CSA’s influence and the role of standards
For 30 years, CSA has been involved in developing safety standards for products that support independent living for people with disabilities. These standards cover such items as wheelchairs, electrical and communication aids, mobility aids, elevating devices, adaptive automotive control systems, and motor vehicles used to transport people with disabilities.
As vital as these standards have been to the development of products that better serve people with disabilities, standards are beginning to play a much larger role in accessibility: to help ensure that, wherever possible, the design of all products, services and environments take into account the needs of older persons and people with disabilities.
The Disability Rights Movement: An Overview
The disability rights movement in Canada grew out of cultural and social biases and negative stereotypes. During the first part of the 20th century, people with disabilities were assumed to be a burden to society and isolated in institutions.
It was not until the 1960s that people with disabilities and their families began to question and challenge the system. The movement for inclusion and independent living in Canada gathered steam with the passage of the Charter of Human Rights in the 1970s. The International Year of Disabled Persons, 1981, was a catalyst in launching federal government cooperation with Canada’s disability community.
Since then, there has been a declared commitment to achieve full access to social and economic opportunities for persons with disabilities. National and provincial human rights acts now recognize and address discrimination against people with disabilities, although a short-coming is that the human rights system in Canada is complaint driven.
In 2001, the Province of Ontario passed the Ontarians with Disabilities Act (ODA). Its purpose was to improve opportunities for people with disabilities and to provide for their involvement in the identification, removal and prevention of barriers to their full participation in the life of the province. Later consultations revealed that while the Act was passed with good intent and good faith, it was not effective in improving accessibility in Ontario.
In 2005, Ontario passed the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA). Its purpose is to achieve accessibility for Ontarians with disabilities with respect to goods, services, facilities, accommodation, employment, buildings, structures and premises on or before January 1, 2025, by developing, implementing and enforcing accessibility standards. The Act also provides for the involvement of people with disabilities, representatives of sectors of the economy, and the Government of Ontario in the development of accessibility standards.
CSA Customized Engagement: Accessibility in Ontario
Since 2005, CSA has been contracted by Ontario’s Ministry of Community and Social Services to lead and manage the development of accessibility standards under the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA).
CSA adapted its standards model to the requirements and unique conditions of the project, which was highly political and visible, emotionally charged and required significant stakeholder management to reach consensus. CSA brought an established network of stakeholders for consideration, and the government selected members for working committees that developed accessibility requirements. Members were persons with disabilities and a broad mix of representatives from both the public and private sectors.
As an independent third party, CSA staff helped plan and execute committee meetings, developing draft agendas, minutes and a log of action items; facilitated meeting discussions; updated and managed drafts of the standard; convened and facilitated sub-committees to develop technical content for the standards; ensured all information provided to the committee was accessible; and provided guidance to the government and committee Chair.
Under a modified process, committees developed and recommended content to the government; the committee recommendations were submitted to the Minister for consideration in the development of the regulations.
The outcome from this project is a practical framework for implementing and enforcing accessibility in Ontario. With assistance from CSA, Ontario became the first jurisdiction in Canada to develop province-wide, enforceable accessibility standards.
- The Accessibility Standards for Customer Service became law on January 1, 2008. All businesses or organizations that provide goods or services to the public or to other third parties in Ontario are now legally required to comply with the requirements of the standard.
- Standards developed in the areas of transportation, employment, and information and communication have been rolled up into a single proposed Integrated Accessibility Regulation which is under public review.
- The final proposed Accessible Built Environment standard has been completed and has been submitted to the Minister of Community and Social Services to begin the process for consideration as law.
CSA Standards for an Aging Society
In 2011, the first baby-boomers, the single largest group in the Canadian population, turn age 65. Statistics Canada estimates the proportion of seniors in the Canadian population could nearly double in the next 25 years.
With age comes disability. The disability rate for Canadians less than 65 years of age is 10%. For Canadians 65 and over, the disability rate jumps to 40%. The implications for accessibility looms large.
CSA anticipated the implications of an aging society back in the 1990s. In 1998, CSA's Board of Directors established the Strategic Advisory Group on Aging (SAGA) to provide advice to CSA on opportunities for increased involvement in aging issues. The group was composed of a cross-section of experts on aging and related fields including leading professionals and researchers, representatives of seniors' advocacy groups, government agencies with interests or responsibilities for seniors' issues, and businesses that offer products for older consumers.
