Blind Citizens Australia (BCA) is the peak national advocacy organisation of and for people who are blind or vision impaired. Our mission is to achieve equity and equality by our empowerment, by promoting positive community attitudes, and by striving for high quality and accessible services which meet our needs. As the national advocacy peak body we have over 3000 individual members, branches nationwide and around 14 affiliate organisations that represent the interests of blind or vision impaired Australians.

About this document

BCA has produced Safer Streets so people who are blind or vision impaired can be better informed when speaking up about public access problems they may encounter in their local area. The idea is to provide a series of suggested steps to correcting most problems. However, this document is not meant as a replacement for legal advice, and it doesn’t cover every possible situation. If you cannot find the information you need or you would like some help, BCA staff are always happy to assist you.

The contents of the document includes details of the laws that protect your rights against public access hazards and from discrimination. It also outlines some specific actions you can take in you confront a problem accessing footpaths, parks and road crossings. There are several case studies and sample letters to help you understand how these steps can work in real life.

Note: In addition to this document, you may also want to consult and promote to your local council, and other public access authorities, BCA’s Pedestrian Safety Policy. This policy is BCA’s official position on how to provide accessible and safe streets for people who are blind or vision impaired. This policy can be found on BCA’s website at http://www.bca.org.au/pedsafe.htm. The policy is also available in alternative formats by calling BCA’s head office toll free on 1800 033 660.

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Access to public places

Everybody has the right to access public places safely. For people who are blind or vision impaired, there are many things in public places that can compromise this safety including overhanging branches, cars left in driveways, bins, and signs left outside shops. If you notice something dangerous, you can take steps to make sure it is removed. On the other hand, sometimes the things we need are missing or not satisfactory, like tactile paving or announcements on trains. Some organizations such as dog guide associations and disability legal centres can help you advocate for better services depending on the problem.

Problems with accessing trains, road intersections and tactile paving will be dealt with by state run bodies responsible for road access and public transport. Because they affect mobility and orientation, your local blindness agencies and dog guide association can be useful in pushing for change.

Since most parks and footpaths are cared for by local councils, they often enforce the rules about what can be left in public. Sometimes people need special permission from the council to leave things in public. Local councils also have the power to ask someone to move things out of a public place if you complain that something is dangerous.

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What are my rights?

Disability discrimination legislation in Australia, such as the federal Disability Discrimination Act (1992) (DDA), determines if it is illegal for a person or company to discriminate against people with disabilities either directly or indirectly. Direct discrimination might include not giving someone a job or allowing them to attend a school because they are disabled. Indirect discrimination usually happens when something everybody else can use isn’t accessible to people with a disability. A government organization not providing brochures and information in Braille on request could be viewed as indirect discrimination, so to a restaurant that doesn’t have an accessible toilet. Most issues to do with access to public places will be forms of indirect discrimination.

In some cases, discrimination law may allow the continuation of discrimination because it would be too impractical or expensive for the problem to be fixed. Under the DDA, this is termed ‘unjustifiable hardship’.

The majority of discrimination issues are resolved through people coming together and finding a solution.

Nationally, there are laws and standards that might help with physical access problems. These are the Disability Discrimination Act Draft Standards for Premises, and the Australian New Zealand Standard Design for Access and Mobility AS/NZS.4:2002 1428. Each State and Territory also has anti-discrimination laws. These vary in their effectiveness from state to state.

Local governments are responsible for regulations for how objects left in public spaces should be dealt with. These regulations can change from council to council. In general, councils have the power to tell a person to move or fix something that is in a public place and causes danger. They can fine anyone who ignores such a request. While councils have this power, they don’t always choose to use it. Most councils also have a Disability Liaison Officer and an access committee who can help with accessibility issues.

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Obstructions – Dangerous things in public places

What steps should I take?

Most of the obstructions you’ll find in public places are the responsibility of your local council. It’s okay to ask for help if you’re not comfortable approaching your local council on your own. You can contact your local dog guide association or blindness organization, including BCA, for help if you require it.

Otherwise, you should:

1. Get details. Find out the name of the street or park, and the building number if the danger is from a private property. Take notes of when you first noticed the problem. If it’s something that comes and goes, like a car parked so it blocks the footpath, keep a record of when you notice it.

2. Talk to your council and ask them to investigate. Ask them to check if someone has a permit to leave things in the street. If you don’t know who is responsible for the problem, you can ask the council to try and find out. Sometimes there are problems with things the council is responsible for maintaining, and you should ask when they will be dealing with the issue. Make sure you have the contact details of the person you speak to so you can get in touch again.

