Agenda of Disability Advisory Panel

Disability Advisory Panel

15 December 2014

Disability Advisory Panel – Draft Work Programme 1 July 2014 to 30 June 2015

The 5 priorities for DAP’s work programme are Employment, Transport, Accessibility, Housing and Communication.

Key Programmes and Priorities	Sub-programmes	Other key agencies	Delivery	Implementation	Overlap with other Panels	*Planned/ Completed date*
Employment	Input to Inclusive Employment Forum	ATEED, Be. Institute, Ministry of Social Development, Human Rights Commission, Disability Employment Forum and Disabled Persons Organisations	Council’s Community Development, Arts & Culture	Council, ATEED		Completed 27 November 2014
	Ongoing promotion of employment opportunities for people with disabilities, the influencing of employer attitudes toward employment, and the promotion of training cadetships	ATEED, Be. Institute, Ministry of Social Development, Human Rights Commission, Disability Employment Forum and DPOs		Council, ATEED		Ongoing
Transport	Feedback on AT’s draft Code of Practice	Auckland Transport	Auckland Transport	Auckland Transport		Completed 31 July 2014
	Feedback on AT’s Parking Discussion Document	Auckland Transport	Auckland Transport	Auckland Transport		Completed 31 July 2014
	Influencing AT (directly and via CPAG and PTAG) to support universal access in its designs and service delivery; including Ongoing input into accessible public transport that is user-friendly and safe around rail crossings, terminals and interchanges; Promotion of the need for clear signage and audible information on transport movements, destinations and timetables.	Auckland Transport	Auckland Transport	Auckland Transport	Maybe?	Ongoing
	Input to ongoing review of mobility parking permit scheme	Auckland Transport	Auckland Transport	Auckland Transport	Maybe?	?
	Ongoing input to AT’s Code of Practice	Auckland Transport	Auckland Transport	Auckland Transport	Maybe?	Ongoing
	Input into pedestrian safety, hazard-free streetscapes and thoroughfares, placement of street furniture, bike racks and support posts. Protection from construction work-site activity.	Auckland Transport	Auckland Transport	Auckland Transport		Ongoing
Accessibility (buildings, environs, events)	Input to Council’s Community Facilities Network Plan	Regional Facilities Auckland	Council’s Community & Social Policy	Council and its CCOs		Completed 15 September 2014
	Input to Council’s Community Grants Policy					Completed 19 August 2014
	Feedback on Council’s Low Alcohol Policy					Completed 14 August 2014
	Feedback on Council’s Arts & Culture Strategic Action Plan		Council’s Community & Social Policy			Completed 22 September 2014
	Input into accessible open and recreational spaces, including parks, pools and beaches with accessible toilets, for people of all ages and abilities			Council and CCOs	Maybe?	?
	Dialogue with the Urban Design Panel to ensure it applies the principles of universal access, reasonable accommodation and personal safety		Council and CCOs	Council and CCOs	Urban Design Panel Others?	March 2015?
Housing	Input into provision of a range of affordable and social housing designed for safety and convenience, and that accommodates diverse needs	Housing NZ, MBIE	Housing Project Office	Housing Project Office	All	Ongoing
Communication	Advice to council staff on communication and links with disability organisations relevant to the particular strategy, policy or plan		Council	Council		Ongoing
	Ongoing input into the development/application of information and communication guidelines, including Web Content Access Guidelines (WcaG) to Government standards and the upgrade of council’s computer systems		Council	Council and CCOs		Ongoing
General	Input to Council’s Long Term Plan (joint input from all panels)				All	February & March 2015
	Discussions with Councillors and CCO CEs about disability issues and the need for a disability strategy					December 2014

Response to issues raised by the community	Arts Access Aotearoa	Arts Access Aotearoa		Council’s Community Development, Arts & Culture Department		Completed August 2014
	Access to buildings or places e.g. 45 Queen St, MRI building, Onehunga beach	MBIE		Council’s Building Control		Ongoing
	Response to Minister for Disability Issues	Minister for Disability Issues				February 2015
	Input to Council’s Family, Whānau and Sexual Violence Multi-Sector Action Plan		Council’s Community & Social Policy			March 2015
	Reporting to Council on issues for persons with disabilities					Quarterly?
Community Summit(s)	Housing? (tbc)	Tba			All	June 2015?

Disability Advisory Panel

15 December 2014

Introduction to Disability Advisory Panel Work Programme

The DAP work programme is guided by the following information about aspirations for persons with disabilities, outcomes, principles and demographic information.

Aspirational statements

The following statements are grouped here as a summary of what we aspire to as persons with disabilities living in a modern society. Persons with disabilities:

• have the right to carry out all our everyday transactions with the same equity and dignity as everyone else.

