People with sight loss continue to loudly voice that transportation barriers are among the greatest they face, whether they live in rural or urban environments. The issue? Inaccessible transportation systems and built environment barriers put the community of people with sight loss in dangerous and stressful situations when travelling. That’s why CNIB has made Safe and Accessible Journeys a commitment under our 2023-2028 strategic plan, “The Way Forward”.
Better transit = better quality of life.
Public transit systems can create equal opportunities for everyone to travel within their community, but only when they are accessible and reliable. Without it, people who are blind, Deafblind, or have low vision are forced to rely on personal networks for assistance or risk using unsafe services to meet their needs, which may result in reduced independence, limited recreational and employment opportunities, and increased social isolation.
People who are blind, Deafblind, or have low vision need safe and accessible transit options.
This is the right of all persons with disabilities under the federal Accessible Canada Act, the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD), and provincial accessibility legislation across the country.
Get on Board transit campaign
We piloted the "Get on Board" campaign in Fall 2023 to put a spotlight on the need for accessible public transit in Canada. Building on that success, we launched the spring iteration of the campaign from May 16 to June 6, 2024 in 12 new regions across the country.
With an expanded scope targeting buses, light rail, ferries, and some areas without an existing transit system, the campaign involved a secret rider survey designed to help us learn more about the level of accessibility of these transit systems, and culminated in regional Transit Town Halls bringing officials and community members together to discuss the survey results and what’s needed to make their local transit systems more accessible.
Through the campaign, we met with over 30 politicians and transit officials across the country and completed over 130 secret rider surveys.
Here’s a taste of what we found out:
- There were varying degrees of satisfaction throughout the regions we targeted.
- Customer service had the highest satisfaction rating, with 77% of riders being somewhat satisfied or higher.
- Transit apps had a moderate satisfaction rating, with 65% of riders being somewhat satisfied or higher. In contrast, transit websites had a lower satisfaction rating, with only 57% of riders being somewhat satisfied or higher.
- Bus stops had the lowest satisfaction rating, with only 45% of riders being somewhat satisfied or higher.
What’s next?
We’re now following up with the transit authorities we targeted and asking for meetings so we can discuss the results with them in detail and push them to make improvements.
You can stay involved by:
- Participating in our advocacy campaign for Accessible Pedestrian Signals (APS) taking place throughout the summer! This Safe & Accessible Journeys campaign seeks to educate the public and traffic authorities about the importance of properly installing and maintaining APS devices. Visit the Accessible Pedestrian Signals campaign page to learn more!
- Signing up to join us in our future advocacy efforts by emailing advocacy@cnib.ca.
- Reaching out to your local city councilor and sharing with them your experience on public transit.
- Watching for future transit campaigns and getting on board!
Feedback from transit riders
“The transit operator was very impatient with me. He did not take time to assist me, or ask if I needed assistance with tapping my CNIB card. He asked the sighted person to do it for me because he was in a hurry.” – Brandon rider
“The driver and transit ambassador are very helpful. However, there are very limited number of ambassadors throughout the system, so more of them would be helpful.” – Victoria rider
“The bus route numbers are not announced and I can’t see the signs or numbers well enough. So I miss some if they don’t stop. If I ask a driver sometimes they say read the front.” – Calgary rider
“The stop had a bus shelter, and wide, open concrete area out front, making it easy to identify. However, the sign is mounted on a pole at least seven feet up, and the print is too small and too low contrast to read at that height.”– Ottawa rider
“No [tactile] warning, symbols or braille at bus stop. I know how to get to it because of orientation ability and repeating the route.” – Fredericton rider
“People don't always get up from disability seating unless the driver says something, or the driver may not always give directions to an empty seat.” – Toronto rider