sector Labour Relations and Employment Board

How We Plan to Access the Accessibility Related Complaints Received from TSPs

OAG Finding:

• Agency did not leverage complaint data to prevent barriers to accessibility
  • The Agency does not have the authority to require TSPs to provide their complaint data.
  • This has limited the Agency's ability to fully understand the number and nature of complaints and thus its ability to identify and address potential barriers to accessible transportation
  • This creates an additional risk that the Agency is not focusing its limited resources on the barriers of highest risk.
• Agency should identify and pursue opportunities to gather descriptive information on the number and nature of accessibility complaints received by TSPs
• The information should be used to improve the enforcement strategy and remove additional barriers

Agency responses provided to OAG:

• Agreed with findings
• Will seek opportunities to collect data from TSPs
• By March 2024, we will explore the possibility of obtaining the info on a voluntary basis
• Raise the issue through appropriate governmental processes 

Details regarding Agency approach going forward:

• Research what data US and EU receive from TSPs
• Write to CEOs and follow up, asking if they can send data to the Agency
• Discuss with Transport Canada the possibility of obtaining the authority to require TSPs to submit their accessibility complaint data to the Agency.

Principal obstacle observe by the Chair (culture and training)

• Currently, transportation service providers and their employees do not have the reflex to apply an accessibility lens like they do for safety, for example.
• TSPs must adopt such an accessibility lens
• This starts at the top of the organization: Every time I meet CEOs, I remind them of the need to change culture and adopt an accessibility lens
• Training is crucial and required at all levels, even management
• The Agency developed training material to help TSPs on how to assist people with disabilities. They also show best practices for addressing people with disabilities.
• Instilling an accessibility culture at all levels of an organization is fundamental to achieving the government's policy objective of a Canada without barriers by 2040

Background

• Between June 25, 2020, and October 30, 2022, the Office of the Auditor General (OAG) conducted audits of:
  • The Canadian Air Transportation Security Authority (CATSA);
  • VIA Rail Canada; and
  • the Canadian Transportation Agency (CTA).
• To assess whether they identified and removed existing barriers and worked toward preventing new transportation barriers for persons with disabilities.
• On March 27, 2023, the Auditor General tabled in the House of Commons the Audit of Accessible Transportation for Persons with Disabilities that relate to the three above mentioned organizations in the transport portfolio.
• The OAG held a news conference following the tabling.
• The report is expected to draw media attention.

The House of Commons’ Standing Committee on Public Accounts has also invited the CTA'S Chair and Chief Executive Officer to appear as part of a panel of witnesses in view of its study of Report 1 - Accessible Transportation for Persons With Disabilities of the 2023 Reports 1 to 4 of the Auditor General of Canada to the Parliament of Canada.

Strategic Considerations

• The report found that, while all three auditees took action to improve the accessibility of the transportation sector, barriers remain and more could be done.
• The CTA agreed with the recommendations and has developed an action plan to follow up on them.

Key themes