Taxis For All Campaign News Blog

THE FACTS: ACCESSIBLE CABS

2011-10-30T22:48:00.006-04:00

After the Justice Department urged a federal judge to make New York City’s taxi system accessible to wheelchair users, Mayor Bloomberg has tried to defend the city’s violation of civil rights with ill-informed and dismissive comments. But he and the TLC are off the mark on virtually every point they’ve made about wheelchair-accessibility. Take a look. (All direct quotations below.)

Bloomberg: The Justice Department’s view doesn’t mean the court will agree. [Citation: “Number one, I don’t know that just because the Justice Dept. says something that we wouldn’t find something different if it were to go to court and I’m not sure what the city’s going to do yet.” (News availability, October 19, 2011)]

FACT: The Justice Department held that the city is engaged in discrimination. A federal court is unlikely to ignore this or dismiss this easily.

Bloomberg: Accessible taxis just won’t work in a city like New York. [It just doesn’t work in a city like ours and I don’t know that the Attorney General understands how people live in the city and the traffic patterns and that sort of thing.” (Oct. 19th.) “The cabs that we picked so far [for the Taxi of Tomorrow] are easier for handicapped people that are not wheelchair bound [sic].” (WOR interview, October 14th)]

FACT: Wheelchair accessibility works in London, where every taxi has a ramp that allows wheelchair users (and people with walkers and strollers) to get in easily. London started its move toward accessibility in 1989. Why wouldn’t it work here in New York, other than a lack of will by the mayor?

Bloomberg: Our dispatch plan makes more sense. [“We have a plan that we think makes a lot more sense than what the Attorney General suggested.” (Oct. 19th)]

FACT: The city’s dispatch plan would offer separate and unequal service. Under the plan, we’d wait 20 minutes, 40 minutes or even more than an hour for a taxi (according to the TLC) after making a phone call to a special dispatch line.

Bloomberg: Drivers won’t pick up wheelchair users. [“A lot of the cab drivers just would, I think, pretend that they didn’t see you [wheelchair users trying to hail a taxi].” (WOR interview, Oct. 14, 2011)]

FACT: It’s up to Mayor Bloomberg and the TLC to enforce the law. TLC regulations and city law prohibit such service denials. In testimony before the City Council on April 11, TLC chair David Yassky described the TLC’s extensive efforts to combat service refusals and its support for a bill to increase penalties for refusals.

Bloomberg: It’s hard for wheelchair users to flag down a taxi. [“If you’re in a wheelchair, it’s really hard to go out in the street and hail down a cab and get the cab to pull over and get into and so, forget about the other reasons, just for that alone, we think there’s a better ways to do it.” (Oct. 19th)]

FACT: Wheelchair users are quite able to hail a taxi. Our groups – the city’s leading disability rights and service organizations (list below) – and the men and women we represent are strongly in favor of accessible taxis and liveries.

Bloomberg: The cab industry will fight accessible taxis tooth-and-nail. ["I think the cab industry will fight that [accessible taxis] tooth-and-nail." (Oct. 14th)]
FACT: The Greater New York Taxi Association condemned the mayor’s “divisive” comments and stated: “Let us be clear: We’re for accessibility.”

Bloomberg: Accessible cabs are too big, so drivers “can’t establish a dialogue, and they get lower tips.” [“When the cabs are big enough for a wheelchair…cab drivers say that the passengers sit farther away and they can’t establish a dialogue, and they get lower tips.” (Oct. 14th)]

FACT: C’mon. What can you say to this?

Yassky (TLC chair): Our goal is 100% accessibility and the Taxi of Tomorrow will get us close to that. [“With one of our long-term goals being 100% accessibility of all our fleets, we believe that the Taxi of Tomorrow Request for Proposal will help us get very close to that goal.” (Testimony of David Yassky before Assembly committees, July 14, 2011)]

FACT: The TLC selected a non-accessible Nissan NV2000 as the Taxi of Tomorrow on May 3rd. This vehicle would be in use as the exclusive model for yellow taxis for a decade. That means that the TLC has no short- or long-term goals for 100% accessibility.

Bloomberg: There’s no demand for accessible taxis. [“…There are cabs right now that are accessible and there’s virtually no demand for them and the reason I think, more than anything, cause certainly there are people in wheelchairs who need service, but they just can’t go out and flag ‘em down.” (Oct. 19th)]

FACT: Only 230 yellow taxis are accessible out of 13,237 cabs – one in 54. Why would wheelchair users try to hail a taxi with those kinds of odds? This is a similar argument to those made in the 1980s when wheelchair-accessible buses were proposed.

Yassky: We don’t know of any vehicle that is accessible and “ecology-friendly.” [“To our knowledge, there currently is no vehicle that exists on the market today or even in production that is both ‘ecology friendly’ and wheelchair accessible and would meet the needs of the taxicab industry.” (July 14th)]

FACT: At the time, the TLC was engaged in negotiations concerning the MV-1 vehicle, which is accessible, has a compressed natural gas (CNG) option and was designed with the needs of the taxi industry in mind. Its backers include taxi fleet owners from Chicago.

Bloomberg: Accessible taxis sell for about $15,000 more.

FACT: Most wheelchair-accessible taxis are available at far less than the extra $15,000 the mayor claims. In addition, there are federal tax credits and a potential state tax credit (passed by both houses of the legislature) that will lower the real price of accessible vehicles significantly.

Bloomberg: Accessible vehicles aren’t as comfortable for “handicapped people that are not wheelchair bound [sic]” or for the “average” rider. [“Their suspension is much worse so the average person riding in them finds them really uncomfortable and they use a lot more gas.” (Oct. 19th)]

FACT: Just what is an average rider? Many riders find non-accessible minivans hard to get in because they’re too high off the ground and say there’s too little legroom in many cabs. Beyond that, the new MV-1 is factory-built in the U.S. as an accessible taxi. Structural concerns from retrofitting don't apply to this new vehicle.

Bloomberg: The street-hail bill would make a big difference for under-served neighborhoods. [“The bill that would give taxi service to four boroughs and everything north of 96th street in Manhattan that have not had taxi service ever is a bill that will really make a big difference.” (Oct. 19th)]

FACT: The city’s street-hail bill perpetuates a system in which an under-served group is shut out, even while it is intended to increase service to ‘under-served’ neighborhoods.

PRODUCED BY THE TAXIS FOR ALL CAMPAIGN. Visit http://taxisforall.blogspot.com.
Taxis For All Campaign members include: Bronx Independent Living Services • Brooklyn Center for Independence of the Disabled · Center for Independence of the Disabled, New York · Disabled in Action of Metropolitan New York · Disabilities Network of New York City · Harlem Independent Living Center · National Multiple Sclerosis Society, NYC-Southern New York Chapter · United Spinal Association · VetsFirst · 504 Dems-North Star · 504 Democratic Club

Push for Cab Access Grows

2011-10-19T02:25:00.001-04:00

From The Wall Street Journal
October 14, 2011
By DEVLIN BARRETT

The Justice Department said Thursday that the New York City Taxi and Limousine Commission has failed to provide fair service to the disabled, and until it does, every new yellow cab in the city should be wheelchair accessible.

In a 23-page court filing, the federal government sided with four disabled-rights groups that filed a lawsuit in January. Assistant U.S. Attorney Natalie Kuehler said the Taxi and Limousine Commission must have "equivalent service" for disabled people—meaning all new cabs in the fleet are wheelchair accessible.

"[T]he TLC must require that all new vehicles purchased or leased for use as taxicabs…are 'readily accessible to and usable by individuals with disabilities, including individuals who use wheelchairs'," Ms. Kuehler wrote.

As part of an ambitious attempt to remake the city's taxi fleet, the TLC chose the Nissan NV200 as the city's exclusive new cab model. But the vehicle isn't wheelchair-accessible.

In a statement, David Yassky, the chairman of the TLC, called the lawsuit "misguided" because the commission was developing a new dispatch system that "will be in effect in less than six months and will provide for high-quality taxi service for all New Yorkers with disabilities."

The TLC had asked U.S. District Judge George B. Daniels to give it until mid-2012, when the agency expects to have implemented a dispatch system for wheelchair-accessible cabs, and the state legislature to pass a bill to increase the number of taxi medallions for wheelchair-accessible vehicles.

Currently, about 2% of New York City's roughly 13,000 yellow taxis have equipment that allows wheelchair users to get in and out. The Justice Department said the likelihood of a nondisabled person hailing a cab within 10 minutes is 87%, compared with just 3% for a disabled person.

The Justice Department said the TLC has an important regulatory role in managing the taxi fleet and must take action to make more of the fleet is accessible. It isn't enough, the department argued, for the city to say a dispatch system is in development to direct yellow taxis to customers.

The TLC "should not be allowed to continue to violate the [Americans with Disabilities Act] for an indeterminate amount of time based on their hope that the dispatch system will operate smoothly and the state legislature will pass a bill," Ms. Kuehler wrote.

A number of groups advocating for the rights of the disabled — United Spinal, the Taxis for All Campaign, 504 Democratic Club, and Disabled in Action—filed a lawsuit against the TLC, alleging the taxi fleet violates the Americans with Disabilities Act. Recent moves to add more sport-utility vehicles and hybrid vehicles has only made the access problem worse, the suit charges.

The lawsuit's supporters hailed the Justice Department's move, saying it adds heft to the allegations.

State Assemblyman Micah Kellner of the Upper East Side, who asked the Justice Department to intervene, said, "I'm thrilled that the highest law-enforcement agency in the land has agreed with me and with so many wheelchair-using New Yorkers that they have a right to use one of New York City's most iconic modes of transportation, taxis."

Taxis Must Accommodate Wheelchairs, U.S. Attorney Says, Supporting Advocates' Suit

2011-10-19T02:22:00.001-04:00

By MICHAEL M. GRYNBAUM

From The New York Times October 13, 2011

The United States attorney's office in Manhattan said on Thursday that the lack of wheelchair-accessible taxicabs in New York City violated the Americans With Disabilities Act and it urged a federal judge to force the city to quickly address the problem.

The remarks, issued in support of a lawsuit brought against the city in January by several disability rights groups, amounted to a strongly worded criticism of the Taxi and Limousine Commission, which has struggled to find ways to accommodate travelers who use wheelchairs.