3. When the Council gets back to you, you have the right to ask them to change the situation. In some cases, the council can decide not to do anything. That’s why it’s important to let them know that there is a danger because you are vision impaired or blind. Councils can:

a) order people to move things out of the way, and fine them if they don’t;

b) remove dangerous objects, tow abandoned cars or impound stray animals;

c) fix things in places they are responsible for taking care of, like parks or along footpaths; and

d) put special conditions on any permit they make.

4. If the council doesn’t do anything, or the person responsible refuses to help, you can take several different steps depending on what has happened. You might be able to lodge a complaint with an anti-discrimination body like the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission to try and negotiate a solution. If you have been injured, you can talk to a lawyer about taking the responsible people to court.

What can be done about my problem?

Councils don’t deal with every danger or obstruction the same way. Below is a list of the solutions councils might look at and the issues which could be solved that way.

Council can order the removal of some things. It can fine people who don’t move something after they have been ordered to do so. It is the council’s decision whether or not they do anything because there are no laws about these problems.

This includes:

- overhanging tree branches

- broken fences or gates

- piles of sand, rocks or bricks

- shopping trolleys repeatedly left in public places (these are usually the responsibility of the shop which owns them, especially if they are found in a carpark or on private property. You can only get the council involved if they are often in public places).

In many places, it can be against the law to leave some things in a place where they will get in other people’s way, even if there is no danger. Council might have to act on these problems because they are against the law.

This includes:

- cars left in the way for a long time after an accident

- abandoned cars

- Stray animals

- Animals out with their owners without a leash or chain

- Animal faeces

- Animals which attack people

Councils can give permits for some things to be in public places. In many cases, it can be against the law to have these things in public places without a permit. Councils can put special conditions on permits. If you need a permit to put something in a public place, it can also be against the law for people to breach any special conditions of the permit.

This includes:

- Holes and ditches in public places. Holes and ditches must be safely barricaded.

- Street signs and awnings

- Skips for garbage

Local councils are directly responsible for maintaining public spaces so they are safe for people to use. The law says they can be taken to court if they don’t and someone is hurt as a result.

This includes:

- warped or cracked footpaths

- tree branches

- problems with buildings on public land such as toilet blocks and kiosks in a park

- seats and drinking fountains

- dangerous activities in public places, such as rowdy sports games

- street lighting

- bicycle stands

- construction in public places

Problems with getting around on foot can be fixed by either your local council or the state roads authority. You can contact the people responsible yourself or talk to your local orientation and mobility service or BCA. Your local orientation and mobility service will most likely have contacts with the council or roads authority.

This includes:

- No tactile ground surface indicators (local council)

- No audible tactile indicator at traffic signals (road authority)

- No traffic signals at a busy crossing (local council)

If you can’t use transport or you don’t like the service you’re getting, you should contact the people responsible first and ask them to make changes. This will usually be the state department or private company running the service. Sometimes there will be a special complaints hotline for you to call.

This includes:

- no accessible timetables. When you contact the public or private transport company you can suggest that they print Braille and large print timetables, provide them electronically and/or have the timetables read out on the local radio at a set time

- no announcements on trains (private or state train company)

- no community transport service (state government department)

- no satisfactory community transport service (state government department)

- no satisfactory taxi service (private taxi company or state government complaints line. Booking taxis in advance so they are easily tracked by the taxi company can also help because drivers will be better behaved.)

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Building better streets – Asking for changes to make the streets safer.

What steps should I take?

1. Gather information. Write down everything you can about the service you’re missing out on, like where it is located and what you would like to have changed.

2. Talk to organizations such as BCA or your local guide dog association to find out if they have experience in lobbying about the issue you’re faced with. They might already be helping other people with the same problem. Even if you don’t want their help, it is good to let these organizations know what is happening so they can take action if a lot of people are going through the same thing.

3. If you decide to get help from someone else, remember that you can ask to be told who is responsible for the problem you want changed and what is happening. Roads and transport will be the responsibility of a state government department or a private company. Knowing who you are dealing with and what is going on will help you to make decisions about what you want to happen. It is your right to understand what is being done on your behalf and it is your right to decide if you want to leave an issue alone or not.

4. You might decide to take up an issue by yourself. If you do this, make sure you keep copies of letters and emails relating to the issue. Take notes about any phone conversations you have.

