OTTAWA-GATINEAU CHAPTER

Chapter President: Alan Conway

ABOUT US:

If you live in the Ottawa-Gatineau area, consider joining as a member and connecting with our Ottawa-Gatineau Chapter! 

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This group is actively involved in advocacy work is areas such as healthcare and transportation. Past activities have included meetings with the Coordinator of Accessibility for the Ottawa hospital regarding campus design and advocacy relating to opposition to e-scooters. Members have spoken to the media, attended and made deputations at council meetings, and participated in technical demonstrations. Their steadfast advocacy resulted in a complete turn-around of the members of the City of Ottawa's Accessibility Advisory Committee, so that they finally expressed public opposition to the continuation of the e-scooter pilot. Although this major opposition did not result in a ban of these devices, the technical requirements for inclusion in the pilot incorporated accessibility concerns for the first time—the e-scooters must be prevented from being ridden on the sidewalks, being parked outside of designated parking zones, and they must emit a sound so that people could hear them approaching. None of this is happening 100% of the time, and the Chapter is monitoring the situation carefully. In past year, Chapter members participated in a Byward Market accessibility audit organized by the City.

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These are just some of the examples of the work we do and we can always use more voices!