Submissions

To: Christchurch City Council
Date: December 2024

Purpose

This submission’s primary purpose is to ensure that all transport planning in Christchurch prioritises accessibility and inclusivity for its residents, especially disabled people. DPA advocates for a "whole-of-journey" approach to transport investment, aiming to address systemic barriers faced by disabled individuals and integrate their voices into the co-design of future transport solutions.

Summary of DPA submission

DPA asserts that transport accessibility is an essential and central component for the city's future growth. Given that one in four New Zealanders has a disability, and the disabled population in Greater Christchurch is projected to increase significantly by 2051, DPA believes that building an inclusive Christchurch where everyone, including disabled people, can fully access all forms of transport should be the city council's overriding objective.

The submission highlights ongoing accessibility challenges faced by disabled people, referencing the 2022 Waka Kotahi research, "Transport experiences of disabled people in Aotearoa New Zealand," which DPA collaborated on. While DPA acknowledges positive accessibility improvements in Christchurch, such as more accessible buses and footpaths, it stresses that substantial progress is still needed to address these wider systemic issues.

DPA strongly advocates for a "whole-of-journey approach" to transport investment. As recommended by the "Transport Experiences" report, this approach would enable a shift from fragmented interventions to a holistic strategy, ensuring that any person, including disabled individuals, can make a seamless, efficient, and barrier-free journey across Christchurch's transport system. DPA supports the draft vision for Ōtautahi Christchurch Future Transport, which aims for a vibrant, prosperous, and climate-resilient transport system that enables safe and easy movement for everyone.

DPA concurs with the identified strategic challenges: planning for growth, reducing emissions (beneficial for people with respiratory issues), managing natural hazard risks (crucial during civil emergencies), and ensuring safe and healthy streets for everyone. DPA raises concerns about the state of footpaths (tree roots, camber slopes), roadwork safety practices, retailers' sandwich boards obstructing pathways, and the impact of new transport technologies like e-scooters on safety. DPA supports the plan's goals of well-managed, resilient, safer, efficient, and genuinely choice-providing transport networks, advocating for the involvement of disabled people as co-design partners in transport asset management and bus route alignment.

Key Recommendation/Finding:

DPA recommends that the creating accessible journeys through taking a whole-of-journey approach informs the final Ōtautahi Christchurch Transport Future Plan 2024 - 2034.

Supporting Statement 1:

"As the report outlines, if both central and local government adopt this approach, it would then be able to shift away from relying on making small interventions that address only specific aspects of some trips meaning that there is either minimal or no acknowledgement of the wider systemic issues faced by disabled people across the transport system."

Supporting Statement 2:

"This illustrated the ongoing accessibility challenges faced by disabled people when using public transport."