A friend who uses a wheelchair mentioned that a curb transition at Quadra and Caledonia was a problem. Victoria Coun. Charlayne Thornton-Joe was contacted, and several weeks later the dangerous barrier for wheelchair users was rectified.
This was an excellent and appropriate response.
In 2018, six new bus stops were incorrectly built along Sooke Road. According to the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure: “Prior to being operational, B.C. Transit identified that the curb heights, which were between 200-230 mm, were too high to meet accessibility standards for all transit users. As a result, the ministry rebuilt all six bus stops with 150 mm curb heights. The total cost to rebuild the bus pads was $280,000.”
The incredible contrast between these immediate fixes compared with blind people’s identified safety issues accessing bus stops is just astounding.
Four years and hundreds of hours, dollars and anguish has not resulted in a suitable solution at all. Mainly because the B.C. Human Rights Tribunal deliberately chose to avoid consulting with us, the blind individuals, and chose instead to accept a pretext of a solution that fails to remove the identified discrimination.
The city has confirmed this by adding a message when a blind pedestrian activates the button to attempt to cross the bike lanes: “Caution vehicles may not stop!”
Is the city attempting to cover its insurance obligation? Is the city just humiliating a disabled group while admitting their failure to remove the discrimination?
Whatever the city’s motive, it is announcing the continued danger without taking responsibility.
Victoria councillors have had no problem listening to wheelchair users but remain mute, indifferent and strikingly in opposition to the plight of blind people’s safety.
Being unable to detect danger that has been deliberately and unnecessarily allowed to remain, such as silent speeding cyclists, confirms that prejudice towards blind people and blind people’s educated experience remains profound.
This “floating stop” experience is just one of many injustices and even fraudulent acts perpetrated against us that have been supported and defended through dishonest and deceitful B.C. Human Rights Tribunal case law.
We, as blind citizens, are incorrectly viewed and treated as custodial charity cases whose educated opinion is worthless. Others prefer to dictate what is going to happen rather than accepting our leadership and savvy understanding of what is dangerous.
Blindness gives us no choice but to rely on public services. It appears in B.C. that various ways to create barriers are created because we are seen as easy targets.
Can we not elect a new council that has all disabled people’s voices heard and respectfully included?
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