As a result of SAGA's work, CSA standard B659-02, Inclusive design for an aging population, was developed to promote the application of design guidelines that help create products, services and environments that are accessible to North America’s aging population. The standard provides guidance in the form of principles and concepts, to provide the tools to identify and address the needs of senior citizens effectively.
CSA’s work associated with accessibility and aging led to a significant contribution by Canada in the development of the International Organization for Standardization’s (ISO) Guide to address the needs of older persons and people with disabilities in standardization (ISO Guide 71). This guide provides information to international standards development committees on how to take into account the needs of older persons and people with disabilities. It describes practical implications of impairments and explains alternative formats that can make products and services more accessible.
CSA Standards for Assistive Technologies
Dating back almost 30 years, CSA has a rich history in developing technical standards for devices used by people with disabilities. While the program was more active in the 1980's and 1990's, many other standards remain and are continually updated to reflect new needs and technologies.
Today, these assistive technology standards include:
- Z323.1.2-1994 (R2008), Automotive adaptive driver controls (AADC) for persons with physical disabilities
- Z323.3.1 – 1982 (R2008), Electrical aids for physically disabled persons
- Z10535-03 (R2008), Hoists for the transfer of disabled persons – Requirements and test methods (ISO adoption of EN ISO 9999-1998)
CSA Standards for Elevating Devices and Accessible Transportation
CSA maintains a number of technical committees responsible for elevating devices and motor vehicles, accessible for peope with disabilities.These include:
- Technical Committee on Lifts for Persons with Physical Disabilities
- B355-09, Lifts for persons with physical disabilities; and
- B613-00 (R2005), Private residence lifts for persons with physical disabilities
- Technical Committee on Motor Vehicles for the Transportation of Persons with Physical Disabilities
- D409-02 (R2008), Motor vehicles for the transportation of persons with physical disabilities;
- D435-02 (R2007), Accessible transit buses; and
- D436-03 (R2007), Accessible over-the-road buses.
- The Technical Committee on Systems for the Transportation of Persons with Disabilities
- Z604-03, Transportable mobility aids; and
- Z605-03, Mobility aid securement and occupant restraint (MASOR) systems for motor vehicles.
Accessible Design
In the late 1980s, CSA was approached by the federal government to develop a standard that would address the accessibility levels of buildings. In 1990, CSA published B651, Accessible design for the built environment. The standard covers various aspects of the design, construction and renovation requirements of new and existing facilities. These include floor area requirements for accessible paths of travel, accessible door widths, washrooms, visual alarms, signage, parking and more.
CSA's work in accessible design has extended to automated banking machines (ABMs). Publication of the first edition of B651.1 Accessible design for automated banking machines in 2001 responded to a need first identified by a study conducted for the Canadian Human Rights Commission.
Standards development activities on accessible design continued with the publication of B651.2, Accessibility design for self-service interactive devices. B651.2 provides design criteria for making interactive devices such as kiosks, point of sale terminals, ticketing machines, etc., accessible.
Customer Service
In collaboration with the Government of Ontario, CSA developed guidance to the service sector industry in establishing policies, practices and programs for serving customers with disabilities.
First released in 1990, CSA Standard B480-02 Customer Service for Persons with Disabilities includes information on the crucial role of management, staff responsibilities, resources, planning and delivery requirements, and important considerations in understanding disabilities. It also outlines a management system that will help organizations monitor and continuously improve their customer service.
CSA also worked with the Government of Ontario to promote the use of B480. A training course and associated materials were developed to help organizations implement the standard. The project also included a pilot project with organizations such as Wendy's, Wal-Mart and Cineplex-Odeon to deliver training and implement disability awareness within their organizations.
The Future of Accessibility
The next frontier is embedding consideration of accessibility into all standards. Achieving that objective may be a long way off, but already CSA is building aspects of accessibility into key standards, such as the CAN/CSA-Z614 Children's Playspaces and Equipment standard. It contains an informative annex intended to help guide those wishing to design playspaces which are more accessible to, and usable by, children with physical disabilities such as mobility, reaching and manipulation disabilities.
Over the years, CSA has had a sustained and demonstrable influence on products, services and places that serve people with disabilities. From the equipment people use to how they are served to the environments they encounter, CSA standards and processes are helping create a more accessible world for all.
For more information on CSA's Accessibility program, please contact Nancy Bestic, Program Manager, Health Care & Community Safety at 416-747-2710, email Nancy Bestic.