It is unusual for the United States attorney to formally present a position on a pending lawsuit, but in a letter to the judge, the prosecutor, Preet Bharara, wrote that the federal government had "a strong interest in this matter" and urged the court to find in the plaintiffs' favor.

The city does not require yellow-cab owners to purchase wheelchair-accessible taxis, and only 232 vehicles in the 13,000-strong fleet can currently accommodate wheelchairs. The city recently selected a Nissan minivan that cannot accommodate wheelchairs to replace the entire taxi fleet over the next decade, prompting harsh criticism from disability advocates.

Mr. Bharara's office argued that it was "untenable" for the city to remain in violation of the disabilities act, even as the taxi commission is exploring other options to provide services to the disabled, including a high-tech dispatch system and the sale of additional medallions specifically for wheelchair-accessible cabs.

The taxi and limousine commissioner, David S. Yassky, said in a statement on Thursday that the lawsuit was misguided. "Our dispatch system will be in effect in less than six months and will provide for high-quality taxi service for all New Yorkers with disabilities," Mr. Yassky wrote.

But federal lawyers, who have been investigating the issue since May, said the city's plans to unveil a new dispatch program by early 2012 were "speculative" at best. "Defendants should not be allowed to continue to violate the A.D.A. for an indeterminate amount of time," Mr. Bharara's office wrote.

A ruling in the suit is not expected until November. Even if the judge, George B. Daniels of Federal District Court in Manhattan, rules against the city, it is unclear how soon a new policy fitting the requirements of the disabilities act could be created. But the Nissan minivan might have to be reconsidered.

The remarks from the United States attorney were welcomed by politicians and advocates.

"It's quite a statement when the highest law enforcement authority in the United States is saying that we need more accessibility in our taxi system," said Assemblyman Micah Z. Kellner, who filed a complaint about the issue in March with the Justice Department.

"It gives huge strength to our position when the federal government steps in and says 'we concur,' " Mr. Kellner added.

Taxis For All: Mayor's statements "ill-informed and outrageous"

2011-10-16T15:01:00.001-04:00

Statement of Edith Prentiss, Taxis For All Campaign, on Mayor Bloomberg's comments about Justice Department support for wheelchair-accessible taxis

October 14, 2011

"Mayor Bloomberg has got to be kidding if he believes the City can discriminate against wheelchair users because taxi drivers 'can't have a good dialogue' with them. There's no excuse for the mayor's ill-informed and outrageous attempt to defend years of unjustified resistance to wheelchair-accessible taxis by his administration.

When the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District -- whose Chambers Street office is a block from City Hall -- calls on a federal judge to rule in favor of wheelchair users, the mayor should wake up and listen.

As former TLC chairs Diane McGrath-McKechnie and Christopher Lynn wrote recently to the mayor, it's time to reverse the 'shameful lack of progress' and make all taxi and car services wheelchair accessible."

Mayor Bloomberg on WOR: "Wheelchair-bound" can't go into street to hail a cab

2011-10-16T14:17:00.003-04:00

TRANSCRIPT
John Gambling Show
WWOR
Friday, October 14, 2011
http://www.wor710.com/topic/play_window.php?audioType=Episode&audioId=5515156
21:56-25:20

Gambling: United States Attorney’s office here in Manhattan yesterday said that the lack of wheelchair-accessible taxicabs is a violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act. They want to force the city to have more accessible taxicabs of the 13,000. That’s going to be difficult? What’s your reaction?

Bloomberg: I think the cab industry will fight that tooth-and-nail. When the cabs are big enough for a wheelchair, a lot of the cab drivers say that the passengers sit farther away and they can’t establish a dialogue, and they get lower tips.

But the real answer to that, John, is the cabs that we picked so far [for the Taxi of Tomorrow] are easier for handicapped people that are not wheelchair bound [sic] and if you are in a wheelchair -- just, you know, the Justice Department I don’t think ever’s been to New York – you go out to the streets, you just cannot take generally a wheelchair out into the streets and try to hail a cab.

It’s dangerous and a lot of the cab drivers just would, I think, pretend that they didn’t see you. Some will, but some won’t. And it’s very hard to get them to stop, pull over and safely get you and your wheelchair in. So what we’ve come up with is a system where there would be a lot of wheelchair-accessible cabs but they would be, ummm, what’s the word I’m looking for, called by…

Gambling: A dispatch system.

Bloomberg: Dispatch, that’s the word I’m looking for. Ummm…the dispatch would be to pick you up when you need a wheelchair [-accessible taxi].

And we have this borough taxi bill that we’re trying to get through Albany, the governor’s helping us, many people oppose because it adds hundreds of new wheelchair-accessible cabs. And they just, a lot of these drivers don’t want to do it – it’s more expensive for them and they say, you know, not our responsibility.

But the bottom line that we want to make sure that everybody, those that need extra help get it and those that don’t get it, and all the services are provided at a price that people can afford and in all boroughs. Our problem at the moment is the yellow cabs really only operate south of 96th Street in Manhattan.

Gambling: Any new updates on that bill, that new bill?

Bloomberg: Passed by the senate, passed by the assembly. The governor I talked to recently, a few days ago, says there’s a few tweaks that he thought might improve the bill, and if it does that’s great. But I have no reason to think that this bill isn’t going to come into law. If you take a look, it’s interesting, some of the yellow cab drivers don’t like it because they say it will hurt their revenues. A taxi medallion today sells for six-seven hundred thousand dollars. I think that when we originally gave out medallions and somebody made them transferable, nobody ever thought there’d be this enormous windfall. And there’s actually a company, the ticker symbol is TAXI, appropriately, that owns a bunch of medallions, and I just looked at their stock yesterday, or the day before, and it was at a record high, so the marketplace doesn’t think that this is going to hurt the yellow cab.

Gambling: But the governor says he thinks it’s going to go?

Bloomberg: The governor was very encouraging, is a nice way to phrase it.

Taxis For All Campaign releases TV ad on lack of accessibility in City's taxi proposal

2011-10-05T09:25:00.008-04:00

Taxis For All Campaign
For wheelchair-accessible taxis and liveries in New York City, based upon universal design principles

For Immediate Release: October 5, 2011
Contact: Joseph G. Rappaport, 646-284-1078

New ad opposing mayor’s taxi plan
to hit New York City and Albany TV stations today

Taxis For All Campaign ad to run on cable TV over the next week

New Yorkers who are disabled tell Mayor Bloomberg: Your livery street-hail plan “leaves wheelchair users stranded”

A new 30-second TV ad taking aim at Mayor Bloomberg’s plan to create 30,000 street hail permits without adding one new wheelchair-accessible vehicle is set to run on New York City and Albany TV stations starting today.

The Taxis For All Campaign is running the ad as part of its drive to convince city and state leaders that a street-hail system must be fully accessible to wheelchair users. Taxis For All is a coalition of New York City’s leading disability groups and some individuals.

“New Yorkers who are disabled are treated like second-class citizens under Mayor Bloomberg’s street-hail proposal,” said Edith Prentiss, chair of the Taxis For All Campaign. “It’s just plain wrong to triple the number of cars that can pick up passengers on the street, while leaving New Yorkers who use wheelchairs stranded.”

The 30-second commercial features New Yorkers in wheelchairs and dramatically illustrates how they wouldn’t be able to hail taxis if state legislation pushed by City Hall earlier this year is signed. (See link and script, below.)

It will be broadcast over the next week on CNN, MSNBC, NY1, and YNN, in New York City and Albany.

The Taxis for All Campaign, formed in 1996, has been a strong supporter of a fully accessible taxi and livery fleet and has protested legislation to increase street hails outside of the Manhattan business district without providing full accessibility. In July, the organization wrote Governor Cuomo asking that he block the legislation, noting that the bill “would continue to shut wheelchair users out of using New York City's vast taxi system." (See letter in previous post on this site.)

The ad focuses on Mayor Bloomberg because the city has thus far opposed requiring wheelchair-accessible taxis as a part of its street-hail plan.

“The mayor’s plan aims to increase taxis for ‘underserved’ neighborhoods, but meanwhile the people who are really not served – wheelchair users – are left at the curb,” said Terry Moakley, chair of VetsFirst. His group is a project of the United Spinal Association in Queens, the ad’s sponsor.

Wheelchair-accessible taxis, which use a simple ramp, are widely available; London’s system is fully accessible.

The ad may be viewed at: http://www.youtube.com/user/TaxisForAll

-----------

Script for “Not Even One More Car”

:30
Sound: Bustling, energetic sounding street noise.

Visual: Fairly crowded street / sidewalk.

VO: Making more taxis available in New York could be a good thing. But not Mayor Bloomberg’s plan.

Sound: Street noise fades to music; sad/ominous

Visual: Person in wheelchair on corner sidewalk, looking out at street forlornly

VO: Rather than making sure people who are disabled can get a ride, Mayor Bloomberg’s flawed plan lets livery cars pick up passengers from the street – without making even one more car wheelchair-accessible in the boroughs.
Visual: Woman on phone

VO: The mayor’s bill also means fewer cars available for those who can call for one. So those who already have trouble finding a ride will find it even harder.
Visual: Close on a sad-looking person, looking to camera
VO: Tell Mayor Bloomberg his livery bill leaves wheelchair-users stranded.

Visual: Tell Mayor Bloomberg his livery bill leaves wheelchair-users stranded.
Call 311

Taxis for All
Paid for by the United Spinal Association

# # #

Taxis For All Campaign's July 29th letter to Gov. Cuomo on lack of accessibility in street-hail plan

2011-10-05T09:22:00.004-04:00

Taxis For All Campaign
For wheelchair-accessible taxis and liveries in New York City, based upon universal design principles
Members include: Bronx Independent Living Services & Disabilities Network of NYC • Brooklyn Center for Independence of the Disabled • Center for Independence of the Disabled, New York • Disabled in Action of Metropolitan New York • Harlem Independent Living Center • National Multiple Sclerosis Society, NYC-Southern New York Chapter • United Spinal Association • VetsFirst • 504 Dems-North Star • 504 Democratic Club

July 29, 2011

Hon. Andrew Cuomo
Governor, State of New York
Executive Chamber, State Capitol
Albany, New York 12224

Re: Opposition to A.8496/S.5825 – focus on liveries

Dear Governor Cuomo:

We are writing to reiterate in greater depth our opposition to A.8496/S.5825 as it concerns the livery system’s expansion into legal street hails. In addition, we write to ask to meet with you to discuss how this legislation should be amended before it becomes law.

