Issue number: 2023002
Barriers to Accessibility in Canada: Public Spaces, American Sign Language - Video transcript
In 2022, among the 8 million Canadians with disabilities aged 15 years and over, approximately 4.5 million (56%) experienced one or more barriers to accessibility in public spaces at least sometimes during the 12 months prior to the survey.
In recognition of International Day of Persons with Disabilities and in support of the Accessible Canada Act, Statistics Canada is a releasing a series of products, using the 2022 Canadian Survey on Disability (CSD), to highlight the experiences of persons with disabilities. Products include a report titled "Barriers to Accessibility in Public Spaces: Findings from the 2022 Canadian Survey on Disability", which examines the prevalence of experiencing barriers in public spaces by various disability and sociodemographic characteristics. The report also includes multivariate analysis to examine the association between these different characteristics and the likelihood of experiencing barriers. This report is the first in a series of four reports to be released in the coming months that will shed light on the accessibility experiences of persons with disabilities. Additionally, three new infographics on mobility, flexibility and dexterity disabilities are now available as part of an ongoing series of infographics focused on each of the 10 disability types collected by the CSD.
Difficulties with sidewalks and wait lines are the most commonly cited barriers in public spaces
Among the 56% of persons with disabilities who experienced one or more barriers to accessibility in public spaces, the most common features with which they experienced barriers were "sidewalks when covered in ice or snow" (36%), "wait lines" (31%) and "sidewalks in general" (26%).
Four in five Canadians with very severe disabilities experience at least one barrier to accessibility in public spaces
Previous research highlighted that persons with more severe disabilities were less likely to be employed, more likely to have at least one unmet need for disability supports, and more likely to be living in poverty compared with those with milder disabilities. This study's descriptive statistic results are consistent with previous research, as persons with disabilities who had more severe disabilities (81%) were more likely than those with milder disabilities (37%) to experience barriers to accessibility in public spaces.
In 2022, over two-thirds of Canadians with disabilities had two or more co-occurring disability types. One-third (33%) of Canadians with one disability type experienced one or more barriers to accessibility in public spaces, whereas 77% of those with four or more disability types experienced such barriers.
Canadians with unmet needs for disability supports are more likely to experience barriers to accessibility in public spaces
The 2022 CSD asks several questions regarding needs for various disability supports, including personal aids and assistive devices and accessibility features (e.g., canes, walkers, specialized software, or architectural features in the home such as widened doorways and ramps), prescription medication, as well as access to healthcare therapies and services (e.g., counselling services and physiotherapy). Previous research has shown that 56% of persons with disabilities reported at least one unmet need when it comes to these disability supports and just under three-quarters (73%) of persons with unmet needs cited cost as the reason for those unmet needs. Persons with disabilities with unmet needs for disability supports were more likely to experience at least one barrier to accessibility in public spaces compared with those who did not have any unmet needs (65% vs. 45%).
Similarly, the 2022 CSD asks questions regarding the need for help with everyday activities, such as, preparing meals, everyday housework, or getting to appointments or running errands. The help could be provided by family, friends, neighbours or organizations and could include both paid and unpaid work. Those who reported unmet needs for help with everyday activities were more likely to experience barriers compared with those who had their needs met (76% vs 46%).
Youth are less likely to experience barriers to accessibility in public spaces
Overall, youth with disabilities aged 15 to 24 years (41%) were the least likely to experience barriers when compared with those aged 65 years and over (69%), 45 to 64 years (58%), and 25 to 44 years (45%). Additionally, women (59%) were more likely than men (53%) to encounter one or more barriers to accessibility in public spaces.
Severity of disability and unmet needs for supports are associated with higher odds of experiencing barriers within public spaces
When different factors were taken into account simultaneously, the results of the descriptive analysis were confirmed; those with very severe disabilities had four times higher odds of experiencing barriers to accessibility in public spaces as compared to persons with milder disabilities.
After controlling for different factors, unmet needs increased the likelihood of experiencing barriers in public spaces. Persons with disabilities who had unmet needs for disability supports or unmet needs for help with everyday activities had a greater likelihood of experiencing barriers to accessibility compared with persons who had their needs met for these supports.
The likelihood of experiencing barriers increases with age and is higher among women and 2SLGBTQ+ persons
When different factors were taken into account, the likelihood of experiencing one or more barriers in public spaces increased with age and women were more at risk of experiencing barriers compared with men.
Previous research has shown that over three-quarters of 2SLGBTQ+ persons with disabilities experience one or more barriers to accessibility. While no significant difference between the 2SLGBTQ+ and non-2SLGBTQ+ populations was found in the descriptive analysis in terms of prevalence of experiencing barriers, 2SLGBTQ+ persons with disabilities were more likely to experience barriers after controlling for other factors, as compared to their non-2SLGBTQ+ counterparts.
Note to readers
The CSD sample is selected from the census of population respondents, making it a postcensal survey. For methodological details see Surveys and statistical programs - Canadian Survey on Disability (CSD).
The Government of Canada adopted the acronym 2SLGBTQI+ to refer to Two-Spirit, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and intersex people and those who use other terms related to gender and sexual diversity. Statistics Canada uses the acronym 2SLGBTQ+ for data analysis purposes, as information is not yet collected specifically about intersex people. The term "non-2SLGBTQ+" is used to refer to people who are both cisgender (people whose reported gender corresponds to their reported sex at birth) and heterosexual. See Improving data on 2SLGBTQ+ populations and Federal 2SLGBTQI+ Action Plan 2022 for more information. The CSD asks respondents their sex at birth, gender (male, female, other) and sexual orientation (heterosexual, lesbian or gay, bisexual or other). This analysis classified any respondents who were not cisgender (people whose reported gender corresponds to their reported sex at birth) and not heterosexual as the 2SLGBTQ+ population.
A global severity score was developed for the CSD, which was calculated for each person using the number of disability types that a person has, the level of difficulty experienced in performing certain tasks, and the frequency of activity limitations. To simplify the concept of severity, four severity classes were established: mild, moderate, severe, and very severe. 'Mild' and 'moderate' classes were collapsed into 'milder' while 'severe' and 'very severe' classes were collapsed into 'more severe'. It is important to understand, however, that the name assigned to each class is simply intended to facilitate use of the severity score and is not a label or judgment concerning the person's level of disability.
The CSD collected information on 27 types of barriers to accessibility, touching on the Accessible Canada Act priority areas of Built Environment, Communication, and Information and Communication Technology. These barriers do not represent a comprehensive list of barriers to accessibility. Respondents were asked if they experienced barriers because of their condition using the response categories of "not applicable," "never," "sometimes," "often" and "always." Respondents who indicated that they experienced barriers "sometimes," "often" or "always" are included as having experienced a barrier at least sometimes. See the 2022 CSD questionnaire for more information on the barriers to accessibility included within the survey.
All differences mentioned in this article are statistically significant (p < 0.05).
Products
The report " Barriers to Accessibility in Public Spaces: Findings from the 2022 Canadian Survey on Disability", which is part of the Reports on Disability and Accessibility in Canada (89-654-X), is now available.
The infographics "Mobility disabilities, 2022", "Flexibility disabilities, 2022" and "Dexterity disabilities, 2022", are now available in the series Statistics Canada – Infographics (11-627-M).
Contact information
For more information, or to enquire about the concepts, methods or data quality of this release, contact us (toll-free 1-800-263-1136; 514-283-8300; infostats@statcan.gc.ca) or Media Relations (statcan.mediahotline-ligneinfomedias.statcan@statcan.gc.ca).