• live throughout the community and we should be able to easily find affordable and accessible housing in all neighbourhoods.

• should have access to the same information and communications from Council as everyone else.

• need to be able to move freely and easily throughout the urban environment like everyone else.

• can be found succeeding at all levels of education.

• have the same aspirations as everyone else to be fully and productively employed.

• should be able to participate fully in the social life of the city.

• like to go to concerts, museums, the theatre and to other artistic and entertainment events like everyone else.

• can be found actively participating in and contributing to Auckland's local and neighbourhood communities.

Auckland Plan goals and outcomes sought

DAP is advising the council to work toward outcomes identified in the Auckland Plan which serve persons with disabilities:

• A fair, safe and healthy Auckland, inclusive of all citizens.

• An Auckland of prosperity and opportunity for all.

• A well connected and accessible ‘barrier-free’ Auckland for all.

• A culturally rich, inclusive and creative Auckland in which all citizens can participate directly, and with dignity.

• An Auckland whose facilities, services and amenities intended for public use and enjoyment are available for people of all ages and abilities, unless such provision can be shown to be unreasonable.

Key principles

The DAP has five key principles that it believes should be thoroughly mainstreamed throughout council and CCOs:

1. Accessibility with dignity – raising the bar from merely meeting legal compliance and minimum standards.

2. Planning must take a ‘whole of journey’ approach – the accessibility of a city’s systems (services, products and environments etc.) are only as strong as its weakest link.

3. Universal design principles – must be embedded across all of Auckland Council. Universal design is not limited to just the built environment. The principle of ensuring accessibility to the widest possible audience is applicable to a broad range of council business (e.g. council’s publications).

4. ‘Nothing about us with us’ – persons with disabilities must be involved throughout the whole of the decision-making process.

5. ‘Society must change, not persons with disabilities’ – the attitudes of non-disabled people are the main barriers facing persons with disabilities. A culture shift is crucial if Auckland is to become the world’s most liveable city.

6. `Reasonable accommodation’ - facilities, services and amenities intended for public use and enjoyment need to be available for people of all ages and abilities, unless such provision can be shown to be unreasonable

The DAP uses the term ‘persons with disabilities’ because this aligns with the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (of which NZ is a signatory). It also uses a human rights model of disability (which incorporates both the empowering and social models of disability). This means that the onus is on society to make a change in attitude, and that decisions impacting on persons with disabilities should be made by the people who are affected.

‘Universal access design’ means the design of products, environments, programmes and services to be usable by all people, to the greatest extent possible, without the need for adaptation or specialised design (See UNCRPD, Article 2).

The ‘principles of universal (or inclusive) access design’ are:

• Places people at the heart of the design process;

• Acknowledges diversity and difference;

• Offers choice where a single design solution cannot accommodate all users;

• Provides for flexibility in use;

• Provides buildings and environments that are convenient and enjoyable to use for everyone.

‘Reasonable accommodation’ means necessary and appropriate modification and adjustment not imposing a disproportionate or undue burden, where needed in a particular case, to ensure to persons with disabilities the enjoyment or exercise on an equal basis with others of all human rights and fundamental freedoms (see UNCRPD, Article 2).

Demographics of the Disability Community

Key facts on prevalence of disability in the Auckland region are set out below (Source: 2013 Disability Survey, Statistics NZ):

In 2013, 24 percent of the New Zealand population were identified as disabled, a total of 1.1 million people.

The Auckland regional disability rate, at 19 percent, (271,000), was lower than the national average.

The increase from the 2001 rate (20 percent) is partly explained by our ageing population.

People aged 65 or over were much more likely to be disabled (59 percent) than adults under 65 years (21 percent) or children under 15 years (11 percent).

Maori and Pacific people had higher-than-average disability rates, after adjusting for differences in ethnic population age profiles.

For adults, physical limitations were the most common type of impairment. Eighteen percent of people aged 15 or over, 64 percent of disabled adults, were physically impaired.

For children, learning difficulty was the most common impairment type. Six percent of children, 52 percent of disabled children, had difficulty learning.

Just over half of all disabled people (53 percent) had more than one type of impairment.

The most common cause of disability for adults was disease or illness (42 percent). For children, the most common cause was a condition that existed at birth (49 percent).

Disability Advisory Panel

15 December 2014

A Comprehensive Disability Strategy for Auckland

Submission By the Disability Strategic Advisory Panel (DSAP)

March 2014

· Recommendation

1 That the Disability Strategy Advisory Panel recommends to the Governing Body that Council works with DSAP, the disabled people of Auckland and other interested parties to develop a comprehensive strategy to ensure people with disabilities are fully included in all Council activities and services.

