Passenger Accessibility in the Transportation Sector
LOCATION: National
ISSUE/SOURCE: Accessible transportation
DATE: May 2025
SUGGESTED RESPONSES
- Canada's federally regulated transportation network - backed by the Accessible Canada Act and related transportation laws and regulations - is committed to being barrier-free and inclusive for all, especially as our population ages and more Canadians live with disabilities.
- The Government of Canada recognizes that despite significant regulatory efforts, barriers persist, especially in air travel, where challenges like mobility aid damage and inconsistent assistance are prevalent.
- The Government of Canada, through Transport Canada and the Canadian Transportation Agency, continues to refine policies and regulations to address these issues.
- Canada held the first National Air Accessibility Summit in 2024, bringing together the air sector, disability community, and Indigenous partners. The summit led to key commitments to improve air travel for persons with disabilities, including exploring seamless travel strategies, streamlining processes with standardized medical forms and improving data sharing with government officials.
- The Government of Canada also continues to collaborate with the International Civil Aviation Organization and its Member States on an Accessibility Strategy that promotes inclusive air travel by advancing harmonized standards, universal design, and disability-inclusive policies. It supports training, collaboration with persons with disabilities, and infrastructure improvements to ensure consistent, equitable access across the global aviation system.
IF PRESSED
- The Government of Canada continues to work towards eliminating barriers that negatively impact persons with disabilities. This effort aligns with the goals of the Accessible Canada Act, enacted in June 2019, which aims for a barrier-free Canada by 2040. This involves identifying, removing, and preventing barriers to accessibility.
- The Government of Canada is working on regulations to improve accessibility in transportation for persons with disabilities, focusing on small service providers. This will ensure that more remote or rural communities have better access to barrier-free travel.
- Improved collection and reporting of accessibility-related data is essential to identifying recurring barriers in the transportation system and informing evidence-based policy and regulatory development.
- The Government remains committed to exploring opportunities to enhance data collection and reporting practices.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
- Sixty-three percent (63%) of the 2.2 million persons with disabilities who used federal regulated transportation in 2019 and 2020 faced a barrier. This often results in adverse consequences for persons with disabilities, including to their health, independence, and dignity.
- The number of Canadians with disabilities is on the rise. According to the 2022 Canadian Survey on Disability, 8 million Canadians aged 15 years and older identified as having one or more disabilities that limited them in their daily activities. The rate of disability in Canada has increased by 5 percentage points since 2017, when 22% of Canadians, or 6.2 million people, had one or more disabilities.
- The Government of Canada held a National Air Accessibility Summit in Ottawa on May 9, 2024. This summit was co-hosted by then Minister of Transport, Pablo Rodriguez, and then Minister of Diversity, Inclusion and Persons with Disabilities, Kamal Khera. Outcomes emphasized collaborative measures, including a comprehensive national training program for airport staff, having airlines voluntarily report on accessibility data to better identify and address existing gaps in the system, and streamlining processes for a consistent air travel experience (e.g., frequently discussed was the streamline of a single medical intake form). Overall, the summit underscored the importance of ongoing dialogue between the government, airports, airlines, the disability community and other key industry stakeholders to make air travel accessible for all Canadians, and international visitors, with disabilities. The Government of Canada reaffirmed its commitment to leading the way in accessible transportation globally to ensure seamless air travel experiences for passengers with disabilities across international borders, and will continue to engage with international partners and counterparts towards the goal of barrier-free transportation.
- Phase II of the Accessible Transportation for Persons with Disabilities Regulations aims to expand on initial efforts started in June 2019, focusing beyond large service providers. The Canadian Transportation Agency is preparing for inclusive consultations, including with its Accessibility Advisory Committee and various stakeholders. This necessary step sets the stage for refining the regulatory proposal.
- The collection of disaggregated accessibility data is critical to identifying and addressing systemic barriers in Canada’s air transportation system. While there have been past efforts to improve data availability—particularly in areas such as complaint tracking and service delivery—significant gaps persist. The Government continues to prioritize improvements in accessibility data collection, analysis, and public reporting, working in partnership with industry and persons with disabilities. Strengthening these data practices supports greater transparency, informs policy and regulatory development, and enables ongoing progress toward the objective of a barrier-free Canada by 2040.
- In recent years, the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) has prioritized accessible air travel, notably through the Working Group on Accessibility in International Civil Aviation (WGAA), established by the Facilitation Panel to develop a comprehensive accessibility strategy and work programme for passengers with disabilities and reduced mobility.
- These efforts were further reinforced at the ICAO/Airport Council Interntional (ACI) /International Air Transport Association (IATA) Accessibility Symposium, held in Montreal on December 2–3, 2024, which brought together global regulators, industry leaders, and accessibility advocates to share best practices and promote harmonized standards.
- This foundational work helped inform broader commitments reaffirmed at the 2025 Facilitation Conference (FALC) in Doha, where the Ministerial Declaration (Doha Declaration) emphasized global cooperation to ensure that aviation delivers reliable, accessible, and seamless mobility for all.
- Together, these initiatives support ICAO’s ongoing efforts to harmonize facilitation standards, integrate universal design, and strengthen collaboration across border, health, and aviation authorities to build a more inclusive, efficient, and resilient global air transport system.