In our June 12, 2011 letter to you, we urged you not to sign this bill without major revisions, since as written it would continue to shut wheelchair users out of using New York City’s vast taxi system. Only one in 18 yellow taxis would be accessible, and virtually no livery cabs would be useable by those who use wheelchairs.

It is particularly striking and distressing that a bill purportedly intended to expand taxi service to underserved neighborhoods actually does the opposite when it comes to New York City’s wheelchair users. This represents a step backwards, not forward, in a state in which equitable access for all to transportation should be a basic goal.

As many as 30,000 street hail permits -- but not one new additional accessible vehicle

For those wheelchair users who live in neighborhoods now served primarily by liveries, A.8496/S.5825 is particularly onerous. The bill’s writers didn’t even make a token effort, as they did for the yellow taxi system, to improve taxi service for wheelchair users: there is no attempt to add accessible liveries whatsoever.

In our original letter, we mistakenly referred to a system in which only 1,500 street-hail permits would be allowed. Actually, the legislation would permit up to 30,000 street-hail permits, a vast transformation of the livery and taxi system.

That means that a livery system already known by wheelchair users to offer little to no service would expand that service extensively to street hails. Wheelchair users, already at a disadvantage in finding service in neighborhoods like Washington Heights, Flushing and Bay Ridge through the current radio dispatch system, would now find their neighbors able to hail taxis while they continue to have few options for wheelchair-accessible transport.

Coupled with a yellow taxi system with only one in 18 accessible vehicles (under the legislation), this is a classic illustration of the phrase “adding insult to injury.”

Accessible livery service today and the City’s lack of enforcement

While the City advocates for more livery service outside of the central business, it has a very sorry record of ensuring that accessible livery service in provided in those same neighborhoods. This is in spite of the City’s own legal commitment to accessible livery service. Since 2001, the Taxi and Limousine Commission has had a regulation that requires equivalent service for wheelchair users (Taxi and Limousine Commission Rulebook, Section 59B-17), stating:

“Whether the Base dispatches its own Accessible Vehicles or contracts with another Base, the Base Owner must provide ‘equivalent service’ to persons with disabilities.”

The TLC then defines equivalent service, which includes comparable “response time to requests for service,” hours and days of service availability” and the “ability to accept reservations” for those who request a wheelchair-accessible vehicle.

Unfortunately, this regulation is routinely ignored by livery operators, and the TLC has rarely enforced it. Our members typically are told by livery operators that there is no accessible vehicle available, or they are told to call another number to reach a separate livery company, which is on contract with the base to provide accessible service. Service often is not available from the contracted company either, which can be very far away. For example, one individual in our group found that her local livery operator in Bay Ridge has contracted with a company in Astoria, Queens – about a 90-minute trip just for the pick-up. Since other livery taxi users can call for a ride and get one in a matter of minutes, this surely does not meet the TLC’s own rules.

The City has long known of the lack of accessible service for livery users. Over the past 15 years, we have met repeatedly with Taxi and Limousine Commission officials, mayoral representatives, city council members and taxi industry representatives to advocate for increased livery (and yellow taxi) service for wheelchair users.

In fact, the lack of livery service is one of the reasons our groups – composed of the region’s largest disability groups – formed the Taxis For All Campaign in 1996. Our members had observed in their travels that cities like Boston and Las Vegas offered a substantial number of accessible hail and radio-call taxis. We also talked with colleagues in London, where every single taxi is accessible, a transition that started in 1989.

We note also that affordable accessible vehicles are readily available (and a new, purpose-built accessible taxi, the MV-1, is expected to come off the factory line later this year). In our earlier letter, we proposed ways of funding the purchase of accessible vehicles if necessary.

The city’s failed dispatch program

Instead of moving forward so that all New Yorkers have taxi service wherever they live and whether or not they use wheelchairs, the City of New York proposes instead to offer dispatch service, in which wheelchair users would call a central number and a wheelchair-accessible vehicle would be sent their way. Unfortunately, there are serious practical drawbacks to this proposal.

Chief among them is that the City has already tried to offer dispatch service in a two-year “pilot” between 2008-2010. In “Stranded,” a 2009 analysis of the dispatch program after its first year of operation, Assembly Member Micah Kellner found that:

• callers were often told that no vehicle could be dispatched to them;
• callers often waited long periods for pick-ups, if a vehicle was actually dispatched;
• the service was generally not available on evenings and weekends; and
• the TLC did not advertise the program, leading to minimal demand.

In spite of the assembly member’s report, no improvements were made in the final year. We are justifiably doubtful that a new version of the program would work.

Beyond that, however, is a fundamental question of fairness. Why should one group of New Yorkers and visitors find themselves unable to use the regular system of livery vehicles, merely because they are in wheelchairs? Why, instead, does the City want to relegate wheelchair users to a separate and unequal system of transportation? The government rightly would reject attempts to restrict fair access to the transportation system to other groups based on their appearance or physical characteristics. Wheelchair users should be treated no differently.

A.8496 and S.5825 would make a fundamental change in the taxi system. But it should be done right the first time. As you consider this bill, we request the chance to meet with you to discuss how this legislation can get equal access on New York City’s taxis and liveries for everyone. To arrange a meeting, contact Edith Prentiss at 917-733-3794. We hope to meet with you soon.

Yours truly,

Edith Prentiss, Chair
Taxis For All Campaign
c/o 739 West 186th Street, Apt. 4E
New York, New York 10033

Cc: Lawrence Schwartz
Mylan Denerstein

NY Post: "705G for cab medallions"

2011-08-09T11:40:00.005-04:00

Link to original post: http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/for_cab_medallions_P2WKINwnDia0zlgYlaKI3N#ixzz1UXy11kBg

By JENNIFER FERMINO

Last Updated: 11:31 AM, August 8, 2011

Posted: 2:37 AM, August 8, 2011

There's still at least one bull market in town.

Three taxi medallions sold last week for record high prices -- including two for a whopping $705,000 -- despite speculation that the good-as-gold aluminum plates would plummet in value because of Mayor Bloomberg's five-borough taxi plan.

The previous high price for a taxi medallion was $695,000.

Such strong sales are evidence that giving certain liveries the right to pick up street hails in upper Manhattan and the outer boroughs won't dent the value of medallions, city officials said.

"The Taxi & Limousine Commission does not believe that the five-borough plan will hurt yellow taxis," said TLC Commissioner David Yassky.

But some in the industry are not convinced.

Last week's purchase was negotiated before the plan passed the state Legislature, said a financier of one of the record-breaking sales.

City facing double legal woes for wheelchair-unfriendly taxis

2011-05-26T20:03:00.000-04:00

By Sheila Anne Feeney

Link to original content:
http://www.amny.com/urbanite-1.812039/city-facing-double-legal-woes-for-wheelchair-unfriendly-taxis-1.2901108

Photo credit: Courtesy of City of New York

The "taxi of tomorrow" is turning into the nightmare of today for the Taxi and Limousine Commission.

On Tuesday, a judge nixed the City's attempt to dismiss a lawsuit to invalidate its selection of the Nissan NV200 – which is not wheelchair accessible -- by a leading civil rights group. The group, Disability Rights Advocates, can now proceed in its legal effort to stop the city from ordering a custom-created vehicle that cannot accommodate people in wheelchairs.

"It's an issue that's not being solved politically, so I'm thrilled that we have the avenue to address it in courts," said Julia Pinover, supervising staff attorney for DRA New York City.

"We are confident that we will prevail once the full merits are heard," countered Connie Pankratz, deputy communications director for the NYC Law Department.

The ruling by U.S. District Court Judge George Daniels in Manhattan came a day after taxi medallion owners began receiving letters from the Department of Justice, indicating that a federal investigation was underway as to whether the city is in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act.

A spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney, which deals with DOJ complaints locally, said it is office policy not to discuss, or even confirm, investigations, but Gabriel Taussig, chief of New York City's Administrative Law Division, acknowledged the probe while expressing confidence that the feds would "reach the same conclusions that we did."

The federal investigation was triggered by a March 29 complaint sent by Assemblyman Micah Z. Kellner, D., Manhattan, to the U.S. Department of Justice. He fired off another blistering missive to the U.S. Attorney this week, alleging, among other things:

That allowing able-bodied citizens to hail one of 13,237 cabs via a "demand responsive" system while requiring the city's 60,000 wheelchair-bound citizens to summon one of only 232 accessible cabs via a dispatch service constitutes "a completely separate and unequal transportation system."

That wheelchair users have to wait an average of 34 minutes for cabs after calling for one, whereas it took a person in the street 5.4 minutes to hail a cab in midtown in one 2001 study. Waiting seven times longer "proves that this system does not meet the equivalent response time" requirements in the ADA, said Kellner.

That it is not clear if the city's plan "is even viable" due to user fees the TLC plans to impose on medallion owners to support the dispatch service.

Pankratz countered that even though the ADA "specifically exempts taxicabs" from any requirement that they be accessible to people with wheelchairs , the TLC is developing a program that constitutes "equivalent service."

Advocates have said the ADA exemption for taxicabs is intended to apply only to cities where everyone uses dispatch services for cabs.

A TLC spokesman previously told amNY that a Nissan NV200 version that is wheelchair accessible would add $14,000 to the $29,000 vehicle. But Pinover said yesterday that the city has enough leverage, given the size of its order, to have the cars modified for as little as an additional $3,000.

While 1.8% of today's fleet is wheelchair accessible (medallions for accessible cars cost less) the owners of conventional vehicles can volitionally decide to "hack up" their cars to make them accessible. "Out of the whole 13,000, only one person has chosen to do that," said Pinover.

Pinover said "it would not be prudent" to proceed with the Nissan contract, given the Department of Justice investigation and her group's pending litigation. Pankratz said the city is free to "continue with the process."

Suit Asking City to Make All Cabs Wheelchair Accessible Moves Forward

2011-05-26T19:50:00.001-04:00

Tuesday, May 24, 2011

Link to original content:

http://www.wnyc.org/articles/wnyc-news/2011/may/24/lawsuit-aims/

By Kathleen Horan

A class action lawsuit that calls for the future taxi fleet to be fully wheelchair accessible is moving forward after a judge Tuesday denied the city's request to have it dismissed.