· Background

the Disability Strategy Advisory Panel was initially established in 2010. Its purpose is to provide strategic advice on pan-disability issues to the Mayor, governing body, local boards, Council Controlled Organisations (CCOs) and Council on:

b) • the interests and preferences of persons with disabilities in Auckland in relation to regional strategies, policies, plans, and bylaws of the Council;

c) • any other matters that the Panel considers to be of particular interest or concern to persons with disabilities in Auckland; and

d) • processes and mechanisms for engaging with persons with disabilities in Auckland.

We support Auckland's aspiration to be the world's most liveable city. A liveable city is one that is inclusive of all citizens, values participation, encourages social engagement and enables Barrier Free movement for everyone. Since its inception, the DSAP has had input into numerous plans, strategies and policies being developed for Auckland. We acknowledge that some progress is indeed being made in some areas towards achieving this vision for people with disabilities. This paper builds on our earlier submissions, and calls for a more strategic approach to be adopted. Auckland must act decisively if it is to really become more liveable for people with disabilities.

It is no longer appropriate to think of people with disabilities as being a distinct and separate sector within the general public. People with disabilities can be found throughout the entire community. We are tax payers, rate payers, customers, citizens, workers, residents, students at all levels of education, visitors, tourists, and so on. We aspire to participate fully in the community. We seek employment and educational opportunities like everyone else. We contribute like everyone else to the economic life of the city.

Ideally, there should be no need for a strategy focusing specifically on people with disabilities. All the major strategies, plans and policies that guide how Auckland develops and operates should address our needs simply because we are members of the whole public community Auckland serves.

However we have identified that a clear strategy is needed to encourage Auckland to more directly accommodate the needs of people with disabilities. This strategy must focus Auckland's attention on altering certain policies and practices over time that tend to exclude rather than include us. Some of these "sticking points" can be found in existing policies that have not as yet been reviewed by the DSAP. Other sticking points arise from current operational practices that, albeit unintentionally, contribute to our exclusion. We call on Auckland to commit to working with the disabled community to develop a comprehensive strategy to remove the barriers that currently prevent us from being fully included in this most vibrant city.

In early 2012, the DSAP circulated a paper in which we introduced our group to the wider Council, and listed some short-term steps that we believed Council could and should take to deliver effective services to all members of the public, including people with disabilities. Then in October 2012, we wrote to the Chief Executive to ask for a summary of current strategies and plans Council has in place to ensure its services will be fully inclusive of people with disabilities. We recognised that achieving real progress towards Auckland becoming a fully accessible city may take a number of years. We asked for this information to help us recognise all the efforts Council is already making to ensure its services are fully inclusive, and to help lead to the development of a comprehensive disability strategy with time frames to achieve a truly accessible city.

Unfortunately, despite the resolutions of the Governing Body at its meeting on 23 April 2013 requesting the Chief Executive to provide a cross-council response to our points, we have received no response to our questions. This has rather frustrated our efforts to develop a more comprehensive picture of what is needed for Auckland to become more liveable for people with disabilities.

Auckland has a great opportunity to show leadership and set a new high standard in how cities can be disability friendly even within today's legislation and within current resources. We urge Council members, management and staff to see meeting the needs of people with disabilities as an integral part of delivering services to the public in general. No longer should the Council's ability to meet our needs be dependent on and perhaps limited to special allocations of disability-related funding.

· Aspirational Statements

The following statements illustrate what we aspire to as people with disabilities living in a modern society.

f) • people with disabilities have the right to carry out all our everyday transactions with the same equity and dignity as everyone else.

g) • People with disabilities live throughout the community and we should be able to easily find affordable and accessible housing in all neighbourhoods.

h) • People with disabilities should have access to the same information and communications from Council as everyone else.

i) • People with disabilities need to be able to move freely and easily throughout the urban environment like everyone else.

j) • People with disabilities can be found succeeding at all levels of education.

k) • People with disabilities have the same aspirations as everyone else to be fully and productively employed.

l) • People with disabilities should be able to participate fully in the social life of the city.

m) • People with disabilities like to go to concerts, museums, the theatre and to other artistic and entertainment events like everyone else.

n) • People with disabilities can be found actively participating in and contributing to Auckland's local and neighbourhood communities.

· Developing a Comprehensive Disability Strategy

Auckland must now adopt a committed and strategic approach to meeting our needs if we as people with disabilities are to achieve our aspirations. The strategy we envisage should be well researched and considered, and achievable within agreed resources and with agreed milestones and time frames. The Chief Executive should be directly responsible for overseeing the implementation of the strategy.

