Hello, everyone. I'd like to thank MP Tony Van Bynen for inviting me, and the HUMA committee for allowing me to speak about an issue that is really personal and important to me—accessibility.
I'm sure that everyone here has a loved one, whether a relative, friend or child, who has been affected by accessibility barriers. Thank you for your efforts to help improve and hopefully fix these obstacles that affect Canadians on a daily basis.
I recently had the opportunity to handcycle across Canada with my able-bodied friend, Nikki Davenport. In May 2023, we started our journey in Cape Spear, Newfoundland, and after over four months of effort, we completed our 8,400-kilometre trip in Victoria, B.C. I became the first quadriplegic to handcycle across Canada in my wheelchair.
I would like to start by saying how beautiful and amazing Canada is. We are lucky to live here. The thing that struck me the most was the people. Everyone was so kind and supportive. I met wonderful people in every province who wanted to help and were enthusiastic about what we were doing. We had people online who were following our trip, donating and spreading our message. Cars were honking in support and people on the side of the road were cheering us on and handing us food and drinks. The media coverage was phenomenal. We even had one woman come to our campsite to take our laundry home and wash it for us.
When we initially started planning this journey, we just wanted to do it. We quickly realized that what we were doing had the potential to help people and increase accessibility by starting a discussion encouraging Canadians, especially those with disabilities, to get outside and get active. We wanted to show that it was possible, so we created the not-for-profit Pedaling Possibilities across Canada.
One of the best parts about this trip was having people with wheelchairs and handcycles come in and join us for a leg.
I've travelled extensively, and when considering accessibility across our nation, Canada is doing well compared to many other countries, but there is still a lot to be done. I think the most important part of my message is that in terms of ability in the community of people with disabilities, there are vastly different levels of function.
I have paraplegic friends who can pop up a regular curb without difficulty, but for me, a three-centimetre lip might as well be 10 flights of stairs. At the same time, I have friends with more severe injuries who encounter obstacles I would never have thought of.
To continue to improve accessibility in Canada, you need to talk to and involve people with disabilities in the solution, which is what you are doing now.
I'm sure the committee is well versed on the challenges that Canadians with disabilities face in terms of travel, including flights, hotels and accessible showers. At one point in my journey, after not showering for nine days, the girls said I would not be allowed in the RV until I showered, so at the campsite they tossed me in a lawn chair and hosed me off. That mountain water was cold.
My main focus today is about an accessible bike route across Canada. Many people bike across Canada every year. What I did was not unique, but my perspective is. A lane that is wide enough for a bike is often too narrow for a wheelchair, rumble strips set off my spasms, which could send me into traffic, and gates that aid in animal migration are not possible for me to open.
Creating and making a truly accessible bike route across Canada would take time and resources. It is worth it. I have often heard the argument that not many people with disabilities would use this. While not many people will bike the entire route, many people will do sections.
I would also argue that it will not be used until it is established. We need to build it first. We have a great opportunity to invest in international tourism for people with disabilities. Let us make it happen.
My wife and I run a not-for-profit neurological recovery centre called Walk It Off, which has been helping people with disabilities for over 14 years. We are currently expanding to a larger facility so that we can help more people.
While looking for our new facility, it struck me that so many places were inaccessible, even in terms of basic things like automatic door openers. We eventually signed a lease to move into a building, but we had to negotiate to get automatic doors installed to enter the main building, which goes into a common lobby. Our not-for-profit is paying half. We are responsible for the doors entering our unit. This is crazy for 2024. If we are going to make Canada truly accessible by 2040, we need to act now.
Thank you for your time.