ACAT Meeting - December 17, 2015

Agenda is not available for this meeting.
Please check the meeting minutes for meeting details.

Agenda is not available for this meeting.
Please check the meeting minutes for meeting details.

Agenda is not available for this meeting.
Please check the meeting minutes for meeting details.

Agenda is not available for this meeting.
Please check the meeting minutes for meeting details.

The meeting was called to order at 1:03 p.m. and attendance was taken. Mazin Aribi, ACAT Chair, thanked the guests, TTC Board Members Ron Lalonde and Maureen Adamson, for attending the meeting as this reflects TTC’s commitment to the work carried out by ACAT.

Nil.

On a motion by Howard Wax and seconded by Tim Rose, the agenda was approved with the addition of the following items to New Business:  Nomination of a Member to the Accessibility Advisory Panel for Transportation Services for the City of Toronto; Service Animals and By-Law No. 1; PRESTO Education for Customers.

On a motion by Sam Savona and seconded by Craig Nicol, the Minutes for October 29, 2015 were approved. On a motion by Judy Berger and seconded by Howard Wax, the Minutes for November 26, 2015 were approved.

There was no Business arising out of the Minutes. There were only two outstanding items to be updated.

Nil

DRS recommended that:

• PAI's be located at entrances where there is an unused Collector Booth and be installed at the booth
• Any fareline fencing be designed to be visually and tactilely different from the faregates
• There be at least one dedicated bi-directional accessible gate in a standard predictable location for customers unable to read the gate status display.

Centre Platform Wayfinding Design:

TTC Engineering is creating updated detail drawings for center platform wayfinding installations, which follow current Canadian and International standards. Metrolinx will be using these standards for the Eglinton Crosstown line.

DRS has discussed layouts and recommended that:

• The TTC adopt the 300-mm wide bar tile path
• The TTC employ the 600-mm truncated dome attention indicator panel at bar tile path intersection points
• DRS be provided with an opportunity to review the design before it is finalized

Platform Gap Data:

Gap data is not yet available for all stations. Data continues to be collected, both horizontal and vertical, and stations will be reviewed as the information is available.

DRS recommended that data for stations currently in the Easier Access upgrade stream be collected for review to determine if any corrective measures are necessary before the stations become accessible; and that all Easier Access station designs take the gap data into account when planning the station upgrade.

Wellington and Yonge Streetcar Platform:

The City is planning to construct a streetcar platform on Wellington Street at Yonge Street, similar in design to the bus platforms on Sherbourne Street. There is a complication in that the laneway access is located between the second and third doors of the new streetcar.

DRS recommended that the TTC follow the same design layouts as on Sherbourne Street, that where the laneway crosses the new platform, the curb be depressed locally to allow vehicles to mount the curb, similar to the standard short depression used at private driveways where the sidewalk is 1500 mm wide.

The current DRS Members are to participate in any DRS meetings held before a new DRS Subcommittee is in place in the new year.

The next meeting of the DRS has yet to be determined.

Service Planning Subcommittee (SPS) – Valdo Tammark, Chair

The Service Planning Subcommittee met on December 2, 2015.

Design Review Subcommittee (DRS) – Craig Nicol, Chair
The Design Review Subcommittee met on December 2, 2015.

New Faregate and Fareline Designs:

The new faregate design and fareline layouts were discussed. All current turnstiles (regular, accessible, and high gate) along with crash gates will be replaced with new faregates by mid-2017. At main and automated entrances, the fareline will include one accessible faregate; and at most main and accessible entrances, there will be a second accessible faregate. With the implementation of PRESTO and these new faregates, Collector Booths will no longer be manned. There are plans to install Passenger Assistance Intercom (PAI) panels. They will be located at all entrances to contact roving station staff. DRS will test the new faregates before installation commences.

The feedback from the 2015 TTC Public Forum on Accessible Transit was discussed and a summary was prepared. It was estimated that there were approximately 300 attendees. Of those attendees, 47 people were able to get to a microphone and make a comment. This was an increase from the 32 people last year. There was an increase in responses on Twitter. There was also live streaming of the event. Next year, increased advertising is planned for live streaming.

In 2014, there were few comments about the gaps between subway trains and platforms; whereas, this year comments increased. This year, there were fewer comments regarding inoperable bus ramps. In previous years, the numbers were higher.

The comments from the Public Forum were broken down and forwarded to individual TTC departments. In the new year (2016), responses will be posted on the TTC website.