Currently DSAP does not have the resources to develop the strategy. However with appropriate resources to carry out consultation and consider information received, we anticipate a comprehensive strategy could be developed and ready for formal adoption within 12 months.

The strategy must at least address the following points which we have so far identified as crucial if Auckland is to really deliver on its aspiration of being a truly liveable city for everyone including people with disabilities.

· Accessible Environment

It is crucial that Auckland's physical environment is accessible to people with disabilities, if we are to achieve our aspirations to be fully included in city life. We need to be able to move readily and freely throughout the city and right throughout public buildings.

Unfortunately at this stage, relevant legislation such as the Resource Management Act 1991, the Building Act 2004, New Zealand Standard 4121 and associated regulations do not currently reflect all the aspirations of people with disabilities. But even under the current legislation, there are too many instances of new or recently refurbished buildings that in our view do not comply with accessibility requirements. Until this legislation can be fully reviewed and updated, we would urge Council staff to take a liberal and holistic view of the legislation when issuing such documents as resource and building consents.

Auckland must review all relevant policies that impact on the physical environment to ensure the needs of people with disabilities are fully accounted for. For example, policies that determine which intersections should be controlled by traffic lights seem to depend largely on an assessment of vehicle traffic, with apparently little regard to the needs of the neighbourhood and of pedestrians. An example of such policies at work would appear to be the Onehunga shopping area, which in recent years has changed from being a pedestrian only mall to now being a through-way for traffic with roundabouts rather than controlled intersections. Despite the development of a new railway station and transport hub in the area, which ought to encourage patronage from people using public transport, the result is a shopping area that is particularly disability unfriendly and which even non-disabled people find difficult to negotiate. Surely this is an example of Auckland developing in the wrong direction.

At the same time, staff responsible for maintenance of footpaths, parks, reserves and Council buildings etc. must become fully aware of the needs of people with disabilities and do what they can within current resources to ensure the general urban environment is disability friendly. Areas of Auckland are notorious for uneven and badly maintained footpaths and overhanging trees that are hazardous not just to people with disabilities but to all pedestrians.

· Urban Design

People with disabilities live throughout the community and we should be able to easily find affordable and accessible housing in all neighbourhoods. We no longer live in institutions. There is a need for adequate stocks of accessible housing.

A liveable and accessible city will emerge only if the Unitary Plan backs planners and consents officers with regulatory controls and incentives to match Council's aspirations for inclusion. Everyone will benefit. An up-front commitment by Council to access with dignity for people of all ages and abilities is needed in the final Unitary Plan. The long-term liveability of Auckland depends on having the courage to commit to barrier-free design and project delivery.

We believe that even within today's legislation, Council can work proactively with major developers to ensure all new subdivisions have at least a proportion of houses or apartments that are accessible and disability friendly, or which can be easily made so. With a steadily ageing population, it should be understood that designing the urban environment so it meets our needs ultimately benefits everyone.

· Accessible Information and Communications

People with disabilities should have access to the same information and communications as everyone else. Nowadays it can be safely said that practically all information published by the Council and its CCOs, and almost all items of personal correspondence, originate on a computer. People with various disabilities can readily access computerised information through a variety of end user equipment, provided that information is accessible.

We note with pleasure the efforts Council is already making in this respect. Council has developed and is continuing to improve its operational guidelines for the production of accessible documents in various formats. We noted with appreciation that Council went to considerable effort to ensure people with disabilities would be able to access the draft Unitary Plan in a variety of ways. Our Auckland is another good example of Council publishing information in multiple formats, including making it available on the Blind Foundation's Telephone Information Service.

But there are many examples of communications which are generally inaccessible to many people with disabilities, including rates bills, water bills and even registering a dog. Local information is particularly inaccessible, such as knowing when rubbish collections will take place in an area or being advised of local disruptions to normal services.

Auckland must ensure that well established standards and principles are followed through all stages of the information production process, that maximise accessibility of information to people using a variety of equipment. Auckland must recognise that its communications with the public and individuals covers the whole spectrum from carrying out everyday personal transactions such as paying rates and other charges to participating in the democratic process. Therefore Auckland and Council Controlled Organisations must follow principles of accessibility with respect to all aspects of its websites, documents, reports, brochures, bills, personal correspondence, and other forms of Council communications. Accessibility of information need not be expensive if the right decisions are made at all steps throughout the information production process, and often it is far more expensive to retrospectively make information accessible if correct decisions were not made early in the process.

In practical terms, Council must give thought to how it can deliver its public information through multiple channels and formats, including electronic accessible formats, and in plain language and sign language.

Council must also ensure the front line call centre staff are well versed with the kinds of issues likely to be raised by people with disabilities, so these can be handled most effectively when they arise.

