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IN FOCUS |
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by Matthew W. Daus, Esq.
President, International Association of Transportation Regulators
Distinguished Lecturer, University Transportation Research Center, Region 2
Contact: mdaus@windelsmarx.com
156 West 56th Street, New York, NY 10019
T. 212.237.1106 • F. 212.262.1215
and
Jason R. Mischel, Esq.
Counsel, Windels Marx Lane & Mittendorf, LLP
Former Commissioner/General Counsel, NYC Mayor's Office of People with Disabilities
Contact: jmischel@windelsmarx.com
156 West 56th Street, New York, NY 10019
T. 212.237.1213 • F. 212.262.1215
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IATR RELEASES PROPOSED MODEL REGULATIONS FOR ACCESSIBLE TAXICABS AND FOR-HIRE VEHICLES
INTERNATIONAL PUBLIC HEARING WAS HELD ON SEPTEMBER 23, 2014
We are pleased to report that the International Association of Transportation Regulators (“IATR”) has completed its first comprehensive draft of its proposed Model Regulations for Accessible Taxicabs and For-Hire Vehicles. These model regulations endeavor to provide maximum accessibility in the taxicab and for-hire vehicle industry, and to ensure access and inclusiveness for all passengers while maintaining a valid and coherent funding mechanism.
We served as counsel to the IATR’s Accessibility Committee, and helped to organize regulators and stakeholders as well as to conceive and draft many of the reform oriented approaches contained in the model regulations.
The IATR’s Accessibility Committee includes representatives from twenty-four (24) municipalities across Australia, Canada and the United States. The committee members reviewed and considered accessible taxicab and for-hire vehicle regulations from a number of jurisdictions from around the world, researched substantive data associated with accessible vehicles, and analyzed the effectiveness of various programmatic approaches in an exercise to identify best practices. The model regulations and a summary report can be accessed here.
Accessibility in public transportation, especially in the taxicab and for-hire vehicle industry, has been one of the most important regulatory issues in the last few years. Recent event or factors involved in casting a spotlight on accessibility include:
(1) high profile lawsuits garnering extensive media coverage (e.g. Noel v. NYC Taxi & Limousine Commission[1]);
(2) landmark legislation that has provided people with disabilities with increased access to the ability to be transported (e.g. New York City’s “Five-Borough Street Hail Taxi & Livery Plan”[2]);
(3) the proliferation of dispatch programs as an attempt at a “reasonable accommodation” for disabled passengers (e.g. “Open Taxis”, Chicago’s centralized dispatch system for all of its wheelchair accessible vehicles[3]);
(4) the increasing population of the elderly and how their needs overlap those of the disabled community[4]; and
(5) the increase in global tourism that requires providing for the needs of the disabled and elderly communities[5].
In transportation regulation circles, accessibility is arguably the most talked about topic other than the proliferation of Transportation Network Companies (“TNCs”) utilizing smartphone applications to pre-arrange ground transportation services. In some instances, TNCs are attempting to dodge or change existing regulations that apply to licensed transportation providers.
In fact, many of these TNCs have sought to avoid the issue of accessibility entirely, choosing instead to “pass the buck” by informing disabled would-be passengers to contact a regulated transportation company in order to meet their accessibility needs.
For example, under the draft TNC legislation passed in Seattle, TNCs are asked only to:
i) impose a ten-cent per ride surcharge to go towards the City’s accessibility fund; and
ii) to provide passengers requesting accessibility service with contact information for an accessible taxi dispatch[6].
Thus, the responsibility of providing accessible service remains only on licensed taxicabs and is to be funded by passengers while TNCs are exempt from meeting any accessible service requirements.
Many jurisdictions, whether in the United States, Europe, Australia, or Canada, have mandated various levels of accessibility in their taxicab and for-hire vehicle industries, in many cases according to the specific population and financial realities in each particular marketplace.
There are a variety of approaches geared towards promoting and enhancing accessibility, and many perceived programmatic deficiencies such as:
(a) London’s acknowledgement of a need for a viable driver training program[7];
(b) Australia’s exemption of for-hire vehicles such as limousines from its regulations[8]; and
(c) Canada’s omission of persons with non-mobility disabilities from its regulations[9].