5. If you feel like the problem is not solved to your satisfaction, you can lodge a complaint with the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission (HREOC). They will talk to everyone involved and try to find a solution that works. If that doesn’t help, you can go to court. Court cases can cost a lot of money even if you win, so you should always speak to a lawyer before doing anything.

What can be done about my problem?

This section looks at the different people you might want to approach for problems with mobility on foot or using transport. If the problem is not fixed in a reasonable time, or you think the people responsible aren’t cooperating, you can ask a local councilor or your member of state parliament to bring up the issue for you. Going to the media should be a last resort.

It’s dangerous on the streets. What should I do?

Sometimes it is dangerous to move around on the streets. You might run into branches, fall into holes or find that a road crossing doesn’t have crossing lights that beep and buzz. It’s often against the law to leave the streets unsafe like this.

How do I know something is unsafe?

You know something is unsafe when you think:

- I could hurt myself because something is in my way.

Or:

- I could hurt myself because something I need to get around safely is missing.

Or:

- I can’t get the same information my sighted friend can.

What can I do to fix it?

- Remember what the problem is, where and when you saw it.

- Tell someone you trust about the problem. You can ask them to look into fixing it themselves or you can ask them to help you find out what can be done.

- If you want to help fix the problem yourself, you might have to write letters or talk to lots of people from different places. You can get help from BCA or a disability legal centre to do this.

- Sometimes a problem is too big for one person to manage. It’s okay to pass a problem on to a group like BCA or your local guide dog society and ask them to solve it.

- It can take a long time and lots of different steps to fix a problem even if it seems simple! Be patient, and remember that you always have the right to decide what you want to do.

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Making a complaint with an anti-discrimination body

What if I can’t solve my problem by talking to the people responsible?

If you can’t reach a solution which makes you comfortable by talking to the people responsible, you still have options. You can go to your State or Territory anti-discrimination body or to the national Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission (HREOC) to lodge a complaint. Whether you lodge your complaint with HREOC or your state body will depend on your individual case, but either way you will go through what is called a conciliation process to try and come to an agreement that suits everybody. If that doesn’t work you can choose to take your complaint to court.

You should know that even if something is inaccessible to you, that doesn’t mean those responsible have broken the law. If they have tried to make an adjustment, or if it would be too difficult for them to change the situation, things might not go your way.

What steps should I take?

1. Decide whether you should lodge a complaint at all, and if so, where you should lodge it. Talk to BCA, your local disability legal centre, anti discrimination board or to HREOC for help deciding what you should do. Don’t be afraid to ask questions. You’ll need to know lots of things, including:

a) how much it costs,

b) how long it takes to resolve a complaint like yours, and

c) what you can expect from the mediation process.

Write down all your questions before phone calls or meetings and take someone with you to meetings if you need support.

2. Once you have decided that you want to go ahead with a complaint, you will need to lodge your complaint officially. This is usually done in writing. You are allowed to have help writing your complaint. You can ask someone from BCA, a disability legal centre or the place where you are lodging your complaint to help you write it.

3. The place where you have lodged your complaint will listen to both sides of the story. They do not favor one side over the other. Once they have gathered all the information they need, they will try and bring everyone involved together for conciliation so that they can work out a solution. Conciliations are held in private rooms and are kept confidential. The solutions aren’t like the end of a court case – there aren’t payouts for damages and nobody is found guilty or innocent. Instead, people agree to a way of solving the problem and the person conciliating makes sure it is followed up.

4. If you can’t agree on a solution, you have the choice to go to court. You should always talk to a lawyer about your chances of winning a court case and how much it will cost before you decide. Court cases can be very expensive and stressful, and it is sometimes hard to tell how long they will go on.

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Case Studies

Jenny

Jenny is a single mother of two children aged three and seven. Her eldest daughter plays soccer on Saturday mornings at the local park. The road to the park does not have a zebra crossing or a crossing with audible indicators, so Jenny doesn’t feel safe walking her children to the park. There are lots of sporting events in the park on a Saturday and there are many people driving on what is a normally quiet road. Jenny always has to take a taxi or get a lift with one of the other parents.

After a few months Jenny decides this is unacceptable, and writes to the Roads and Traffic Authority in her state government explaining the situation and asking them to install a crossing with audible indicators on the road. The government writes back to say that the crossing will be fixed in a year, when funding is available. Jenny is concerned for her safety in the meantime, and contacts the local branch of her guide dog association. They suggest requesting that the government pays for a crossing attendant to be at the park when sporting events are booked until the new crossing is put in. She asks the guide dog association to support her in making the request and they work together to write letters, make phone calls and attend meetings.