A group of disability advocates filed the suit against the Taxi and Limousine Commission as it finalizes plans to make the Nissan NV200 the taxi model for the next decade, arguing the city is violating the Americans with Disabilities Act by having 231 wheelchair-accessible taxis on the road with more than 13,000 yellow cabs total on the road.

A lawyer for the city contended no federal or local law requires cabs to be accessible to people in wheelchairs but that the city was moving forward with a dispatch system for disabled. She requested the case be dismissed, but Federal Judge George Daniels denied it.

"The city is constantly imposing requirements on taxis," said James Weisman with the United Spinal Association, one of the plaintiffs, "all they'd have to say is new cabs have to be accessible and it solves the problem."

About a dozen disabled New Yorkers held signs expressing frustration about not being able to hail and roll into any random taxi outside the hearing.

Judge Daniels ordered that both sides in the case move forward with the discovery phase before appearing before him again in August.

Wheelchair Access in Taxis Is Focus of U.S. Investigation

2011-05-26T19:49:00.000-04:00

By MICHAEL M. GRYNBAUM
Published: May 23, 2011

Link to original content:

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/24/nyregion/us-inquiry-into-wheelchair-access-in-new-york-taxis.html?_r=1

The United States attorney's office in Manhattan has opened an investigation into whether the lack of wheelchair-accessible taxicabs in New York City amounts to a violation of parts of the Americans With Disabilities Act.

The investigation, revealed on Monday in letters mailed to city lawyers and owners of taxi medallions, could result in the federal government's bringing a civil case against the Taxi and Limousine Commission, which regulates which vehicles can be used as taxicabs.

Taxicab owners are not required by the city to operate vehicles that are accessible to the disabled. The Nissan NV200, the minivan chosen by the city as its exclusive yellow cab for the next decade, will not provide access either.

Federal lawyers are conducting "a thorough evaluation" of whether this complies with the disabilities act, which prohibits local governments, or private groups that provide public transportation services, from discriminating against the disabled, according to the letter sent to medallion owners.

The issue attracted the attention of federal lawyers after Assemblyman Micah Z. Kellner filed a complaint in March with the Justice Department. The city responded by pointing out that it does issue medallions for wheelchair-accessible taxicabs, and that taxi officials were planning a program to arrange cab rides by telephone for the disabled.

A spokeswoman for the United States attorney's office declined to comment on Monday. Officials at the Taxi and Limousine Commission directed questions to the city's Law Department.

"We are confident that any evaluation conducted will reach the same conclusions that we did after a careful analysis," said Gabriel Taussig, chief attorney of the city's administrative law division, in an e-mailed statement.

Several medallion owners received the letter on Monday from the United States attorney, which asked how owners determine which vehicles to use as cabs and whether federal rules are taken into account.

In a brief interview, Mr. Kellner said he was glad that the government was looking into the issue. "But I'm sad we have to turn to our court system for people with disabilities' rights to be enforced," he said.

U.S. DOT wants videos of intelligent transportation

2011-05-26T19:48:00.000-04:00

May 23, 2011 12:14 PM

Link to original content:

http://americancityandcounty.com/technology/transportation-intelligent-video-20110523/

The development of Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) — the use of information and communications technology to improve traffic flow and safety — is still young, but the U.S. Department of Transportation (U.S. DOT) is looking for videos that demonstrate how it is making transportation better in communities. The best overall video will be honored at the 2011 ITS World Congress in Orlando, Fla., in October.

To enter in U.S. DOT's ITS video challenge, participants must create an original video highlighting the deployment of ITS technology in their community. Videos should focus on one example of ITS deployment for any type of surface transportation, including pedestrians, bicyclists, transit, auto and freight.

Entrants should upload the video to YouTube and e-mail the URL link for the video to U.S. DOT at open@dot.gov. Entries must have "ITS Video Challenge" on the entry e-mail's subject line. The e-mail should include the name and affiliation of each team member and the non-personal email address of the team member who will serve as the main point of contact. Videos will be evaluated based on the participants' description of the ITS technology's deployment, the benefits of the ITS technology and the creativity of presentation.

Authorized travel expenses will be paid for up to four members of the winning team to attend the ITS World Congress in Orlando, Fla., on October 16-20. In addition, video entries may be recognized by the U.S. DOT through the Secretary of Transportation's "Fast Lane" blog on the U.S. DOT Research and Innovative Technology Administration website, or shown on the U.S. DOT's YouTube channel.

June 30 is the deadline to enter the contest. The ITS Video Challenge is sponsored by the U.S. DOT Research and Innovative Technology Administration, Federal Highway Administration, and Federal Transit Administration.

Read more information about the U.S. DOT's ITS video challenge.

Judge Allows Disabled Activists' Lawsuit For Taxi Access

2011-05-26T19:07:00.001-04:00

By: Tina Redwine, NY1 reporter

Link to original content and video of segment:

http://www.ny1.com/content/top_stories/139708/judge-allows-disabled-activists--lawsuit-for-taxi-access

Advocates for the disabled won a decisive round on Tuesday in court against the city, when a federal judge refused to dismiss a lawsuit against the Taxi and Limousine Commission to make all city taxi cabs wheelchair accessible. NY1's Transit reporter Tina Redwine filed the following report.

Advocates for the disabled were rejoicing Tuesday after a federal judge refused to dismiss their lawsuit against the Taxi and Limousine Commission to make all taxi cabs wheelchair accessible.

"It's a fantastic move. Maybe in the next 12, 18 months, we'll actually be able to hail some cabs out here on New York City streets," said activist David McCauley.

Three groups, including Disabled In Action, are behind the suit.

The city points out that no federal or local law requires accessible cabs. In fact, city lawyers say the Americans with Disabilities Act specifically exempts taxicabs from the requirement.

The judge said given that less than 2 percent of medallions are issued to accessible cabs, there are grounds to take the discrimination suit to trial.

Plaintiffs say with the city pushing ahead with its so-called "taxi of the future," which they say is not accessible, the disabled will be shut out for years.

"I feel the city is being obstinate about its decision now. There is no logic to it," said James Weisman of the United Spinal Association.

City lawyers say that is not the case, as there is a version of the new taxi that will take a wheelchair, although owners will not be forced to buy it.

The city also says the TLC is developing a dispatch program for the disabled to call for an accessible cab.

Still, advocates say that is not enough.

"I work and pay taxes, I vote. So I have a right to get into a taxi just like everyone else. I think it's shameful Bloomberg doesn't see this," said activist Milagros Franco.

Both sides are due back in court on August 10.

Taxis For All Campaign statement on today's court ruling

2011-05-24T19:41:00.000-04:00

TAXIS FOR ALL CAMPAIGN

For wheelchair-accessible taxis and liveries in New York City, based upon universal design principles

Statement of Edith Prentiss, Chair of Taxis For All Campaign,

on Rejection by Judge George B. Daniels of City's Motion

to Dismiss Accessible Taxi Lawsuit

May 24, 2011

"We're elated by Judge Daniels's decision—made from the bench—to reject the City's attempt to get Noel v. TLC dismissed.

Our attorneys made it clear that the City's attempts to claim that federal and state law do not apply to its regulation of the taxi system are wrong."

In his decision, Judge Daniels said he wanted to know if the TLC is taking steps that would result in "reasonable, meaningful access" for wheelchair users. He called for discovery in the case to move forward in anticipation of a conference with the plaintiffs, represented by Disabilities Rights Advocates, and the defendant—the City of New York--on August 10.

Before oral arguments, plaintiffs and other supporters in the case held a news conference outside the United States Courthouse of the Southern District in downtown Manhattan, holding signs reading, "NYC & TLC: Obey the Law" and "Taxi Roulette—1 in 57 Chance" with a picture of a roulette wheel. This is a reference to the fact that there are only 232 wheelchair-accessible taxis out of 13,237 taxis in New York City.

For more information, please contact Joseph G. Rappaport at 646-284-1078, 212-662-4449 or jgrappaport @ rocketmail.com.

Disability rights group seeks to halt new cabs

2011-05-20T20:26:00.000-04:00

By SHEILA ANNE FEENEY

Link to original content:

http://www.amny.com/urbanite-1.812039/disability-rights-group-seeks-to-halt-new-cabs-1.2885176

Photo credit: Courtesy of City of New York

A leading U.S. disability-rights group is suing the Taxi and Limousine Commission to put the brakes on the Nissan minivan heralded as the "taxi of tomorrow," amNewYork has learned.

Disability Rights Advocates, in a suit filed in U.S. District Court in Manhattan, argues that choosing the Nissan NV200 – which cannot accommodate wheelchairs - as the standard taxi cab of NYC violates city law as well as the Americans with Disabilities Act.

The group wants an injunction to halt the order of the vehicles, which are to start appearing on city streets in 2013 and will eventually number more than 13,000.

The failure to make accessibility a mandatory part of the design-competition specifications was "a profoundly mean-spirited and unwise decision," said Sid Wolinsky, director of litigation for the group.

"London has a completely accessible taxi-cab fleet," and the medallion competition represented "an extraordinary opportunity for the city of New York to have a win-win," he said.

The city rejects arguments that the new yellows cabs violate the law, and will appear in U.S. District Court in Manhattan Tuesday to file a motion to dismiss the lawsuit.

"No federal or local law requires that taxicabs be accessible to people with wheelchairs, and in fact, the ADA specifically exempts taxicabs from the requirement," said Connie Pankratz, deputy communications director for the New York City Law Department.

The advocacy group contends the exemption is only for private car services, and doesn't apply to vans such as the Nissan NV200.

The group says it filed the suit only after unsuccessfully trying to meet with TLC officials, an offer they say was rebuffed.

TLC spokesman Allan Fromberg rejected that characterization.

The city has some 60,000 wheelchair users, and an unknown number of tourists and business travelers who also rely on personal wheels.

They already face considerable obstacles in New York, because 75 percent of the subway stops are inaccessible, Wolinsky said. Most galling, he continued, is that the same Nissan van chosen by the city "comes in a version with a ramp that is fully accessible."

That version costs about $14,000 more per car, said Fromberg. The cars now cost $29,000 each.

Fromberg added that the city will be implementing a system whereby disabled people can call 311 at any time and request a wheelchair-accessible taxi. (About 1.8 percent of the current fleet is accessible.)

Calling and waiting a half hour or more is not an equivalent service, complained Goldie Willoughby, 53, of Roosevelt Island, a lawyer who uses a wheelchair: "Look at all the problems they have with Access-A-Ride! It's slow and unreliable. We want to be able to hail a cab just like anyone else."