The IATR’s Model Regulations for Accessible Taxicabs and For-Hire Vehicles is an attempt to provide a more cohesive menu of standards, best practices, and regulatory approaches to be tailored for each jurisdiction’s needs than exists now. In sum, these model regulations include the following standards, programs and solutions:
Vehicle Accessibility, including:
i) fare payment and ticket validation systems that must not require actions from passengers with disabilities that exceed the requirements for other passengers;
ii) wheelchair, scooter or other mobility aid securement devices that must be securely anchored to the vehicle; and
iii) the incorporation of universal design concepts that cover a variety of mobility and non-mobility disabilities that, where applicable, utilize specific measurements and specifications.
Driver Training, whereby the Model Regulations specifically ensure that drivers are required to assist any passenger when it is evident that the passenger is a person with a disability, elderly or otherwise in need of assistance, and that drivers must be sufficiently trained and subjected to a full vetting process which should include a criminal and driver history background check[10];
Accessible Dispatch Programs and App Technology, whereby these regulations support the creation of an “Accessible Dispatch Program” that:
1) allows disabled passengers to have access to accessible vehicles in situations where such vehicles are outnumbered in supply by vehicles that are not accessible, and
2) would have to conform to a number of specific requirements.
Financing Accessible Transportation, as a seminal issue confronting full and efficient accessibility for all is money. In the transportation arena, the ability for a vehicle to transport a person with a disability means:
(1) the need for a bigger and more expensive vehicle that may require a retrofit;
(2) the need for a vehicle that uses more gas than a non-accessible vehicle;
(3) the possible purchase of accessible communication and fare payment technology; and
(4) increased maintenance costs due to the usage of equipment such as ramps and lifts. The funding issue must be addressed in order for most, if not all, of the solutions contained in the model regulations to work.
Funding can be obtained and/or preserved through administering the “lockbox” concept and in reducing the costs of government paratransit programs by using taxicabs and sedans in lieu of multi-passenger vans[11].
The international public hearing was held on Tuesday, September 23, 2014, 9:30 am, at the IATR’s 27th Annual Conference at the Hyatt Regency Hotel, located at 601 Loyola Avenue, New Orleans, LA 70113.
The IATR accepted written comments on the proposed regulations which were further considered by the committee at the hearing. They well continue to be reviewed for an additional ninety (90) days after the hearing.
Also, a Stakeholder Committee that included disability advocacy organizations, industry stakeholders, automobile manufacturers and retrofitters was formed to provide comments and feedback on further development, implementation, adoption and dissemination of the proposed and final regulations expected to be released in 2015.
If you are interested in submitting written comments, or in serving on the stakeholder committee, please email mdaus@iatr.org or jmischel@iatr.org, or via regular mail to International Association of Transportation Regulators, c/o Sarah Huque, P.O. Box 20709, New York, NY 10023.
Further, if you require an accommodation for your disability in order to attend the conference please contact Jason Mischel or Sarah Huque at the above email or U.S. mail addresses.
[1] See Noel v. New York City Taxi & Limousine Comm'n, 837 F.Supp.2d 268, 274 (S.D.N.Y.2011).
[4] According to the United Nations, global population ageing is currently “unprecedented”, “pervasive”, “enduring” and “has profound implications for many facets of human life”.
See http://www.un.org/esa/population/publications/worldageing19502050/.
[5] According to the July 2014 press release from the United Nations’ World Tourism Organization, “destinations worldwide received some 317 million international tourists (overnight visitors) between January and April 2014, 14 million more than in the same period of 2013. This 5% growth consolidates the already strong increase registered in 2013 (+5%) and is well above the long-term trend projected by UNWTO for the period 2010-2020 (+3.8%).” See http://media.unwto.org/press-release/2014-07-21/international-tourism-strong-peak-season-anticipated.
[8] See Australia’s Disability Standards for Accessible Public Transport 2002.
[9] See Canadian Standards Association Standard No. D409-02.
[10] In order to further this important and necessary mandate, the IATR is contemplating developing a certification process for accessible vehicle driver training programs in the future.
[11] As detailed in the article Accessible Transportation Reform: Transforming the Public Paratransit and Private For-Hire Transportation Systems by Matthew W. Daus, President of the IATR, and Jason R. Mischel, Esq., the Counsel to the Accessibility Committee, the implementation of accessible taxicabs and For-Hire vehicles within the paratransit industry would significantly and drastically cut costs while improving the environment.
© 2014 TLC Magazine Online, Inc. |
