In Australia, public transport must be accessible. There are Disability Standards for Accessible Public Transport 2002, which sit under the Disability Discrimination Act 1992 (DDA). The Transport Standards must be reviewed every five years.
Last July at Deafblind Café, the federal government consulted with DBV members about how Deafblind people access to trains, buses, taxis and other transport. They returned to DBV Café this year on 17th May to find out more about our experiences using public transport, and ideas for improving accessibility and the Transport Standards.
Katherine McKay and Harry Egan from the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications and the Arts asked questions and took notes. Members talked about:
- how they learned to travel safely and independently
- the need for transport staff to be aware of deafblindness
- the impact of damaged infrastructure and disrupted services
- signage and announcements
- obstacles, mobility and visibility (glare/reflections, colours of rails, etc.)
- taxis and rideshare
- funding and subsidies
Here is a video of Heather talking about her personal experiences with transport:
Translation below:
Hello, Heather here. Apologies I couldn’t make it today; I have other commitments.
I hope you all found the group discussion about public transport worthwhile. I’d like to share a little of my own experience.
I’ve travelled a lot by train over the last 35 years. I’ve found it quite manageable. My own access has improved over that time as I learned to use a white cane. I got Orientation and Mobility training early on. That helped me build the skills and confidence I needed to travel independently. At the same time, many staff at Finders Street, Southern Cross station and from Travellers Aid have come to know me and I’ve taught them different ways to communicate. This makes everything proceed more smoothly for me. In some areas the access is still not there, as there may not be staff at other stations and it’s difficult to know where I am.
I’d also like to see taxi services improved. It’s a huge issue these days. There are fewer taxis and more barriers, now that so much of the business has moved to Uber. Uber drivers won’t come out to greet me. They want me to approach the car myself. I can’t see and I can’t hear. How am I supposed to find the car?
A lot happens with vision and hearing loss. I really want to see improvements to accessibility. With better access, Deafblind people can flourish. Like in America – the Deafblind community there is amazing! They are all so independent.
That’s all. Thank you.
This event was supported by the Australian Government Department of Social Services, www.dss.gov.au.
Thumbnail courtesy of MacroVectors