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Annual Report 2006-2007Foreword by the Secretary of State for Transport The Annual Report 2006-2007 has also been made available in Adobe Acrobat and MS Word formats] for downloading.
Foreword by the Secretary of State for TransportOur ability to travel easily and affordably is of the utmost importance to our quality of life. Transport brings access to jobs and services, allows us to visit family and friends and gives us independence. It is therefore essential that disabled people are able to travel as easily as anyone else. Significant progress has been made across public transport in recent years, helping to provide disabled people with the 'seamless journey' many of us take for granted. However, there remains more that can be done. My Department continues to work with local authorities and other partners to provide significant enhancements to public transport access for disabled people and those with reduced mobility. The Disabled Persons Transport Advisory Committee (DPTAC) plays a key role in supporting this work. Since DPTAC was first set up in 1986, the Committee's role has developed significantly. DPTAC now provides support to Ministers across central Government on a wide range of statutory functions arising from the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) and other legislation. DPTAC committee members work tirelessly in an advisory capacity for my Department, considering a wide variety of issues including accessibility across all modes of transport. They provide relevant perspectives to the industry and professionals - ranging from aviation and shipping to buses and taxis - and have demonstrated a considerable breadth and depth of expertise. DPTAC is widely respected both within Government and across a wide range of stakeholders, including local authorities, the transport industry, and, of course, by the many mobility organisations active in this field. DPTAC's advice and views have played a significant role in the progress that has been made to date, and I am sure that they will continue to play a key role in the future. Rt. Hon. Ruth Kelly MP Chair's IntroductionFor more than 20 years, the commitment and expertise of the Members of the Disabled Persons Transport Advisory Committee (DPTAC) have been used to unlock, develop and enhance transport opportunities for disabled people. DPTAC continues to work constructively and in partnership with a range of stakeholders. For example, in 2006-2007 we have issued guidance to assist the designers, owners and operators of smaller maritime vessels. We have issued a position paper on Road User Charging and Shopmobility. We have also commissioned important research, to provide a framework for disability equality and awareness training for transport staff; and overseen the ergonomic testing of an on-board aeroplane wheelchair specification. Discrimination against disabled people is unlikely ever to be fully eliminated because, in a fast changing world, there can often be unintended consequences to policy developments. For example, following the aviation security alert in the summer and the subsequent restrictions on hand luggage, disabled people were often refused permission to travel with their medicines and other necessary devices. We negotiated necessary exemptions for disabled travellers with the Department for Transport and later responded to the Department's consultation on the impact of security measures on disabled travellers. To support our cross-modal approach we were actively involved in helping the Disability Rights Commission draft their advice notes to industry, reflecting new duties under the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) 2005. We also responded to the Olympic Transport Plan, putting in place foundations on which we could build ongoing relations with the Olympic Delivery Authority. Much of the day-to-day work of the Committee Members takes place quietly, behind the scenes, and I welcome this opportunity to bring some of this work to a larger audience. On average we respond to three consultations a month from government departments, agencies and others. You can find the most important of these on our website (www.dptac.gov.uk). It is also in no small part thanks to DPTAC that a raft of government policy documents address the needs of disabled people as well as they do. Additionally, on a day-to-day basis, we receive a range of communications via our DPTAC mailbox: dptac@dft.gsi.gov.uk. Although emails are handled initially by our Secretariat, it is DPTAC Members who respond when required. During the year I discussed the work of DPTAC with both the Secretary of State and the Minister for Transport, and they have taken the opportunity to seek our advice on how best to take certain work forward, such as accessibility to maritime vessels. The development of Local Area Agreements has provided a focus for our consideration of local authorities' work to support improved access for those with reduced mobility. We are pleased that the DfT is working closely with Communities and Local Government to have an 'Accessibility' indicator as part of the national set of 200 indicators, which will be used to monitor delivery by local authorities. We continue to benefit from the support of colleagues in the national administrations of Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales; our sponsors in the Department for Transport's Mobility and Inclusion Unit; the industries and regulatory authorities in the fields of transport and the built environment; and a hard-working, efficient Secretariat. We continue to work effectively with other advisory bodies, such as the Mobility and Access Committee for Scotland; and the Disability Rights Commission, with which we have an agreed concordat. 2007 will see the formation of the Equalities and Human Rights Commission - we will continue to campaign so that disability rights retain a high profile and do not lose the impetus and the respect achieved by the Disability Rights Commission. Indeed, given that, unlike other disadvantaged groups, disabled people encounter not only attitudinal and institutional discrimination, but also environmental discrimination, DPTAC's work in transport may be more necessary than ever in this period. I therefore look forward to reporting on this and our other achievements in 2007-2008. In the meantime, I hope that you find the rest of this report stimulating and useful. Neil Betteridge [ Previous ] [ Contents ] [ Next ] [ Top of page ] |
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