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DPTAC response to the Department for Transport's consultation on draft regulations for lifting the Disability Discrimination Bill 1995 Part III exemption for transport
Introduction Introduction1. The Disabled Persons Transport Advisory Committee (DPTAC) welcomes the opportunity to respond to the Department for Transport's consultation on draft regulations for lifting the exemption currently in place for transport from Part III of the Disability Discrimination Act 1995. 2. DPTAC was established under the Transport Act 1985 to advise the Government on the transport needs of disabled people. Our role was extended, on a non-statutory basis, to advise the Government on the built environment needs of disabled people. 3. DPTAC uses four overarching principles as the basis for its advice to Government, other organisations and disabled people. These are that:
4. These principles are the basis of DPTAC's response to consultations. In this response we set out some general issues before making comments specific to this consultation. General commentsThe population5. DPTAC's principal concern is to ensure accessibility for disabled people. We mean by this inclusive transport systems and built environments that are easy to reach, use and understand by all, in safety and comfort. 6. Disabled people account for a significant proportion of the population. People with physical and sensory disabilities make up one in five of the GB population, or 9.8 million adults in the UK. One in five of these is of working age. In addition, one in seven people at any one time may experience significant mental health problems. Levels of disability increase with age: 8% of those aged 16-17 years have a current long-term disability, compared with 33% of those aged 50 to 65. Disabled people have a spending power of around £40 billion each year. 7. Of disabled people overall, in broad terms:
8. In addition over 1 million people have learning difficulties and over 7 million adults have literacy problems. 9. Disabled people are not an homogenous group with identical needs. The needs of people with mental health problems or learning disabilities are distinct from those of wheelchair users for example. Even within disabilities needs vary; for example a profoundly deaf person will not benefit from an induction loop. 10. Disabled people live throughout the community. One in four households has a disabled resident. The need for access for disabled people is not limited to specific areas or buildings, but present throughout the wider transport and the built environment systems. 11. In broad terms, over the next 30 years:
12. Over the same period that will bring about these changes in the population profile, the overall population will increase by about 9%. 13. The nation risks adverse economic as well as social impacts from this growth in numbers of disabled and older people, if we fail to recognise and address the need for more inclusive environments. Mobility and transport are vital to achieving and sustaining self-sufficiency and independence into old age. A strategic approach14. There is enormous scope and opportunity to improve accessibility for disabled people but it will require a strong commitment at all levels. 15. Accessibility for disabled people is often only considered in terms in terms of detailed design. DPTAC believes this is no longer sufficient and that strategic decisions, investment and policies must be underpinned by consideration of accessibility for disabled people, with evidence of how diversity has been considered in decision making. 16. DPTAC welcomes the commitment that the Government has made to accessibility being a condition of public money being spent in support of its Ten Year Plan Transport 2010, and its similar commitment in respect of the Wales Transport Framework. 17. Private and public investors of any transport or built environment project need to know whether investment plans meet the need of disabled people. They will also need evidence that people at all levels of responsibility understand how to provide accessibility for disabled people effectively to prevent a waste of resources. Specific Response to the ConsultationRemoving discrimination18. DPTAC warmly welcomes the government's intention to remove the anomaly in current legislation. This sets out binding requirements for accessible vehicles and infrastructure, but does not do so for the transport services provided with them. Removing this anomaly should put an end to the gratuitous discrimination against disabled people which is currently lawful and which we know takes place. 19. DPTAC particularly welcomes the inclusion of leisure and tourism, which were not included in the original proposal on which the Department for transport consulted in 2002. Power to lift the transport exemptions20. DPTAC agrees that the means proposed to bring about the exemption are appropriate, and supports their inclusion in the Disability Discrimination Bill. It makes sense to be able to lift the exemption from different transport services at different times, and to start, as the government proposes, with land based transport. Timetable for lifting the transport exemptions21. The government notes that the Bill will enable it to lift the exemption for other transport sectors, such as aviation and maritime in the future without the need for further primary legislation. The government has stated that it will do so for aviation or shipping only if the voluntary approach fails to produce results. DPTAC agrees that the voluntary approach needs to be given time to work. However we will seek the prompt introduction of regulations as soon as it becomes clear that the voluntary approach has not worked in either of these sectors. Classes of vehicles for which the exemption is to be removed22. DPTAC generally agrees with the proposed definitions of classes of vehicle. However it is not clear whether or not the removal of the exemption would cover:
23. DPTAC would like the government to clarify whether it intends that the lifting of the transport exemption from Part III of the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 will apply to these types of vehicle. DPTAC recommends that it should do so. 24. DPTAC also notes that the exemption is proposed to be lifted for "vehicles used on a system using a mode of guided transport". Section 5 of the Disability Discrimination Bill states that ""guided transport" has the same meaning as in the Transport and Works Act 1992". Turning to Section 192 (a) (4) of the Transport and Works Act 1992, "guided transport" is defined as "transport by vehicles guided by means external to the vehicles (whether or not the vehicles are also capable of being operated in some other way)". 25. DPTAC considers that this could refer to short distance ferries guided by cable, though this does not appear to have been the government's intention at the time that the legislation was passed. 26. DPTAC would like the government to clarify whether it intends that the lifting of the transport exemption from Part III of the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 will apply to this type of vehicle. Guidance and code of practice27. There is a division in the Disability Discrimination Act between duties relating to transport infrastructure, those relating to transport services including information about services, and duties relating to the vehicles. This creates a challenge in explaining rights to disabled people and duties to transport operators. The guidance produced by the Disability Rights Commission must clearly define these rights and responsibilities across the whole spectrum of transport. The provision and process for complaint and redress must also be made clear. Training28. Initial and continuing training for staff in disability equality and awareness are essential if disabled passengers are to be treated fairly and without discrimination, inadvertent or otherwise. Training should not be restricted to those providing front line services. In order to assess the effectives of this training, it needs to be included in all driving tests for public transport vehicles. 