United Spinal Denounces New York City Taxi Pick

2011-05-19T01:49:00.000-04:00

Link to original content:
http://www.unitedspinal.org/2011/05/04/united-spinal-denounces-new-york-city-taxi-pick/

NEW YORK, NY—May 4th, 2011 – United Spinal Association responded today to the choice of the Bloomberg administration and New York City Taxi & Limousine Commission (TLC) as it failed to pick the next generation taxi that could save taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars, as well as serve wheelchair users and the fast growing aging population.

"If this decision holds, it will be a black eye on the legacy of Mayor Bloomberg's administration as it is financially inexcusable and perpetuates discrimination against people with disabilities for the next ten years," stated James Weisman, United Spinal Association senior vice president and general counsel.

Mr. Weisman pointed out that the MTA could use wheelchair accessible taxis and greatly reduce the Access-A-Ride program that cost taxpayers $470 million dollars yearly, equivalent to the entire Metro North Budget.

The City overlooked a wheelchair- and scooter-friendly taxi made by a Turkish company, Karsan that could be made in Brooklyn employing 800 workers and chose, instead, a Nissan cab.

The New York Daily News and The New York Times reported Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz, Assemblyman Micah Kellner and Public Advocate Bill DiBlasio have already called on city Comptroller John Liu to investigate the selection process, alleging a possible conflict of interest.

"The question is why overlook the needs and rights of tens of thousands of New Yorkers and countless visitors from all over the world when it would cost the City nothing, save MTA money and keep people with disabilities and seniors mobile?" added Mr. Weisman.

Mr. Weisman drafted significant portions of the Americans with Disabilities Act and pointed out that every taxi in London can accommodate wheelchair users.

ADVOCACY FOR ACCESSIBLE TAXIS IN NEW YORK CITY

2010-12-30T18:39:00.001-05:00

Moakley, Terence J.
Director, Taxis For All – North America
United Spinal Association
75-20 Astoria Blvd.
Jackson Heights, New York 11370-1177
United States

SUMMARY

This paper presents the events of advocacy for accessible yellow taxis in New York City over the last ten years, from the perspective of a wheelchair user who was in a leadership position among these advocates.

Read rest of the article at http://www.tc.gc.ca/eng/policy/transed2007-pages-1257-1991.htm

Nissan, Turkish car company Karsan, are the frontrunners for new NYC taxi design

2010-10-19T19:46:00.002-04:00

Article can be found at http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/2010/10/19/
2010-10-19_nissan_turkish_car_company_karsan_are_
the_frontrunners_for_new_nyc_taxi_design.html#ixzz12qUwjnXb

BY Pete Donohue
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER

Originally Published: Tuesday, October 19th 2010, 4:00 AM
Updated: Tuesday, October 19th 2010, 5:25 PM

Two cab designs have pulled ahead of the pack in the race to be the city's new - and ultimately only - yellow taxi, the Daily News has learned.

Proposals from Japanese giant Nissan and virtually unknown Turkish manufacturer Karsan have a leg up in the competition run by the Taxi and Limousine Commission, two sources familiar with the process said.

The Karsan model, which has been unveiled in Turkey, features a sleek, futuristic design with a see-through glass roof for tourists and curious New Yorkers.

Nissan's design is based on a more muscular and boxy line of NV200 vans, including a "vanette" taxi option.

At least four companies have submitted proposals to supply the "Taxi of Tomorrow," sources said.

Ford, which is no longer building Crown Victorias, is promoting a version of its Transit Connect wagon as a yellow taxi. GM is also believed to be in the race.

The stakes are high. Starting in 2014, owners of the city's 13,000 yellow taxis will have to start replacing old cabs with the model chosen by the TLC.

Changing over the entire fleet is expected to take four to five years.

TLC Chairman David Yassky wouldn't say who has submitted bids or discuss specifics of individual proposals, but he said each design will be assigned scores based on durability, performance, passenger comfort and fuel economy.

The winning design also must create an "iconic vehicle that can be identified with New York City and exemplifies the character of the city," Yassky said.

Although an initial round of evaluations has taken place, final scores have not been assigned, Yassky said.

The city may request "best and final offers" before making a selection by the end of the year, Yassky said.

Before the final array of features on the "Taxi of Tomorrow" are fixed, the agency will ask for public input.

Advocates for the disabled, including Assemblyman Micah Kellner (D-Manhattan), who has cerebral palsy, are hoping the competition results in a taxi fleet that is 100% wheelchair-accessible.

Kellner said he believes Karsan is the only bidder proposing that every cab rolling off the assembly line be accessible.

The Karsan cab includes ramps that automatically can be extended to the curb. Now, only about 240 yellow cabs are wheelchair-accessible.

Agency admits wheelchair-taxi program a bust

2010-07-15T19:18:00.000-04:00

Article can be found at http://www.crainsnewyork.com/article/20100715/FREE/100719906

System to dispatch accessible cabs was found to be underutilized; the cost of a call to hail the specialized cabs: $177.

By Jeremy Smerd
Crain's New York

Published: July 15, 2010 - 2:01 pm

The Taxi & Limousine Commission acknowledged yesterday the failure of a recently concluded two-year $1 million program to provide dispatch service to wheelchair users.

Hailing accessible cabs has long been nearly impossible due to their rarity, but incredibly, the dispatch initiative did not help.

"Generally the program was very expensive and unfortunately not well-utilized," TLC head David Yassky told state Assemblymen during a hearing on legislation to require all taxis to accommodate wheelchair-users.

Calls to the dispatcher, expected to average 250 a day, hovered around eight – or about $177 a call. Only 2,701 wheelchair users of an estimated 60,000 citywide used the service.

The program was intended to gauge demand for wheelchair-accessible cabs. Officials had hoped increased demand would spur more taxi owners to outfit their cabs with ramps.

But drivers hated the program, taxi-industry executives said during an Assembly hearing yesterday. A requirement that drivers with accessible cabs enroll in the dispatch program led many to avoid purchasing such cabs altogether. Drivers skipped mandatory training programs on operating wheelchair ramps and ignored calls for rides, preferring instead to be fined.

Wait times for riders using the dispatch service averaged 30 minutes, the TLC says. Dispatchers did not have GPS systems to locate the cabs nearest to customers, although the TLC says that wouldn't have mattered because cabbies could refuse up to two calls per shift.

Mr. Yassky said the program may have been doomed from the start because many wheelchair users are on fixed incomes and don't take cabs.

Ethan Gerber, executive director of the Greater New York Taxi Association, whose members operate many of the city's 240 wheelchair-accessible taxicabs, says the program's failure was predictable because taxis, unlike livery cars, are designed for street hails, not dispatch service.

Livery cars did not participate in the program. A TLC report on the program is due later this summer.

Smoothing the Way

2010-05-01T13:05:00.000-04:00

By TANYA MOHN

Link to original article: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/27/business/27disabled.html?scp=5&sq=disabilities&st=cse

People with disabilities never have an easy time traveling, but a rash of recent improvements, including more wheelchair-accessible taxis and rental vehicles — and even Web sites for people with dexterity or vision problems — have made it easier.

New regulations updating the Air Carrier Access Act, for instance, extend coverage to flights by foreign airlines originating or landing in the United States, or ticketed through American carriers.

Airlines are required to provide accommodations for people who travel with oxygen and other respiratory assistance, fly with service animals or have impaired hearing or vision. If passengers are unable to use automated kiosks to check in or to print boarding passes, for example, carriers must provide assistance at the kiosk or allow them to go to the front of the line.

"In many countries, people with disabilities have very few rights," said Eric Lipp, executive director of the Open Doors Organization, a nonprofit group in Chicago serving disabled people. "It is easier to travel overseas now." Mr. Lipp was an instructor for a recent training session for foreign commercial airlines, which his group sponsored with the International Air Transport Association.

Open Doors estimates that people with disabilities spend about $15 billion annually on travel. And as life expectancy grows, the number of people with disabilities is expected to increase, too. Mr. Lipp said that based on census data, nearly a quarter of the American population is expected to have some disability by 2030.

"It’s not charity any longer," said Jani Nayar, executive coordinator for the Society for Accessible Travel and Hospitality. "This is good for business."

Web sites are not explicitly addressed in the Americans With Disabilities Act, passed almost 20 years ago, but a growing number are accessible, experts say.

Shane Cameron, vice president for marketing at Points.com, a Web site that allows members to trade points or miles among loyalty programs, said the company recently installed software provided by the company Essential Accessibility. "Those are customers we wouldn’t have reached," he said.

"The software effectively serves as a virtual wheelchair" said Simon Dermer, managing director of Essential Accessibility, by using technologies like a hands-free mouse, activated with a Web camera that uses face tracking.

Rental cars with hand controls are now widely available, and wheelchair-accessible rental vans are becoming more common.

Nick Gutwein, president of BraunAbility, a company that converts vans to be accessible, said it was possible to "fly into many cities across the country and easily rent a wheelchair-accessible vehicle." But, he added, "you couldn’t do that two or three years ago." Most of the company’s network of 208 rental dealers across the country provide rentals.

Peter Schenkman, former assistant commissioner for the New York City Taxi and Limousine Commission, said more American cities have wheelchair-accessible taxis in their fleets. But it is virtually impossible to hail one, and rare to find one waiting at the airport in New York, he said, because, as in most cities, accessible taxis represent a small percentage of fleets.

Mr. Lipp, of Open Doors, who walks with a brace and cane and uses an electric scooter since spinal cord tumors left him partially paralyzed, recalled trying to hail a cab near the Transportation Department in Washington. "Taxi cabs would not pick me up because they didn’t want to deal with my scooter. I had to ask a police officer to make one of them stop."

It takes time to help a disabled person traveling with equipment, he said, but with the meter off, drivers lose money.

Mr. Schenkman said many cab owners cannot afford to convert vehicles because the costs are prohibitive.

In Europe and Asia, a number of major car manufactures have produced wheelchair-accessible vehicles from scratch for taxi and general use. They are not available in the United States, but in the fall, the Vehicle Production Group of Miami plans to introduce one, the MV-1, to the American market, Mr. Schenkman said. Nissan and Karsan, a Turkish company, are expected to produce similar vehicles in the next few years, he said.

Mr. Lipp said vehicles like the MV-1 "will revolutionize taxis."

