The B.C. government has announced that additional funding has been allocated to launch its Passenger Transportation Accessibility Program: https://globalnews.ca/news/9452049/b-c-funding-program-accessible-taxis/

DABC is pleased to see that additional funding will support increasing the amount of accessible taxis available, and we certainly hope that the owners/operators of these taxis will receive comprehensive and meaningful accessibility training.

However, we also recognize that this new initiative may not address another important issue facing people with disabilities using taxis: there are still too many incidents of taxi drivers choosing not to pick up riders who use wheelchairs/mobility aids, or refusing to accept taxi-savers for individuals that can’t be picked up by HandyDART.

As part of the Province’s goal to improve accessibility for people with disabilities in BC, DABC was first selected by the Ministry of Social Development and Poverty Reduction (MSDPR) in 2018 to distribute funding to community based “Accessibility Projects.” With the successful administration of the Accessibility Project Grants in 2018-2021, DABC was again selected to administer Accessibility Project Grants in 2022. On December 2nd, 2022, MSDPR announced the successful projects for 2022.

Read about this year’s successful accessibility projects here: Successful Accessibility Projects (2022)

For more information about Accessibility Project Grants as well as past funded projects, visit:
https://disabilityalliancebc.org/program/accessibility-projects/.

You can also read the Province’s media release here.

We are very excited to see the 12 successful organizations take on these diverse projects promoting inclusivity and accessibility for people with disabilities!

We’re very pleased to announce that DABC Executive Director Helaine Boyd has been appointed by the Minister of Social Development and Poverty Reduction to the technical committee that will be developing the accessible service delivery standard under the Accessible BC Act!

Learn more here: https://news.gov.bc.ca/releases/2022SDPR0068-001813