MEDIA RELEASE

Embargoed 3 pm 30th August 2006

30 August 2006

Can’t Catch a Bus in Dunedin?

Local councils are not moving on providing accessible public transport in Dunedin
There are more than 24,000 people in Dunedin who have a disability. Many of those 24,000 cannot catch public transport in Dunedin because it is inaccessible.

The Dunedin disability community has been lobbying the Otago Regional Council (ORC) and Dunedin City Council (DCC) for years to make our public transport accessible with no real action.

Disabled people need accessible transport to get to work, buy groceries, get to the bank or recreation; in fact; just to live ordinary lives.

As a result of further lobbying by the Dunedin disability community, the Human Rights Commission produced a document in 2005 called “An Accessible Journey”. The document made a series of recommendations to ensure accessibility to public transport.
None of those recommendations have been put in place, despite many of them costing little.

Anna Jameson, a spokesperson for the action group says ”all other major metropolitan areas in New Zealand, aside from Dunedin, are making active progress to ensure accessible transport. Its time Dunedin councils accepted their responsibilities to their disabled communities”.

We are now demonstrating and petitioning the ORC and DCC to get action on our key points for action:

Those key points are:

- Implementation of the recommendations of the Human Rights Commission’s “Accessible Journey” report (2005)

- Ongoing meaningful discussions with disability representatives on accessible public transport

- A minimum of 60% of public transport accessible in Dunedin

- Bus timetables which note which bus routes are accessible

- Disability Awareness training for all bus drivers

- Bus routes which provide direct access to key public services; eg Dunedin Hospital, Moana Pool, Edgar Centre etc

We will be demonstrating in the Octagon on Thursday 31st August at 12:30 pm to ensure this shameful record by the two local councils is rectified.

ENDS

Further information:
Copies of the petition can be downloaded at:
http://www.ccs-southern.org.nz/Documents/
Petition%20of%20Transport%20Action%20Group.doc

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