· Accessible and Effective Public Transport

If people with disabilities are to live, work, learn, do our everyday business and recreate in a modern city such as Auckland, then we need to be able to move freely and easily throughout the urban environment like everyone else. Many people with disabilities are unable to drive and are fully reliant on public transport.

We acknowledge real efforts are being made to address the transport needs of people with disabilities. But it is apparent from the proceedings of Auckland Transport's Transport Accessibility and Advisory Group, and from our own lived experience, that there are many on-going difficulties that are taking some time to overcome that seriously detract from people with disabilities being able to easily move throughout the area.

Auckland Council must direct Auckland Transport to develop its own comprehensive plan complete with milestones and time frames, to show how and when it will make public transport fully accessible to people with disabilities. Auckland must ensure the needs of people with disabilities are factored into all levels of planning and implementation of transport services. As vehicles are replaced and upgraded, Auckland Transport should ensure they are physically accessible and equipped with signs and other equipment so people with disabilities can make full use of them with full independence and dignity in the same way as anyone else. This includes knowing which is the right vehicle to use, getting on and off, paying the fare, finding a suitable seat and knowing when to get off. Auckland Transport must also ensure physical facilities such as terminals and bus stops and information such as timetabling are accessible to people with disabilities. Auckland must also remain committed to an effective Total Mobility taxi scheme to provide other transport options for people with disabilities

· Inclusive Events and Access to Arts and Culture

People with disabilities want to participate fully in the social life of the city. We like to go to concerts, museums, the theatre and to other artistic and entertainment events like everyone else. We acknowledge Council's commitment to a comprehensive events policy, and we hope this will lead to people with disabilities participating more in such events, not just as members of the public but also as artistic performers.

Council staff responsible for public events or granting permits must take all reasonable steps to ensure events cater for the needs of people with disabilities. As a matter of course, when allocating funding and/or issuing permits for events, Council staff must give due consideration to aspects such as accessible information and publicity, sign language, guides and helpers, and accessible portaloos.

Auckland must ensure organisations that receive Council funding or which use Council owned venues will take all reasonable steps to include people with disabilities in their activities. Strategies to achieve this may include providing sign language and audio description on certain sittings, making ushers available who can give extra help, and targeted advertising. We note with pleasure that The Edge, which manages some public venues for the Council, is developing such strategies.

Auckland must also ensure its venues are accessible to people with disabilities. Certainly many such venues are accessible. The DSAP has noted however that some venues such as swimming facilities tend not to be accessible or are not properly equipped for people with disabilities. Venues such as concert halls, meeting rooms and recreational facilities are there for public use, and over time Auckland must make every effort to ensure all such facilities are accessible to people with disabilities so we can have the same opportunity to use them as everyone else.

· Local Boards

People with disabilities can be found actively participating in and contributing to Auckland's local and neighbourhood communities. Council must ensure Local Boards have clear objectives and obligations in their plans designed to ensure local community environments are fully accessible and inclusive. We note with pleasure the recent work done to develop an accessibility plan for the Waitemata Local Board and hope that this will serve as a good example for other areas.

· Management and Reporting

A comprehensive disability strategy will have little practical effect unless there is clear reporting to the governing body and to the general public on how Auckland is implementing the strategy and progressing towards being fully inclusive.

Auckland must build into the Performance agreements for the Chief Executive, key management staff and CCOs, an obligation to report on the strategies and procedures that are implemented to ensure the needs of people with disabilities are met.

· Valuing the Voice of People with Disability

A comprehensive disability strategy cannot be developed without the voice of people with disabilities. Auckland must actively involve the entire disabled community. This involves gaining a good understanding of the various groups and organisations that make up the disability community, how they differ and how they should be included in consultation. The DSAP can help ensure consultation with the disability community is effective and fully representative of our diverse needs.

Disability Advisory Panel

15 December 2014

9 December 2014

Dr Huhana Hickey

Chair of the Disability Advisory Panel

huhana@gmail.com

Dear Dr Huhana

Re: Request for Council to develop a Disability Strategy

I am responding on behalf of the Council’s Policy Leadership Team to the Disability Advisory Panel’s request for the Council to develop a comprehensive Disability Strategy for Auckland. This relates to the Panel’s resolutions at its meetings on 28 April 2014 and 24 November 2014:

“Request that Council instructs Auckland Transport to develop a comprehensive plan, in consultation with people with disabilities, and with agreed budgets and time-lines, to make Auckland's public transport system fully accessible to people with disabilities.”

“Request a response from the organisation on the development of a Disability Strategy.”

