Several parents say Calgary Transit’s service for people with disabilities is failing their children.
The children with cognitive disabilities have been transported to and from the Calgary Quest School by Access Calgary, operated by Calgary Transit.
Two weeks ago, Shauna Elliott's son Jace was suspended from the bus service following an incident in which a child's hair was pulled. Elliott offered to pay for a second space on the bus so Jace could have additional room.
“He's fine if you just leave him alone and let him sit by himself,” explains Elliott. “He's in a five point harness that goes under him, does up behind him, and the seatbelt goes through it, so he is confined to his seat.”
Access Calgary refused Elliott’s offer stating Jace will only be permitted to use the bus service if he’s accompanied by an aide.
“The bus is usually quite full, and to have an empty seat, there would be other customers perhaps wanting the same sort of thing,” said Access Calgary’s Ron Collins. “Our mandate is to get kids back and forth to school safely.”
Elliott says she is unable to afford the cost of hiring a caregiver to escort her son.
The situation involving Jace is not a rare occurrence for Access Calgary. In 2013, 10 similar incidents occurred, several involving students who attend Calgary Quest School.
In the last two weeks, another child with autism was suspended for biting another student.
According to parents and staff of Calgary Quest School, Access Calgary is wonderful at accommodating the needs of children with physical disabilities, but the service is lacking when it comes to students with cognitive disabilities.
“It’s a much bigger scope than just autism, it’s the whole transportation that we need to talk about,” said Angela Rooke, executive director of Calgary Quest School. “It’s a community issue. We're discriminating against people with disabilities. They're not allowed to go to school.”
Officials with Access Calgary say there is only so much the service can do to facilitate the needs of all of its passengers.
“I think we are making an accommodation,” said Ron Collins. “I think what we have to do is, we try to work closely with the parents and each case is different, and we try to come to a resolution.”
