Seair Seaplanes Accessibility Plan & Feedback Process

General

Seair Seaplanes aims to offer a safe and respectful experience for all people with disabilities, ensuring everyone can participate equally. We are dedicated to finding and eliminating barriers hindering accessibility in our services, communications, and surroundings.

To develop this plan and identify potential barriers, Seair Seaplanes has consulted with employees from various departments and community members with expertise in accessible transportation.

At Seair Seaplanes, we are eager to hear your thoughts on accessibility. We aim to inform our teams with the knowledge they need to make our services more accessible. The Safety Officer is designated to collect feedback on behalf of the company. Our Safety Advisory Group will also process this feedback, and based on what you share, they will involve other departments if needed. We keep all accessibility-related feedback in our internal system for seven years. We will respond to all feedback unless it is anonymous.

You can access our Accessibility Plan directly from our website. Please use the contact information below to share your thoughts or request a different format (hard copy, large print and others can be made available), and we will respond with a solution using this timeline:

Print, large print, or an electronic format that is compatible with adaptive technology intended to assist persons with disabilities: 20 days after the day the request was received.

Braille or audio format: 45 days after the day the request was received.

Email: safety@seairseaplanes.com

Phone: 1-800-447-3247

Mailing Address:

Safety Officer

4640 Inglis Drive

Richmond, BC

V7B 1W4

Information & Communication Technologies (ICT)

Seair Seaplanes is dedicated to ensuring that our website and email communication are user-friendly for everyone, including those who use adaptive technologies. We centralize our documents on the website in accessible PDF formats, and alternative formats may be requested by email, phone, mail, or in person at any of our bases. We strive to continuously improve our communication methods, with a specific interest in identifying and addressing any barriers in our technology.

Communication, other than ICT

At Seair Seaplanes, we adhere to the highest standards for assisting individuals with disabilities throughout their travel journey. Each team member undergoes regular accessibility-based training to ensure they provide informed, respectful, and accessible service to everyone, including those with disabilities.

Procurement of Goods, Services & Facilities

Seair Seaplanes has consulted with the Rick Hansen Foundation and third-party manufacturers to develop and improve a seaplane wheelchair lift to aid in safe entry and exit for all passengers. Seair has consulted people with disabilities to ensure our terminal facilities provide a barrier-free environment, giving access to all people. By incorporating universal design principles, we continually seek out innovative ways to identify and improve our services and facilities so they are accessible to all people.

Design & Delivery of Programs & Services

All staff at Seair Seaplanes must complete Disability Awareness online training. Our main goal at Seair is to ensure that everything we do is safe, efficient, and consistent, including ensuring our staff is working together to create an accessible environment for all people. We will continue to monitor our training and make necessary changes—if required—as technology evolves.

The Built Environment

Seair is committed to making seaplane travel easily accessible for all our guests. Our standard is to make best efforts to provide seamless travel.
Seair Seaplanes is the first seaplane company to offer passengers a wheelchair lift service, which allows for safe entry and exit into our seaplanes with minimal assistance. The wheelchair lift is available at our Nanaimo, Richmond/YVR, and Downtown Vancouver locations, with more locations to follow.

In addition to our complimentary wheelchair lift, Seair has aircraft boarding ramps and may provide wheelchair service at our three central seaplane terminal locations. We encourage any guests with mobility concerns to speak to one of our agents for more information on how we can assist with your seaplane travel.

Transportation

Seair Seaplanes has agreements with the YVR South Terminal courtesy shuttle and the local taxi company to provide accessible transportation to and from our main Richmond terminal. Our Nanaimo base has a good working relationship with the local taxi company, and each of our main bases has an accessible drop-off space for vehicles, providing close proximity to the check-in terminals. We might require advance notice to meet passenger needs effectively, and we always strive to accommodate requests, even if notice is not provided.

Provisions of CTA Accessibility-Related Regulations

As a federally regulated air carrier, Seair Seaplanes adheres to the Accessible Transportation for Persons with Disabilities Regulations (ATPDR), which are governed by the Canadian Transportation Agency. These regulations aim to eliminate barriers for individuals with disabilities.

To oversee the progress of our Accessibility Plan, Seair Seaplanes has an established Safety Advisory Group (SAG). This group of employees is responsible for discussing action items outlined in the plan, reviewing public feedback, and generating ideas to enhance accessibility within each department.

Consultations

Seair Seaplanes has consulted with various third-party foundations that champion accessibility for people with disabilities travelling by seaplane to make it safe and efficient for all people. Seair has also consulted people with various disabilities to audit every aspect of the flight, from booking options to the terminal environment and the boarding and duration of the flight departing and arriving at each of our main bases.

Consultations Seair received included:

●The Rick Hansen Foundation (Spring 2023)
●YVR Passenger Programs – Terminal Journey Experience (Spring 2023)
●Canuck Place (Winter/Spring 2022/23)
●Chloe Angus (Spring 2023)
●Vancouver Coastal Health (Winter 2023)
●Aircraft Access Solutions (ongoing)

Experts and advocates from these consultations successfully identified and informed Seair of barriers to remove, including accessibility to the aircraft and check-in locations. Seair’s upcoming plans include upgrading the terminal front door to include automation and a smoother threshold.
Seair is committed to continuing these consultations and adapting as necessary to create an accessible environment for all people.