I want to acknowledge the valuable document “A Comprehensive Disability Strategy for Auckland” that the Panel has produced. It provides useful explanations of what is required for persons with disabilities in relation to accessible environment, urban design, accessible information and communications, accessible and effective public transport, inclusive events and access to arts and culture, Local Boards, and valuing the voice of people with disabilities. There is little, if anything, which I would disagree with in the document. I especially agree that there are a range of practical and achievable actions and initiatives which, if taken, would make a significant and positive difference to the quality of life for persons with disabilities in Auckland. It also requests systematic management of implementation and reporting.

The Policy Leadership Team^{^[1]} has considered the Panel’s request and is seeking a way to achieve the end goals of the Panel, i.e.:

· Ensure that new policies/plans, as well as existing policies and plans, provide for the needs of persons with disabilities in an integrated way

· Ensure that budgeted programmes are sufficient and planned to implement these policies and plans, within the context of what is affordable and achievable

· Ensure that existing barriers for persons with disabilities are addressed.

Your request has come at a time when the Policy Leadership Team, in its advice to the council executive and the Council, is working to take a far more precise, careful and focused approach towards strategy and policy development. This is a council-wide issue and not limited in any way to a specific topic. It would not be an exaggeration to say that the Council and its predecessors have sometimes made an industry out of strategies, policies, plans and action plans, with not so much progress being made in between each strategy. While such products have value as an authorising and also a symbolic indication of the attention given to issues, at the end of the day it is action and results which the community is usually looking for, not more policy. The Policy Leadership Team’s view is that where authority and direction has already been established in a formal council document, there is no need for further effort and resource to be put into creating more subject-specific strategy.

The Policy Leadership Team considers that there is sufficient high level direction, both in the Auckland Plan (see Appendix) and the New Zealand Disability Strategy, in relation to a strategic approach to meeting the needs of persons with disabilities.

However, it is acknowledged that if there is a gap, it is in next level of policies, implementation, resourcing and reporting. The gap that needs to be addressed is in relation to certain policies and plans, programme implementation, addressing existing barriers (physical and attitudinal) and reporting. Again it is our experience that insufficient attention is paid to the steps following strategy, which is where the real gains and results are achieved.

The Policy Leadership Team considers that there is merit in ensuring mainstream policies and plans of the council provide effective solutions for the disabled community. This is a preferred approach, rather than attempting to identify ‘separate’ policies and programmes in a Comprehensive Disability Strategy. The Panel’s request itself notes:

“Ideally, there should be no need for a strategy focusing specifically on people with disabilities. All the major strategies, plans and policies that guide how Auckland develops and operates should address our needs simply because we are members of the whole public community Auckland serves.”

I would like to see council and the Panel targeting particular policies, plans and programmes that need to better deliver the needs of persons with disabilities. The Panel’s work programme for 2014/15 is doing this in relation to new policies and plans. I see an opportunity for the Panel and council staff to identify existing policies and plans that need to be updated. This is considered to be a better use of finite resources and is likely to generate results in a shorter timeframe.

The draft Long Term Plan is an opportunity for council staff to ensure proposed programmes will deliver infrastructure and services that meet needs in an integrated way. The Panel has the opportunity to provide advice directly to the council in this regard. A desired output would be the identification of resources and milestones for delivery to address some of the ‘sticking points” as referred to in the Panel’s request. It is important that this is a focus rather than diverting attention to developing a Disability Strategy.

There is also the opportunity to review existing infrastructure, housing stock, events, etc so that the council can consider what changes are required to provide an accessible environment. We might then see maintenance and renewal programmes that improve the state of infrastructure and avoid going backwards.

I trust that the new Panel will have the opportunity to consider a way forward as outlined in this letter. I am happy to discuss this further with you and involve relevant Councillors and the Lead Officer Support in this discussion.

Yours sincerely

Roger Blakeley

Chief Planning Officer

Auckland Council

Appendix

Auckland Plan direction regarding provision for persons with disabilities

The Auckland Plan contains high level directions regarding provision for persons with disabilities, which are largely consistent with the key outcomes sought in the Panel’s requested Comprehensive Disability Strategy. Below are some of the high level statements in the Auckland Plan relating to persons with disabilities. (This is not an exclusive list of provisions in the Auckland Plan that provide for persons with disabilities).