James Weisman, senior vice president and general counsel for the United Spinal Association, a nonprofit group, said spontaneity and mobility on the road are crucial for business travelers. "Without that, they lose the competitive edge."

Other hurdles to mobility remain.

"Right now, only 20 percent of Amtrak’s stations are A.D.A. compliant," Mr. Weisman said, and most of those are in the Northeast.

Kleo King, another senior vice president for the spinal association, which runs Able to Travel, a travel agency for the disabled, says that while it is easier now to rent accessible vans, and the companies that provide them offer excellent customer service, they are often costly and hard to find in rural areas.

Paul J. Tobin, president of the spinal association, who is quadriplegic, spoke of problems he had encountered at hotels. Mr. Tobin said the rooms were technically accessible but were so packed with furniture, it could be almost impossible to maneuver in a wheelchair, and the extra-thick mattresses made the beds too high to reach. He said he sometimes had to call in bellmen to remove furniture.

Peter Zarba, sales manager for Bussani Mobility in Bethpage, N.Y., who is quadriplegic, said, "Hotels will say, ‘Sure, we have accessible rooms,’ but accessible means different things to different people." Roll-in showers are rare. If they are available, the water controls are often too far from the bench to reach, and grab bars are in inconvenient places, he said.

"I can’t tell you how many times at hotels there is a lower registration desk area, required by A.D.A. law," Mr. Zarba said, "but how often it is blocked by a large vase of flowers or a potted plant."

Restaurants, too, are often designed to be compliant, but tables may be too close for a wheelchair to pass, or the restroom may be at the far end, requiring him to pass by almost everyone.

"Businesses often adhere to the letter of the law, but don’t understand the spirit," he said.

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2010-04-26T22:51:00.001-04:00

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Accessible cabs called "high priority" by NYMTC

2009-05-11T13:30:00.011-04:00

We see that the region's transportation planning council, NYMTC, calls increasing the number of accessible taxis in New York City and the Lower Hudson Valley a "high" priority.

That's in the draft executive summary of its report on improving transportation for "persons with disabilities, older adults and persons with lower income." (To read the entire report, go to the council's site.)

NYMTC will hear public comments on the plan tomorrow, May 12, from 3-5 p.m. and 6-8 p.m. at its office, 199 Water Street, 22nd Street. RSVP (for security reasons) to 212-383-7200. (There are also meetings in White Plains on Wednesday and in Happauge, L.I. on Thursday.)

If anyone can dig in deeper, let's hear from you.

Edith Prentiss on hailing an accessible cab -- for the first time in 17 years!

2009-05-07T16:54:00.010-04:00

Hailing Cabs from a Wheelchair
By Edith M. Prentiss
From this month's issue of Able Newspaper (May 2009)

We’ve all read and written about the problems with the lack of wheelchair accessible taxis in New York City. The Taxi for All Campaign has fought for almost fifteen years to rectify the problem. TFAC was the impetus for failed intros in the City Council that would have required a gradual transition of the fleet to accessible as vehicles are replaces, every few years. Instead of seriously pursuing wheelchair accessible taxis, the City opted for clean air hybrid taxis. The minor increase in the number of accessible taxis has been achieved solely by selling medallions restricted for accessible taxis. Without a transition program, the percentage of accessible taxi is contingent upon the continued sale of medallions.

But for the GOOD news: in early March, I was rushing from PT on 218th St to a meeting at the Lower East Side Tenement Museum (Orchard & Broome). I planned to wheel down Broadway to 207; take an A train to West 4th. take a M21 across Houston to Allen and finally wheel to Broome. Taking buses on Broadway and Allen were possibilities but only if buses were at the stops. As I waited for the M21, the threatening skies opened. Before I got soaked, miracle of miracles, an empty accessible cab turned from 6th Ave. I threw my air in the air and yelled TAXI! The cab stopped and I wheeled in. It had been 17 years since I hailed a yellow cab! I was so excited, I spent the trip calling friends.

A few weeks, I had to go from Washington Heights to 116 St and Fifth Ave early in the evening. The A train would have taken me to 125 and St Nicholas which is a good wheel or a bus. The M4, being the only bus that crosses 110 St from Broadway, is a nightmare then. My choice was a M98 and wheel from Lexington Ave. Several M4s past but not the scheduled M98, and then there was an accessible taxi. Again, up flew my arm and the cab stopped. I’d always been concerned about rear entry cabs. But it was no harder than bumping off the curb when a bus stops in the street. The driver dropped me at a driveway and I easily wheeled onto the sidewalk.

Interestingly enough, Access-A-Ride is trying to use the Central Dispatch System, which we’re transferred to from 311, when a wheelchair users’ regular AAR trip fails. But AAR has experienced the same frustrations as regular callers, which is that there are simply not enough accessible taxis and since accepting trips from Executive is voluntary, not enough taxis are signing on to accept trips for wheelchair users.

Only a fully accessible fleet will resolve these problems! But there is still the problem of inaccessible black cars and liveries for those where taxis don’t cruise. A few street hails do not indicate the problem is over. TFAC has a long fight yet!

Today's international report

2009-05-07T10:09:00.005-04:00

Australia: Drivers of wheelchair-accessible cabs will get a $150 incentive to keep on the road this Mother's Day. See the story.

Ireland: The country's Labour Party is backing the abolition of Dublin's taxi regulators -- and a moratorium on new licenses. The number of taxis in the city has doubled to more than 27,000 since 2000. New York has about 13,000, though that doesn't include tens of thousands of livery vehicles. See the story.

Lebanon: The Christian Science Monitor describes a taxi service run by women for women. The cars are easy to spot -- they're pink. See the story.

NY Post: Cabbies, livery drivers go back to school

2009-05-06T15:31:00.005-04:00

The Taxi and Limousine Commission is retraining its 47,000 yellow-taxi drivers--and now requiring training for the city's 53,000 limo, black car and livery drivers. This description in the Post focuses on the effort to make sure drivers know how to use new high-tech features in taxis, but does say that drivers will be tested on "consumer interaction." See the story.

See current comments on this story by hitting "post your comments" link, below.

New York seeks proposals for high-tech cabs

2009-05-05T10:17:00.011-04:00

Credit card readers, back-seat TVs, GPS devices -- the Taxi & Limousine Commission is enamored with technological gimmicks that do little to improve taxi riding and nothing to improve access. Now it is looking to expand on these earlier proposals and has put out an RFP asking for ideas. It's open to the public. Should the Taxis For All Campaign reply?

Here's a blog entry from CNET about the TLC plan.

Here's the request for information (RFI). Submissions are due on June 15.

See current comments on this story by hitting "post your comments" link, below.

Albany MTA deal would hike taxi fare 50 cents

2009-05-05T10:08:00.004-04:00

Originally proposed by the State Senate at $1, the cost of yellow-taxi rides would increase 50 cents to fund the MTA. The $95 million raised would go only to the MTA, not upstate road and bridge projects. Watch or read the Channel 7 story.

England: Accessibility slammed on public transport, taxis

2009-05-04T14:26:00.014-04:00

Updated with new story on May 5th.

Worcestershire: Activist criticizes accessible-taxi plan. He also says newest London cab won't accommodate him and other users. See the story.

Colchester; Plymouth: Public transport is not accessible, concludes "End of the Line, a survey conducted by young activists from the Muscular Dystrophy Campaign. See the story. Additional coverage here.

Here's an excerpt from the Colchester story:

"For most of us, jumping on a bus or train is something we do without a second’s thought.

Our biggest frustration comes when they are either delayed or cancelled, but, for the most part, using public transport is a doddle. [Doddle, not surprisingly, means a "breeze" or a "piece of cake."]

But this is anything but the case for one community group.

According to a major national survey, public transport is next to useless for disabled people.

A group of 200 young campaigners helped put together the investigative report, End of the Line, which charts the experiences of disabled passengers using public transport across the country...."

San Francisco: Hybrid cabs working

2009-05-04T10:27:00.011-04:00

LA Times (via Contra Costa Times): The latest on hybrid taxis in San Francisco. See the story.

The hybrid cab story...without accessibility

2009-05-01T10:59:00.015-04:00

It's a great thing that New York's yellow taxis are going green -- but a foundation that funded some of the work that is making this happen doesn't seem to be aware of the lack of accessibility. See the blog entry.

And, if you really have time on your hands, take a look at a video on the introduction of hybrid taxis featuring interviews with Council Member John Liu and an attorney from the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC).

The new VPG website

2009-04-30T11:39:00.009-04:00

In case you hadn't already, take a look at the new VPG (formerly Standard Taxi) website at http://www.vpgautos.com/.

What do you think of this new accessible vehicle? One big question: How much will it cost, especially with the Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) option? Second big question: Even with the CNG option, will it satisfy the call from Mayor Bloomberg and environmental groups for "green" taxis?

Production is still set for sometime in 2010.

If you have a friend in Seattle who wants to see the vehicle, it'll be on display as part of the American Public Transportation Association convention on May 4, 11 a.m.-4 p.m. (location: IMPARK Parking Lot, 2100 6th Avenue in Seattle -- five blocks from the Sheraton Seattle), according to Marc Klein of VPG.

We should get a chance to see it here in New York City sometime between May 20-27.

NY Times: Cabbies head to Albany to object to $1 surcharge

2009-04-30T11:23:00.004-04:00

NY Times blog: Taxi drivers protested a proposed dollar-per-ride that is part of the State Senate plan to fund transit, road projects. See the story.

Kingston, Ontario: No accessible cabs, so paratransit strike strands 3,600

2009-04-29T16:51:00.006-04:00

See the story.

Las Vegas most accessible U.S. city, says editor

2009-04-28T15:27:00.008-04:00

The editor of Emerging Horizons says that accessibility in the U.S. is better now than 15 years ago, when she started her travel magazine. Las Vegas and Chicago do well, but no mention of New York City. See the story.

Melbourne, Australia paper: Tram accessibility due...by 2032

2009-04-28T15:19:00.012-04:00

In Melbourne, trams aren't accessible for wheelchair users, and it takes an hour for an accessible taxi. See the story.

Senate taxi surcharge questioned

2009-04-23T10:36:00.010-04:00

Crain's: How would taxi surcharge be collected? See the story.

Daily News blog: Padavan cites taxi-driver opposition. See the story.

