[sustran] fwd: Advocacy for access to transportation

[SUSTRAN Resource Centre]

[Forwarded with permission from Tom Rickerts of Access Exchange
International., Paul.]


SUBJECT:  Advocacy for access to transportation

TO: Tupong Kulkhanchit and friends at Access Office, DPI-Thailand

Let me introduce myself.  I am with Access Exchange International, an 
NGO in San Francisco, USA, which promotes access to transportation in 
countries around the world, with a special emphasis on Latin America, 
Asia, Africa, eastern Europe and other regions where often there is 
little or no access to date.  

I returned from a trip in June to find 12 responses from six countries 
concerning your pioneering effort to advocate by e-mail for access to 
the newly opening Bangkok Sky Train.  I have learned a lot from the 
responses to your fine advocacy, which helps me realize the great 
potential for further collaboration.

Here are my own initial observations:

I think that the responses from Naziaty Yaacob (Malaysia) and San 
Yuenwah (Thailand) contain many excellent points on advocacy.  They  
represent the approaches which I have observed to have the best 
success in other regions.   I would like to incorporate their ideas 
and the experiences of others elsewhere into a small publication on 
effective advocacy for access, for distribution around the world, and 
will proceed to seek resources for this.   Our direct experience is 
mainly in Russia, South Africa, and the Americas -- experiences in 
Asia will help make this a better publication.

One model for very effective advocacy is that of Libre Acceso (Free 
Access), a disability NGO in Mexico City with an unusual record for 
getting results.  I have listed Federico Fleishmann, the Founder and 
President of Libre Acceso, above, and Maria Eugenia Antúnez of Libre 
Acceso could also be of help given her background on international 
access standards.  The "key station" approach which I gather is 
occuring in Bangkok is also being taken by Mexico City Metro -- but 
their's is an older system and they must retrofit those stations.  It 
is no longer appropriate -- anywhere in the world -- for new rail 
systems to be built which are inaccessible.  The emerging 
international standard includes access for all using principles of 
universal design. 

One definitive source for information on standards is our friend CGB 
(Kit) Mitchell in the UK (see e-mail listing above).  He is an 
excellent resource for transportation professionals who need technical 
material on rail and bus standards.

We have produced a  publication titled "Mobility for All: Accessible 
Transportation Around the World," 26 pages with many illustrations, 
published by the United Methodist Church.  Do send me your address if 
you desire a mailed copy.   The entire English version is on the 
Internet at the Swedish Institute on Independent Living's site:   
http://www.independentliving.org/Mobility/index.html     This site has 
excellent coverage of disability issues (see listing above for Adolf 
Ratzka).  We have English and Spanish print versions, and my friend 
Walt Spillum (Tokyo) is working with others on translations into 
Japanese and other languages as resources permit.

Koseph Kwan (see above) in Hong Kong has good experience which might 
be of help.  Their new rail line from the airport to downtown is, I 
understand, completely accessible. I note you have already been put in 
touch with Michael Legge in Hong Kong.

The next time I plan to be in the region will perhaps be April 2000, 
when I hope to participate in conferences or workshops on 
transportation access in Hong Kong and Japan (working with Walt 
Spillum) and perhaps elsewhere if there is interest.   This past March 
I was gratified by an excellent response at workshops for 
transportation and disability leaders in Mexico City and in Costa 
Rica.  I think we will continue to see major breakthroughs in Latin 
America in years ahead.  I'll know more after a planned workshop in 
Buenos Aires in October, which may permit additonal meetings in 
Brazil, Chile, or Uruguay.

One concern I have relates to the "dark side" of the otherwise very 
positive influence of the Internet on global communication between 
accessibility advocates.  This is the need to assure that disability 
agencies in less-wealthy countries have access to the Internet or, 
failing this, that they continue to be reached through regular mail.  
As all of us become ever more oriented toward electronic 
communications, there is the danger of the isolation of disability 
agencies that cannot afford that access.  Hopefully this problem will 
diminish as access becomes less expensive over time.

Finally, disability agencies need to plan for representation at the 
next "TRANSED" triennial conference on Transport and Mobility for 
Elderly and Disabled People, in Warsaw, Poland, July 2-4, 2001.   Of 
equal importance, key transportation professionals in Asia and 
elsewhere need to attend in order to directly benefit from discussions 
of global standards.  I bring this up well ahead of time because the 
long budget cycles for transportation agencies need to be anticipated 
in planning participation. Information may be had by contacting Dr. 
Liliana Schwartz (Warsaw), who is listed above.

With best wishes -

Tom Rickert
Access Exchange International