“There is unrealised potential for Aucklanders with disabilities to contribute socially and economically. Barriers that prevent this, such as attitudes and physical access, must be addressed.” [Para 183]

“Removing structural or institutional barriers so that all Aucklanders are viewed and treated equally is fundamental to improving the well-being of all, and realising the full potential of our diverse populations.” [Para 191

“Around 300,000 Aucklanders have a disability, and this number will grow as the population ages. Persons with disabilities want to be active citizens and to contribute to society, but face barriers to things that most people take for granted, such as access to information, transport, buildings, and the physical environment. However, persons with disabilities say that the biggest barriers are the attitudes others have towards them.” [Para 233]

“Housing incorporating universal design principles should be part of the mix of typologies within neighbourhoods, to provide choice and inclusion for persons with disabilities.” [Para 622]

“…the [transport] system must be designed for safe and universal access for all, including children, older persons and those with disabilities” [Para 755]

Disability Advisory Panel

15 December 2014

Item 8 - Auckland Transport’s Accessibility Groups

File No.: CP2014/28773

Purpose

1. To update the Disability Advisory Panel on its representation on Auckland Transport’s accessibility groups and the function of these groups.

Executive summary

2. Martine Abel, Support Liaison to DAP – Strategic Advisor Disability will provide a verbal update at the meeting of the function of Auckland Transport’s accessibility groups and what happens at meetings of these groups.

3. In 2008/ 2009 the Auckland Regional Council established the Transport Disability Advisory Group, which changed into the Transport Accessibility Advisory Group (TAAG) upon the merging of the legacy councils.

4. TAAG continued until June 2014 when Auckland Transport decided to split it into 2 groups: Public Transport Accessibility Group and Capital Projects Accessibility Group.

5. The Disability Strategic Advisory Panel approved one of its members, Ezekiel Robson, to be its representative on the Capital Projects Accessibility Group and the Public Transport Accessibility Group. The intention was to establish a direct link between the Panel and the Groups and ensure that the accessible journey is incorporated into all of Auckland Transport’s planning, designs and retrofit of the transport system.

6. A request was made to Auckland Transport that the Panel’s representative would be paid for attendance at the Group meetings. Auckland Transport has agreed to the Panel’s representative being on these Groups but stipulated that no meeting attendance fee would be paid should the Panel send someone along to attend the meetings.

7. Now that Ezekiel Robson is no longer a Panel member, the Panel may wish to decide how to progress this matter. It may wish to nominate a replacement or rely on attendance by others such as Martine Abel and Paul Brown from the council.

8. Both CCS Disability Action and Blind Citizens NZ have representatives who are attending these meetings, but those are not Susan Sherrard or Clive Lansink, although these two Panel members are closely affiliated with those organisations.

9. Martine Abel provides the attached notes of the first meeting of the Public Transport Accessibility Group (Attachment A) which she attended.

Recommendation/s

That the Disability Advisory Panel:

a) consider whether the Panel still wishes to appoint one of its members to be a member of Auckland Transport’s Capital Projects Accessibility Group and the Public Transport Accessibility Group, and if so, how to progress that request.

Attachments

No.	Title	Page
a View	Notes of first meeting of PTAG	37

Signatories

Author	Kevin Wright - Manager: Transport Strategy – Lead Officer Support
Authoriser	Kevin Wright - Manager: Transport Strategy – Lead Officer Support

Disability Advisory Panel

15 December 2014

Report on first meeting of Public Transport Accessibility Group (PTAG)

Notes prepared by Martine Abel, Support Liaison to DAP – Strategic Advisor Disability.

Note that Paul Brown, Strategic Disability Advisor, at Auckland Council, attends the PTAG meetings while I’m meant to do the same for the Capital Projects Accessibility Group (CPAG). I used to report to DSAG and DSAP on the TAAG meetings, but DSAP felt at the time that it would be beneficial for them to appoint one of its own to those panels.

The final meeting of the Transport Accessibility Advisory Group was held on 25 June 2014. The Minutes came out in record time on 22 August. On 11 September we were told the date for the first meeting of PTAG (24 October) with a call for Agenda items to be provided by 13 October.

David Tribe was to chair the meeting. However he was an apology and Bronwyn Coster took the chair. David Tribe sent one of his team, Anthony Blom, who was attending his first meeting with us. Another first timer was Mary Zefirelli from TransDev, the company that runs the Auckland commuter train service.

The meeting began with the review of action items from the 25 June Minutes. Items that related to capital projects were not reported on. CPAG has met twice to discuss the east-west connection. I was unable to attend either meeting. I am of the opinion, and so is Blind citizens NZ, that general meetings of CPAG should take place in order for the list of already registered issues to be discussed and resolved, and not as is happening at present, (thus that CPAG’s only meeting sporadically when some Auckland Transport staff raise a particular issue or project of the day).

The east-west connection and the revision of routes across Auckland are a joint project between the New Zealand Transport Agency and Auckland Transport. It includes getting traffic to Auckland Airport. Pedestrian difficulties around Onehunga have been raised, at least during the first meeting.