Another main topic of discussion was compliance with the AODA, in particular, exterior accesses to TTC property in relation to emergency repairs, maintenance, etc. The TTC has already implemented a maintenance schedule. There is a procedure to follow for emergency repairs. As well, advertising with respect to alternative accessible transit routes are advertised well in advance.

Added to the outstanding items were the bus shelters at Warden Station. The current situation is that there are two accessible transfer stops just outside Warden Station. An investigation is being conducted to determine whether the two stops can be reduced to one stop.

There are a number of outstanding items related to streetcars, i.e., ramps, procedures, etc. It is hoped to have a presentation on this topic in the new year.

Wheel-Trans Operations Subcommittee (WTOS) – Sam Savona, Chair
No WTOS meetings were held since the last ACAT Meeting. The next WTOS meeting is scheduled for Monday, December 21, 2015.

Communications Subcommittee (CS) – Marian McDonell, Chair
No CS meetings were held; however, the Chair provided an update.

There was concern expressed at the last meeting about the wording of the new posters. The wording is being changed from “people with mobility devices” to “people using mobility devices.” The safety campaign will be launched in January.

It was advised that a new safety campaign poster with the incorrect wording had already been posted at Dundas West Station. The CS Chair has contacted Alicia Fowlie, TTC Customer Communications concerning this issue.

A TTC Board Meeting was held on December 16, 2015. A number of ACAT members attended. The outgoing members received plaques in appreciation of their service. The Board announced the names of eight newly-appointed members. PRESTO was discussed. The points of particular interest to the various Subcommittees were noted for further discussion. The next TTC Board Meeting is scheduled on January 21, 2016

The Customer Liaison Panel met in December for a holiday social. No formal meeting was held. It was reported that a recently appointed member has had to leave the Panel unexpectedly. The newest member selected, Jason, was introduced at the gathering. Tim Rose has completed his term as ACAT Representative to the CLP but will continue to attend meetings until a new ACAT representative has been elected. Tim expressed a willingness to assist with the transition of the new representative by attending the meeting scheduled for February 2016. The date of the next meeting of the Customer Liaison Panel was not discussed.

On a motion by Howard Wax, and seconded by Bobbi Moore, the 2016 ACAT Meeting dates were approved. Two ACAT meetings are scheduled on a Friday - February 26, 2016 and October 28, 2016. As ACAT Meetings are typically held on Thursdays, it was suggested that plenty of notice be given for those ACAT Meetings scheduled on Friday to ensure attendance of interested parties.

Nil.

Accessibility Advisory Panel for Transportation Services:

Craig Nicol, Judy Berger, Karma Burkhar, and Valdo Tammark were selected by the City to join a new Accessibility Advisory Panel for Transportation Services. The City has requested that ACAT designate one of these members as an ACAT representative. Valdo Tammark was nominated to fulfil this role.

Service Animals and By-Law No. 1:

An incident was reported on the 94 Wellesley Bus involving a service animal. As a customer travelling with a guide dog was boarding, a customer with a Doberman, which was claimed to be a service animal, was laying across a woman occupying all three seats of the bench seat. The Doberman appeared threatening to the guide dog upon approach, and the TTC Operator suggested rear-door boarding to avoid conflict.

The issues are that By-law No. 1 permits an animal on the bus if it does not inconvenience other passengers or threaten the safety of other passengers. Also, documentation must be produced for service animals if requested.

It was suggested that these matters be further discussed at the Service Planning Subcommittee and, perhaps, someone from the TTC Training Department could attend that discussion to ascertain how Operators are instructed to deal with this type of situation.

Most service animals are provided with identification of some description. To avoid legal implications, it was agreed to first obtain legal advice and then have the item referred to the Service Planning Subcommittee to discuss further with the attendance of TTC Training personnel.

PRESTO Education for Customers:

The involvement of the Communications and Wheel-Trans Operations Subcommittees in the creation of educational material being provided to the public is recommended. A concern was expressed about the timeliness of educating the ridership, particularly as it relates to accessible transit.

The ACAT New Member Orientation is scheduled for Thursday, January 7, 2016 from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. at 1900 Yonge Street in the Corporate Conference Room.

The ACAT Executive Elections are scheduled for Wednesday, January 13, 2016.  Nominations proceedings will take place from 1:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. at 1900 Yonge Street in the 7th Floor Boardroom.

The next meeting of ACAT will be held on Friday, January 29, 2016, from 1:00 to 3:30 p.m. at 1900 Yonge Street, 7th Floor Boardroom.

The meeting was adjourned at 2:32 p.m.