In response to a second review of the accessible public transport standard, the Australian Government produced a whole journey guide. In-depth consultations and workshops underpinned the guide’s development. Here are some key points about the Transport Standards from the guide:
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- There is a focused effort to remove discrimination from Australia’s public transport systems.
- They provide certainty of Disability Discrimination Act responsibilities, as well as a focus on a customers, and liveable communities.
- Access upgrades require local council co-ordination, real time information about accessible routes and transport, starting from the home.
- They were too prescriptive, cobbled together from other standards, focused on minimums, with no understanding about transport related issues.
- Accessible transport is an enabler, promoting age-friendly cities, with walking as an ingredient. Hence the need to look at the whole journey, requiring quality footpaths, kerb crossings, and pedestrianisation.
Download The Whole Journey: A guide for thinking beyond compliance to create accessible public transport journeys from the Department of Infrastructure website.
There’s a good section on universal design that shows how it captures other terms.
“The principles of universal design can also be applied to the design of programs run by government, businesses and non-government organisations. This will result in greater efficiency by maximising the number of people who can use and access a program without the need for costly add-ons or specialised assistance.”
All state and territory transport ministers endorsed The Whole Journey Guide in 2017. In depth consultations and workshops included disability advocacy organisations.
The guide is for policy makers, planners, designers, builders, certifiers and operators. The aim is to encourage thinking beyond compliance and focus on accessibility across the whole journey.