Two months later, there is still no agreement. The guide dog association helps Jenny put together a complaint to go before the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission. They begin conciliation talks to solve the problem. Eventually the government agrees to their requests, and Jenny is able to travel safely to the park with her children.

Ryan

Ryan wants to be able to use his local train station. He has had orientation and mobility training, but there is one footpath he has to take which has a large unsealed patch. This unsealed patch is full of rocks, and when it rains it becomes muddy. Ryan often becomes disoriented when he hits this patch of the footpath. Because it is in a clear area with a ditch off to one side, he is worried for his safety.

With help from his parents, Ryan writes to the local council asking them to fix the path. The family sends a copy of the letter to BCA and the local branch of the guide dog association in case other people complain with the same problem. The council fixes the path and the two organizations add his information to a growing profile of how local governments respond to access issues.

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Sample Letters

Mr. Joe Bloggs

1 Jones Street

TIMBUCKTOO VIC 3001

1 January 2001

Mr. Citizen Smith

Local Laws Office

City of Citizenville

432 Main Road

TIMBUCKTOO VIC 3001

Dear Mr. Smith,

My name is Joe Bloggs and I am a local resident of the City of Citizenville. I am writing to you about the continued use of outdoor signage by local businesses in Jones Street. Because I am blind, the outdoor signs make it difficult for me to be both independent and safe. It is for these reasons that I request that council ensure the footpath is safe for people with disabilities to use by asking businesses to remove these signs.

I first noticed the outdoor signs on Jones Street at the beginning of November. Over a period of three weeks I noticed anywhere between three and six signs on the northern side of the pavement and two on the southern side depending on the time of day. When I realized that the signs would not be going away quickly I spoke to the shopkeepers along the road and asked them to remove their signs. A week later, only some of the signs had gone. I again spoke to the shopkeepers in a polite manner. When I asked if they had council approval for the signs several of them became defensive.

It is now two weeks since my last contact with the shopkeepers and three of the signs – two on the northern side between High Road and Mulberry Lane, one on the southern side in the same area – still remain. I have done my best to resolve this issue myself and I now ask the council for help to investigate whether there are permits for the remaining signs. If there are no permits, I ask that council take the appropriate steps to have the signs removed and a ban enforced. I also request that any permits for these signs be changed to make sure they leave enough space for safe passage on the footpath.

I look forward to cooperating with you to reach a solution quickly. If you wish to discuss this matter I can be contacted at the address above or by telephoning (area code) 111112222 (home/work).

Yours sincerely,

Joe Bloggs

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Jane Smith

22 Glen Close

WHOVILLE VIC 3077

1 January 2001

Citizen Brown

Disability Liaison Officer

Shire of Citizenville

44 Short Street

WHOVILLE VIC 3077

Dear Mr Brown,

My name is Jane Smith and I am a local resident of Citizenville. I am writing to you regarding the large number of overhanging branches on the footpath on both sides of Long Street. This problem impedes access to Long Street for people with disabilities like myself.

I regularly walk along Long Street to get to the local shops and to visit friends. Because I am vision impaired I walk as closely as I can to the inside of the footpath, staying near to fences and away from other people coming down the path. This is a recognized mobility technique which is commonly taught to people who are blind or vision impaired.

Unfortunately, there are a number of tree branches extending from private properties on both sides of Long Street which make it dangerous for me to use this technique. If I walk too close to the fences, I risk a branch hitting my forehead or my eyes. This is dangerous and as a person with a disability my access to the area is limited.

Because there are fifteen branches overhanging on the full length of Long Street, I feel unable to approach all the property owners myself. I would like council to consider issuing a blanket ban on overhanging tree branches as a matter of public safety, and to enforce fines for any breach of such a ban.

If you have any further queries, I can be reached at the address listed above. My telephone number is (area code) 111112222 (home/work). I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Yours sincerely,

Jane Smith

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Letter writing tips

- Always be polite. Express your emotions by talking about how you feel, not insulting other people.

- Try and keep your letter short. Write a list of the main points you want to make and stick to them.

- Don’t repeat yourself.

- Don’t address people informally, even if you know them.

- Keep a hard copy of all your correspondence so you know what has been said.

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