Sherman's contributions since 2006: Liu near top

2009-04-20T13:16:00.006-04:00

Here's a list of Ron Sherman's (see previous entry) local political contributions since 2006 -- not all for council members -- that I generated at the New York City Campaign Finance Board's website. (All are one contribution unless noted.) Among the most favored: Transportation Chairman John Liu, with five contributions for a total of $4,950.

Leroy Comrie: $500
Elizabeth Crowley: $1,375
Ruben Diaz, Jr.: $1,000
Daniel Garodnick: $750
Eric Gioia: $2,000 (2 contributions)
Melinda Katz: $4,950 (2 contributions)
John Liu: $4,950 (5 contributions)
Miguel Martinez: $500
Michael McMahon: $500
Darlene Mealy: $1,500
Christine Quinn: $1,500
Joel Rivera: $500
Helen Sears: $1,000 (2 contributions)
Scott Stringer: $1,000
William Thompson, Jr.: $1,000
Peter Vallone, Jr.: $3,000 (3 contributions)
Anthony Weiner: $3,000
David Weprin: $5,000 (4 contributions)

Daily News: Ron Sherman gave Council members $27,525 since 2006

2009-04-20T12:56:00.011-04:00

Sunday's Daily News listed Metropolitan Taxicab Board of Trade president Ron Sherman, not surprisingly, as a major contributor to Council members. See below for a link to the full article. I'll link to a list of Sherman contributions in another entry.

"'Another big contributor was Ronald Sherman, a major taxi-fleet owner and president of the Metropolitan Taxicab Board of Trade, which represents the fleet owners. He gave $27,525 in his name to more than a dozen Council members.

'I'm head of an organization that represents 25% of the taxi cabs in New York City and we're a highly regulated industry," Sherman said via a spokeswoman. "What the Council does is of vital importance to the industry.'"

See the full Daily News story or go to
http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/2009/04/19/
2009-04-19_fat_cats_fill_pols_pockets_big
_biz_and_unions_are_major_players_in_city_council_.html

Daus on WNYC: Give your opinion

2009-04-20T12:40:00.003-04:00

TLC Chairman Matthew appeared on Brian Lehrer's show today. Take a moment to give your view on the Bloomberg administration's new taxi initiative, on WNYC's blog:

http://www.wnyc.org/shows/bl/episodes/2009/04/20/segments/129164

City Agrees to Change Taxi Policy

2009-02-20T11:00:00.003-05:00

By Heather Haddon
AM New York

(Read this article from its original source.)

In a victory for cab drivers and disabled New Yorkers, the mayor's office agreed late Thursday to change the way garages dispatch handicap-accessible taxis.

Last year, the city implemented a system where the disabled could call 311 and handicapped-accessible taxis tracked through BlackBerries would be dispatched to them based on location. Cabbies protested that it was dangerous to fumble with their BlackBerries while driving, and many refused to participate.

"We had tons of complaints," said Michael Harris, executive director of the Disabled Riders Coalition. "Every single time I called, there were no drivers available."

After pressure from the taxi union, the city agreed to rout cars based on GPS during a meeting brokered by the New York Taxi Workers Alliance.

Under the city program, 311 calls for wheelchair-accessible taxis were dispatched by zones. Van drivers had to constantly report their zone location to dispatchers through BlackBerries. But many drivers considered it an inconvenience.

"Driving and fiddling with a BlackBerry is very dangerous," said Beresford Simmons, 60, a driver who bought a wheelchair-accessible taxi but refused to participate in the dispatch program.

Only 10 percent of the handicap-accessible taxis ended up enrolling in the system, which wasn't mandatory, Harris said.

In another wrinkle, the city allowed wheelchair-accessible taxis to cut in line at Kennedy Airport to pick up fares and thereby encourage service to the transportation hub. But the move took more accessible vans off city streets as the taxis flocked to the airport for profitable airport fares, drivers and advocates say.

Animosity between drivers of regular and wheelchair-accessible taxis grew, and hacks planned to boycott JFK this month, said Bhairavi Desai, director of the New York Taxi Workers Alliance.

"Drivers without those vans would get three or four trips in same time period that a regular taxi would wait for three hours for one fare," Desai said.

The union collected 1,000 signatures from drivers against the arrangement, Desai said.

In a win for the union Thursday, the mayor's office agreed to start a pilot program in March to dispatch some of the vans based on a GPS instead of the BlackBerries, said mayoral spokesman Marc Lavonga. The Taxi and Limousine Commission will decide later whether to use GPS for all dispatching.

Additionally, handicap-accessible taxis will only be allowed to move into the priority line at JFK after they have picked up a regular dispatch in the city, Lavonga said.

Read the rest of this entry >>

New Wheelchair-Accessible New York City Taxi logo

2008-12-02T12:00:00.000-05:00

by Edith Prentiss

Past news stories

2008-11-07T13:40:00.003-05:00

Rhode Island commissioner: Lack of accessible vehicles 'deterred tourists from coming to Rhode Island'

October 28, 2008

Excerpt: "Coderre won her award, along with Warwick Sen. William Walaska, for passing legislation that gives tax breaks for adapting taxicabs and other public motor carriers to accommodate wheelchairs.

Bob Cooper, executive director of the commission, said the lack of handicap accessible cabs "deterred tourists from coming to Rhode Island" because they often could not get around once they got here."

(See http://www.pawtuckettimes.com/content/view/53443/27/)

Today's news round-up

2008-11-07T13:26:00.002-05:00

Accessible taxis in Regina, Saskatchawan get rate hike

(See this article from its original source.)

Washington, D.C. news release: City funds 21 accessible cabs

2008-06-30T21:38:00.003-04:00

GOVERNMENT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
Office of Disabilities

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

June 19, 2008

ACCESSIBLE TAXICABS WILL BE AVAILABLE
TO WHEELCHAIR USERS FOR FIRST TIME

Three Companies Receiving Funding to Provide 21 Wheelchair Accessible Taxis in the District

The National Capital Region Transportation Planning Board (TPB) approved funding to bring wheelchair accessible taxicabs to the District of Columbia for the first time. The approval of funding is based on the collaborative efforts and support from the DC Taxicab Commission and the DC Office of Disability Rights.

Presently, wheelchair users cannot rely on the 5,700 taxis available in the District, because none have accessibility features, such as ramps or lifts, to allow passengers into the vehicles. With the new funding, three taxicab companies will provide a total of 21 wheelchair accessible taxicabs.

According to Eve Hill, Director of the DC Office of Disability Rights, "Residents and visitors in the District have been asking for wheelchair accessible taxicabs and now we will be able to meet that need. In a city that relies heavily on taxi service, these taxis will mean greater freedom for people with disabilities."

Purchasing of these vehicles is made possible under the New Freedom programs of the Federal Transit Administration (FTA). TPB will provide approximately $1 million in federal funding, matched by nearly $200,000 in funding from the DC Taxicab Commission. Taxi companies of Yellow Cab of DC, Liberty Cab, and the Mohebbi Group will provide 7 accessible taxicabs each. A proposed centralized dispatch system will also be funded allowing passengers needing a wheelchair accessible cab to call one number and the closest available cab will be dispatched.

"Providing accessible taxi service to the citizens of the District of Columbia and its visitors is one of our top priorities," expressed Leon J. Swain, Jr., Chairperson of the DC Taxicab Commission, Chairperson. Mr. Swain commended the actions of TPB as being "a real victory for DC. and the entire region".

NY Post: Fleets Still Fighting Hybrid Cab Mandate

2008-06-30T21:23:00.002-04:00

HYBRID-CAB DEADLINE HAS FLEETS FUMING
By SALLY GOLDENBERG

June 30, 2008

The greening of yellow taxis has many fleet owners seeing red - for fear of not being able to meet City Hall's Oct. 1 deadline for registering only hybrid cars as cabs.

With fleets required to replace all their taxis every three years on a staggered basis and individuals ordered to replace theirs every five years, the mandate would not affect all cabs at once. Still, 2,000 to 2,500 of the city's 13,227 yellow cabs will come due in October.

Meanwhile, owners cite a shortage of hybrids and argue that they're also not as safe as the standard, heavy Crown Victorias.

Ronald Sherman, a fleet owner and president of the Metropolitan Taxicab Board of Trade, said major hybrid providers Ford and Toyota can sell only a fifth of the number required to meet the directive.

"Clearly, there will not be enough to sustain this mandate," Sherman said. "The numbers simply don't add up."

In a letter to Matthew Daus, chairman of the city Taxi and Limousine Commission, he asked that the city push back the deadline due to a "nationwide hybrid car and parts availability crisis."

"Crown Victorias are 5-star, across-the-board crash-rated vehicles that withstand severe accidents," he wrote.

The city has an additional 10,000 black cabs that will be subject to the same standards starting in January.

The hybrids Mayor Bloomberg is pushing as part of his broader environmental agenda get 25 miles to the gallon - and would save drivers about $5,000 a year in gas.

"On availability, it is true that hybrid sales nationwide have increased by over 45 percent over the last year," said Jeff Kay, director of Bloomberg's office of operations. "But we have been having discussions with the major auto manufacturers to ensure that availability will not be a problem."

Kay added that a safety expert approved the Ford Escape after a recent City Council Transportation Committee hearing. Sherman testified at that hearing against the Escape's durability.

Washington, D.C. news release: City funds 21 accessible cabs

2008-06-30T18:04:00.001-04:00

GOVERNMENT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA

Office of Disabilities

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

June 19, 2008

ACCESSIBLE TAXICABS WILL BE AVAILABLE

TO WHEELCHAIR USERS FOR FIRST TIME

Three Companies Receiving Funding to Provide 21 Wheelchair Accessible Taxis in the District

The National Capital Region Transportation Planning Board (TPB) approved funding to bring wheelchair accessible taxicabs to the District of Columbia for the first time. The approval of funding is based on the collaborative efforts and support from the DC Taxicab Commission and the DC Office of Disability Rights.<span class="fullpost">

Presently, wheelchair users cannot rely on the 5,700 taxis available in the District, because none have accessibility features, such as ramps or lifts, to allow passengers into the vehicles. With the new funding, three taxicab companies will provide a total of 21 wheelchair accessible taxicabs.

According to Eve Hill, Director of the DC Office of Disability Rights, "Residents and visitors in the District have been asking for wheelchair accessible taxicabs and now we will be able to meet that need. In a city that relies heavily on taxi service, these taxis will mean greater freedom for people with disabilities."

