Opening Statement before the Standing Committee on Transport, Infrastructure and Communities
Accessible Transportation for Persons With Disabilities
(Report 1—2023 Reports of the Auditor General of Canada)
27 February 2024
Karen Hogan, Fellow Chartered Professional AccountantFCPA
Auditor General of Canada
Mr. Chair, thank you for this opportunity to discuss the findings of our audit of accessible transportation for persons with disabilities, which was tabled in the House of Commons in March 2023. I would like to acknowledge that this hearing is taking place on the traditional unceded territory of the Algonquin Anishinaabe people. Joining me today are Milan Duvnjak, the principal who was responsible for the audit, and Susie Fortier, the director who led the audit team.
Every person has a right to participate fully and equally in society. Some people in Canada have to constantly fight for rights that others take for granted as basic rights. More than 1 million persons with disabilities who travelled on a federally regulated mode of transportation in 2019 and 2020 faced a barrier. When access to basic human rights is delayed or denied, the impact is that some members of society are left behind.
This audit did not directly examine airlines or airport authorities. It examined the Canadian Transportation Agency, which is the federal regulator, and VIA Rail and the Canadian Air Transport Security Authority, which are 2 Crown corporations that provide transportation services. We looked at whether these 3 organizations worked to identify, remove, and prevent barriers for travellers with disabilities.
Overall, we found that all 3 organizations had taken steps to identify, reduce, and prevent barriers faced by persons with disabilities, but there is still much more work to do. While our report included findings and recommendations related to rail transportation, I will focus my remarks on air transportation, which is the subject of the committee’s study.
The inspections of transportation service providers that the Canadian Transportation Agency carried out as part of its oversight of all transportation modes served to identify and remove some barriers. However, the agency was limited in the type and numbers of inspections it could conduct, and it did not have the authority to access service providers’ complaint data to improve its oversight. This means that some barriers could be missed and remain, and that new ones could be introduced.
The Canadian Air Transport Security Authority conducted an open consultation on its accessibility plan and developed training programs. However, at the time of our audit, improvements were still needed in important areas. For example, the authority’s website was not fully accessible. It also was not using complaint data to improve the identification of current barriers or to prevent new ones.
To further improve the accessibility of trains, planes, and other federally regulated modes of transportation, we recommended that organizations broaden their consultations with persons with disabilities, make their online content fully accessible, and use complaint data to identify, learn about, and prevent barriers. This is necessary to achieve the federal government’s goal of a barrier‑free Canada by 2040.
Mr. Chair, this concludes my opening statement. We would be pleased to answer any questions the committee may have. Thank you.