The first action item from the June Minutes for the attention of PTAG was about audible announcements on railway platforms, in particular, Newmarket. Mary, the TransDev representative explained that she was new to this role and was still coming up to speed with the problem. Mary asked us to provide specifics – which stations are causing problems and where on the stations are the announcements unclear. We were again reminded about the need to log complaints with Auckland Transport. Each complaint gets a job number and has to be followed up. The inaccessibility of the complaints form was raised. Clearly news of this had reached Bronwyn Coster, but not Anthony Blom. Note that this issue of audio announcements had been on the TAAG agenda for many meetings. The group had been promised we would receive a written update on action items prior to the meeting. That had not happened.

The availability of mobility car parks on Queens Wharf came up in the action list. Vivian Naylor from CCS Disability Action pointed out that this has been an issue since the two all-day mobility car parks were removed at the time of the 2011 Rugby World Cup. Anthony Blom undertook to follow this up.

The renewal process for the total mobility cards in 2015 was discussed. There are 12,000 TM cards currently on issue.

The driver training DVD is being worked on by Chris Orr from the Blind Foundation and Vivian Naylor. The delay has been caused by staff changes. The goal is to make the DVD suitable for all modes of public transport – bus, train and ferry. Tenders to make the DVD will be called for before the end of this year. Vivian commented that she is having difficulty expanding the DVD to include trains and ferries. TransDev and Fullers provide accessibility training to their staff. It's the bus drivers who are most in need of awareness raising, she said.

Auckland Transport is introducing the new Public Transport Operating Model with its new contracts. Requirements for Urban Buses set by NZTA are the basis for bus vehicles. We were told that Auckland Transport is adding additional standards to be met by bus providers. While there will be a grace period for existing providers who win the new contracts, all providers will have to modernise their fleets. In reply to a comment about Birkenhead having the worst bus fleet in Auckland, Auckland Transport said that already the Birkenhead bus company has embarked on a programme to replace their old standard largely inaccessible buses. Anthony Blom encouraged us to provide feedback about deficiencies in the Requirements for Urban Buses standard. He undertook that deficiencies we raise will be considered for inclusion in Auckland Transport's enhanced standards.

Bronwyn said Auckland Transport is preparing promotional material about accessibility of the network. She promised to email it to us, but this has not happened as yet.

We then reached general business when we were invited to raise additional issues.

Chris Orr had asked to raise the safety factors around the on demand opening and closing of doors on electric trains. Mary Schnackenberg from Blind citizens NZ pointed out that the Blind Foundation orientation and mobility instructors were concerned about safety of the blind passengers who they are training to use the new electric trains. Auckland Transport is responsible for the decision about the doors which TransDev implements. Mary from TransDev said she had not seen anything in writing about the problems with on demand opening of doors. Auckland Transport undertook to revisit the issue.

Chris also asked if Auckland Transport has made a decision about the stopping point of the accessible carriage at each station? He particularly wanted to know how this stopping point was to be marked with which type of tactiles? We were told that the stopping point is marked visually on each platform. No one knew the answer to the tactiles query. It was agreed that if a blind passenger could locate the door to the accessible carriage, problems around finding the door opening button might be lessened.

Chris asked when Auckland Transport will put the tactile strip on the ticketing machines. Mary from blind citizens nZ told them about the meeting held on 29 August 2013 when this was discussed and the commitments Auckland Transport had given then. However the strips are still not in place. Anthony Blom undertook to follow this up.

There was a constructive discussion about the current crop of staff on trains. TransDev is recruiting a group of young people who are enthusiastic about giving good quality service, despite the rudeness from some passengers and the incidents of violence. TransDev is developing the cards with brief reminder messages to help staff deal with passengers. Mary from TransDev asked for some suggestions from the disability sector.

The next PTAG meeting was supposed to be scheduled within another month’s time, but this hasn’t occurred as yet as of 17 November.

[1] The Policy Leadership Team comprises senior managers and staff (Roger Blakeley; Karen Lyons; Matthew Walker; Harvey Brookes; Michael Quinn; James Bews-Hair; Janet Emery; Denise O'Shaughnessy; Craig Glover). The Policy Leadership Team has prioritised a programme of proposed strategies, policies and plans and has discussed these with the Regional Strategy & Policy Committee over the last two years.

Interim Chairperson	Dr Huhana Hickey
Members	Colleen Brown, MNZM, JP
	Dan Buckingham
	Jade Farrar
	John Herring
	David Hughes
	Nicola Keyworth
	Clive Lansink
	Don McKenzie, CNZM, OBE
	Susan Sherrard
Liaison Councillor	Sharon Stewart, QSM

Author	Mike Giddey - Democracy Advisor
Authoriser	Kevin Wright - Manager: Transport Strategy – Lead Officer Support