Responding to the Climate Emergency

Responding to the Climate Emergency

Following the previous year's push in terms of addressing the Climate Emergency, which included the hosting of the COP 26 and the Scottish Government (SG) entering a cooperation agreement with the Scottish Green Party (the Bute House Agreement), focus in this area has remained high.

During this period MACS continued to engage across ministerial portfolios to seek to ensure that disabled people are not left behind as we plan for a just transition to a greener future with more sustainable transport options for everyone.

MACS will continue to push that we not only have to look at disabled people's needs as standalone issues but also to ensure that we tackle the climate emergency through the lens of equality and inclusion.

It is well documented that transport is Scotland's biggest contributor to climate change, emitting over a quarter of all our greenhouse gas emissions. Within this, the largest share of transport emissions comes from cars, accounting for 38%.

The SG's Climate Change Plan update in 2020 included a world-leading commitment to reduce car kilometres by 20% by 2030 (against a 2019 baseline). By rethinking how we use our cars and reducing the number of daily journeys we take, we can help make Scotland a healthier, fairer, greener place to live and significantly contribute towards Scotland reaching net zero.

MACS is supportive of the reduction in use of fossil fuels in transport, including the proposed 20% reduction in car km target for 2030. However, alternatives to the car need to be accessible to disabled people. It must also be recognised that many disabled people do not have the option of non-car use because of either poor infrastructure design or inaccessible or unaffordable public transport options. Inclusive designs of infrastructure and service delivery, as well as exemptions, must be made for disabled people where necessary.

As such MACS will continue to ensure that we are vocal that transition plans to reduce reliance on cars (i.e. reduce car kms by 20% by 2030, modal shifts, behavioural change) do not inadvertently disadvantage disabled people who rely on their car as a mobility aid. We need to ensure these plans include accessible walking and wheeling infrastructure (current active travel plans have a heavy focus on the needs of cyclists including in infrastructure design). MACS scrutiny, guidance and advice need to be clear on disabled pedestrians' needs, i.e. the need for accessible infrastructure designs that are well maintained, well lit, have unobstructed paths and pavements with ample dropped kerbs and enforced pavement parking bans.

Low Emission Zones (LEZs) will be formally introduced in the city centres of Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh, and Glasgow. Enforcement in Glasgow will be from
1 June 2023 (with an additional year for residents within the zone), while enforcement in Dundee will begin on 30 May 2024. Enforcement in Aberdeen and Edinburgh are expected to begin 1 June 2024.

MACS, as shown in our consultation response back in 2020, have been fully supportive of the roll out of LEZs. We believe they will positively impact the environment, improving air quality, which can improve health inequalities and' encourage people to think about active travel and other public transport options, whilst helping reduce emission and the carbon footprint.

We did however note that for many people, especially travelling from rural areas, public transport may not be an option with the only option for travel being a private car. MACS also suggested the LEZs proposals consider the impact on accessibility for disabled people within low emission zones and the need for local authorities to carry out Equality Impact Assessments (EqIAs) to ascertain the likely impact to disabled people in particular and others within protected characteristics in general.

MACS notes with satisfaction that there is the exemption of the approximately 250,000 Blue Badge holders from the LEZ proposals and MACS members took part in workshops in relation to trialling the exemption process.

MACS attended a virtual session via MS Teams in February where blue badges holders could assess the system at an early stage and provide feedback in order to shape how the final system will look and feel. Testing included using the Exemption System though a website, testers completing a personal feedback form and a group discussion.

The concept of the 20-minute neighbourhoods has been spoken about for a number of years and in the UK Poundbury is one of the first developments to showcase this lifestyle. The benefits of this type of living are many;

• residents can become more active, which can improve their mental and physical health
• general traffic is reduced which improved air quality
• local shops and businesses can thrive with more 'footfall' on their doorstep and residents can mingle and chat with their neighbours (which can reduce social isolation and loneliness).

The global pandemic has changed the way we live and work in a number of ways with more and more people choosing to continue to work from home, using public green (parks) and blue (river/canal) spaces they often didn't realise was within easy reach of their home, walking and wheeling and/or cycling more instead of using their cars and connecting more with friends and neighbours.

Generally, the main characteristics of a 20-minute neighbourhood are ones that include a safe, accessible and well connected network for pedestrians including those walking and wheeling and cyclists. The space will offer high quality, safe open spaces with good access to services that support local living and working.

MACS welcomes this approach to designing neighbourhoods. We previously reported (in our work during 2021 to 2022) on the 20-minute neighbourhood concept. We carried this work out in partnership with the Alliance Health and Social Care Academy (the Alliance) and Disability Equality Scotland (DES) and the findings of this focused work remain current and should be used as a reference point as this policy area progresses. A link to this report can be found below:

Visit Exploring Scotland's 20-minute neighbourhoods: final report 

In short, everyone irrespective of age, ability or gender should be able to access the goods and services they need daily and within 20 minutes of leaving their home. Vital services, which were the mainstay of the High Street and are quickly disappearing may prosper within neighbourhoods that are actively used by all the community.

MACS believe the following recommendations need to be considered:

• Appropriate accessible infrastructure must be in place to allow everyone to access the facilities they need within 20 minutes. This includes good quality pavements with dropped kerbs and controlled crossing points.
• Accessible housing needs to be provided to allow disabled people the opportunity to live close to amenities and services and remain in the communities they choose.
• Disabled people are involved in the design and/or guidance associated with
  20-minute neighbourhoods within their local area.
• Equitable access needs to be provided to the green and blue spaces within the 20-minute neighbourhood area.
• Any cycle networks are accessible in that they can accommodate non-standard cycles, trikes etcetera and where possible the cycle routes are separate from pedestrian routes.

 

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