29. The Government and Disability Rights Commission should resource effective awareness raising programmes to ensure disabled people understand their rights and the opportunities arising from improvements to public transport accessibility. Established disability organisations should be involved in this along with DPTAC. 30. It is important that effective programmes of 'travel training' for disabled people are set in hand to build the confidence of disabled people who may not have used public transport, or who have been put of using it by negative experiences in the past. This should involve the development and implementation of outdoor mobility training. 31. Disability awareness and equality training needs to be of a credible standard and delivered by credible trainers. This can only be assured by an effective accreditation, monitoring and evaluation system. We recommend that an accreditation system along the lines of the National Register of Access Consultants be established with government support. Physical alteration of the vehicle32. DPTAC notes that the government does not propose to make land based transport services subject to the 2004 duties requiring physical alteration of a vehicle, with the exception of vehicle hire. We agree with this in principle, as Section V of the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 and the regulations developed using its powers, specify how a vehicle will be made accessible to disabled people. However we are concerned at the length of time that it is taking both to introduce taxi accessibility regulations, and to amend public service vehicle accessibility regulations to include reference to the provision of audio visual travel information systems on buses. Alternative means of providing a service33. DPTAC notes that the government does not propose to apply the 1999 duty requiring operators to provide a reasonable alternative method of making the service available to the passenger transport services for which the exemption will be lifted, where that service consists of the use of a vehicle, except for breakdown services. 34. However this could have unintended and undesirable consequences for substitute services. For example, if a bus replaced a train withdrawn from service or during periods of track works, the journey could become inaccessible to some disabled people who would have been able to use the original means of transport for which it was being substituted. 35. We are aware that that this issue has been addressed in clauses 214 and 248 of the Transport Act 2000, which have yet to come into effect. However those clauses use a narrower definition of disability than that in the Disability Discrimination Act. This is an important service, requiring attention to the alternative means of continuing the journey, the assistance in the transfer process, and the information given. 36. However, this would not apply where the service disruption had a disproportionate effect for a disabled person. If delays to a train meant that a disabled person only arrived at their destination when staff had finished work, there would be nobody available to provide them with assistance. The absence of staff is however, unlikely to affect non-disabled passengers. 37. DPTAC therefore recommends that either the duty to make physical alterations to a substitute vehicle is included in the regulations, or some other solution is found. One solution could be specifying that the substitute vehicle, such as a bus or a taxi, should conform to the accessibility regulations of its own vehicle class. Another could be for train operators to behave proactively, as soon as they realise disruption is likely to significantly affect a disabled person's journey. Taxi and other fares38. DPTAC agrees that the regulations will make it illegal for transport service providers to discriminate against a disabled person in providing a service of a lower standard or on less good terms than those available to other members of the public. DPTAC believes that this should extend to fare and pricing policies. 39. It is common practice for taxi drivers to start the meter as soon as they arrive at the pick-up point and keep it on until the passenger leaves the vehicle, though on occasions it may take longer for, say, a wheelchair passenger to board than for a non-disabled person. DPTAC would welcome the government's confirmation that it would not be reasonable for the driver to charge for any additional time taken to board and secure the passenger. This principle that excess fares charged for disabled passengers because of their disability are discriminatory and therefore unlawful should be clearly set out for all transport modes. Vehicle hire services40. DPTAC agrees that the provision of simple devices such as hand controls and steering wheel spinners will be an essential part of ensuring that vehicle hire services meet the needs of disabled people. It would be helpful if the government could take steps to ensure that all new cars manufactured within the UK, as well as those that are imported, have mounting points for hand controls built in at the time they are constructed. Implementation41. Subject to the progress of the Disability Discrimination Bill through Parliament and the date of any General Election, the Government plans to bring these provisions into force in December 2006. DPTAC considers that this is a reasonable timetable. Enforcement42. DPTAC notes the government's intention that the enforcement of these provisions is to be handled within the same framework as for other services under Part III of the Disability Discrimination Act. The Disability Rights Commission (DRC) will have enforcement powers and can support individual disabled people with legal complaints. DPTAC remains concerned that the bill to create the new Commission for Equality and Human Rights, to replace the DRC and other bodies, has not yet been introduced into Parliament. DPTAC is not therefore assured that the enforcement powers of the new body will be comparable to those of the DRC. 43. DPTAC considers that an important aspect of enforcement is that operators should not be permitted to operate public transport vehicles if equipment needed to ensure access such as lifts, ramps and information systems is not operational, once the journey where this problem was identified has been completed. Consultation process44. DPTAC commends the Department of Transport for the ease in which the consultation document was made available in alternative formats. This was essential for DPTAC's members to consider and respond to Government consultations. 45. However DPTAC is disappointed that the list of consultees did not include any organisations for the deaf, other than SENSE Scotland. We understand that in fact it was sent to Deafblind UK, RNID, RNID Cymru, RNID Scotland and SENSE. It would have been helpful if the published list of consultees had accurately reflected this. Neil Betteridge Date: 25 February 2005 |
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