Purchasing of these vehicles is made possible under the New Freedom programs of the Federal Transit Administration (FTA). TPB will provide approximately $1 million in federal funding, matched by nearly $200,000 in funding from the DC Taxicab Commission. Taxi companies of Yellow Cab of DC, Liberty Cab, and the Mohebbi Group will provide 7 accessible taxicabs each. A proposed centralized dispatch system will also be funded allowing passengers needing a wheelchair accessible cab to call one number and the closest available cab will be dispatched.

"Providing accessible taxi service to the citizens of the District of Columbia and its visitors is one of our top priorities," expressed Leon J. Swain, Jr., Chairperson of the DC Taxicab Commission, Chairperson. Mr. Swain commended the actions of TPB as being "a real victory for DC. and the entire region".

Testimony of Taxis For ALL Campaign ally Assembly Member Kellner

2008-06-06T13:55:00.002-04:00

Testimony Before the New York City Council Committee on Transportation Hearing on Clean Air Taxis
Tuesday, June 3, 2008

My name is Micah Z. Kellner and I represent the 65th Assembly District in Manhattan, including parts of the Upper Ease Side, Yorkville, and Roosevelt Island. Thank you to Chairman Liu and Council Speaker Christine Quinn for the opportunity to testify today.

I strongly support the goal of making New York City's taxi fleet greener. Given the realities of global climate change and the clear links between auto emissions and asthma, lung disease, and other serious threats to public health, there is no question that we should be taking steps to mitigat ethe environmental impact of taxi traffic in New York. But it is critical that we go about this in the right way, and for the right reasons. Unfortunately, it has become apparent to me that, in the name of a worthy goal, the Taxi and Limousine Commission is using flawed metrics and a rushed timetable to provide a public relations victory for the outgoing mayoral administration - even if it means sacrificing other important priorites in the process.

The TLC's deadline of October 1, 2008, for achieving the 25 miles-per-gallon standard is simply not realistic. Vehicle manufacturers and the vast majority of the taxi industry have made this clear: there will not be enough vehicles available. The production of hybrid vehicles cannot currently meet demand and there are not enough parts to make more vehicles to meet the TLC's deadline. Yet the TLC insists on maintaining the deadline regardless of this information. In doing so it is pursuing an arbitrary timeline based on a single metric, miles per gallon, and risks sacrificing the broader interests of taxi riders.

As you are aware, I have been urging the TLC to move toward a taxi fleet that is fully accessible for riders with disabilities. In a New York Post op-ed last December, I noted the serious shortcomings of the taxi models that currently qualify for "wheelchair" medallions, and called on the TLC to approve new models that are genuinely safe and accessible. As it stands, all three vehicles that qualify for "wheelchair" medallions - two versions of the Chevrolet Uplander and one of the Dodge Caravan - are side-loading, which means that most motorized wheelchairs do no fit into the passenger section, and wheelchairs that do fit cannot be properly secured.

The industry has long argued that better models were not available, but this situation has changed and the industry is genuinely excited about the prospect of developing taxis that are both environmentally friendly and fully accessible - but only if there is adequate time allowed to do so.

There is absolutely no reason why there should be any conflict between developing clean air taxis and taxis that are fully accessible. Indeed, we have a unique opportunity to achieve both goals at the same time. But by rushing the process, the TLC is inexcusably pitting people with disabilities against the environment and public health concerns.

The TLC has put the cart before the horse, developing regulations before properly assessing what might be possible for the next generation of taxis. The first priority should have been the development of the Taxi of Tomorrow, not the arbitrary imposition of a standard based on a single metric, on an industry that cannot possibly meet that standard in this economic climate with so few hybrid vehicles and replacement parts available. Fuel efficiency is an important factr, but it is not the only one.

This is all the more ironic because the TLC's own "Taxi of Tomorrow" initiative has stimulated manufacturers to find solutions that combine clean air goals with accessibility. For instance, Ford's Transit Connect, a vehicle that has been operating in Europe as a taxi for years, would be fully wheelchair accessible, twice as fuel efficient as the Crown Victoria, and have ultra-clean tailpipe emissions. Ford anticipates mass productions and roll out the Transit Connect in September 2009, nine months after the TLC's deadline. But by pushing medallion owners to invest in new vehicles this fall - for the sake of meeting an arbitrary October 1 deadline - the TLC is undermining its own efforts to encourage owners to adopt more promising vehicles that will be available within the next year or two.

The TLC should slow down. Nobody is asking for a prolonged delay in implementing stronger fuel efficiency standards. We are only asking the Commission take the time to ensure that improved fuel efficiency in the short term does not come at the expense of the opportunity to solve other problems with the taxi fleet.

Unfortunately, the TLC's timetable suggests that political imperatives are taking precedence over the needs of taxi riders and the general public. I cannot help but think that, in rushing toward an unrealistic but public relations-friendly fuel efficiency goal, the Commission is more intent on providing the Mayor with a legacy project than on taking the opportunity to develop a genuinely well-rounded taxi. Ironically, if the TLC would simply postpone the deadline until the Fall of 2009, when accessible purpose-built taxis start coming off the production line, the Mayor would have a more complete legacy of providing public vehicles that are both environmentally friendly and accessible. From a publicity standpoint, accessible taxis may not be as attractive as green taxis - but they are no less important.

Again, there is no reason for these two goals to be in conflict. Our taxis should be accessible and green. Rather than sacrifice everything else for the sake of meeting a miles-per-gallon standard, we should be working on a complete solution to developing the taxi of tomorrow. But this means operating on a reality-based timetable, not a political timetable.

I urge the TLC to reconsider the October 1 deadline. We must not squander the progress that has been made by the Taxi of Tomorrow initiative. The ultimate goal is within reach: taxis for all, both accessible and environmentally friendly. It is critical that we take advantage of the opportunity, rather than letting it slip away in the name of political expediency.

Thank you again for the opportunity to testify today.

834 Legislative Office Building
Albany, NY 12248
518-455-5676
FAX 518-455-5282

315 East 65th Street
New York, NY 10065
212-860-4906
FAX 917-432-2983

E-mail: KellnerM @ assembly.state.ny.us

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June 3, 2008 Testimony by Jean Ryan at City Council transportation committee oversight hearing

2008-06-04T17:52:00.005-04:00

Jean Ryan, Taxis For ALL Campaign's vice-chair, testified at a City Council transportation committee oversight hearing, "Clean Air Taxis: How Realistic Are the City's Miles Per Gallon Mandate?" on June 3, 2008. Here's a transcript of her testimony:

I am Jean Ryan, a VP of Disabled In Action and Vice-Chair of Taxis for ALL Campaign. The Taxis for ALL Campaign is a coalition of groups and individuals devoted to promoting taxis and for-hire services that are fully accessible to people with disabilities in New York City. We are by far the broadest-based, longest-established and most knowledgeable group in the City on this topic.

We are pleased that the City is taking steps to promote manufacture of a new "iconic taxi," which we hope will meet the goals of being less polluting, more comfortable for passengers and drivers, and accessible to passengers with disabilities. We are also pleased that the City has passed a regulation requiring black cars to have better gas mileage. However, without also mandating accessibility at the same time, the City is doing the thousands and thousands of City residents and tourists and businesspeople in our city a disservice.

We love clean air. Who doesn't? Many people with disabilities already have breathing problems. We care about the air we breather and we care about the environment and about the depletion of natural resources. But we also need to get places. But if vehicles can be developed that are cleaner, the can also be developed and are being developed as we speak that are also accessible, too! Why not mandate both? Green and accessible – Perfect together.

When Sam Sullivan, the mayor of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, recently came to New York City on a fact-finding trip, he had a horrible experience because he uses a wheelchair. He talked about it on his radio show and his blog and we have it on our website, www.taxisforall.org. He said, and I quote: "It was very difficult arriving at the airport. There were no wheelchair accessible taxis available. I had to be carried into a van by four people and my wheelchair had to be manhandled into a van as well, only to get into Manhattan to get to my hotel." He was lucky he got there. Many people can't get where they want to go because we don't have accessible taxis and car services to speak of in this City.

Up to now, the TLC, the Mayor, and the City Council seem to have lacked the will to do anything meaningful about it. We don't need anything special and separate! We need something universal that everyone can use!

As it stands now, the iconic taxi RFI does not require accessibility at all according to ADA standards! For example, the ADA height specifications for the passenger door opening are 56 inches and the passenger area is 56 inches, and there are requirements for a wheelchair restraint system and a ramp. The RFI's Vehicle Technical Specifications do not include any of these requirements and only specify that the doorframe has to be 38 inches high (VTS 2.8.6). No one in a wheelchair could get into a doorframe that low.

Furthermore, the Vehicle Technical Specifications 2.8.6 permit the passenger doorsill to be 13-16 inches above the ground, and that is far too high for many people with mobility disabilities.

Additionally, there is no provision in the Vehicle Technical Specifications for audio output for the meter or other technology for the benefit of people who are visually impaired, (VTS 2.4.1) or for any accommodation for people with hearing impairments such as an induction "loop" to help people with hearing aids to understand the driver-passenger intercom or audio systems, (VTS 2.10.18 and 2.10.21).

Despite our numerous requests, the iconic taxi committee which drew up the RFI refused to include anyone from the Taxis for ALL Campaign. Why not? Why don't they want to make the iconic taxi accessible? Or was this a huge oversight? We wouldn't know. We weren't on the committee and couldn't have input.

As it stands now, people who use wheelchairs and have major mobility problems in this City and who need accessible taxis cannot reliably get them. We cannot get accessible car services because they hardly exist. We usually have to call days in advance and pay exorbitant rates by credit card. For car service! Last year when my wheelchair wheel broke, I was going to gave to pay 45 dollars and wait 2 hours to go 7 blocks instead of waiting 10 minutes and paying 5 dollars if I were ambulatory. Is that equivalent service like the regulations call for? The TLC knows what is happening and does nothing about it.

In short, we care about clean air and we also want accessibility. To have vehicles with both will benefit everyone. It will mean that people will be able to transport their children in strollers easily. They will be able to haul their bulky packages easily and bring their suitcases and golf clubs into the car with them instead of putting them in the trunk, if they want to. It will mean that they will have room to transport their pets. They will have leg room if they are tall.

We encourage the City Council to think about the aging population in this City, to think about the rising costs of Access-A-Ride, to think about the tourist business and how the lack of accessible taxis and car services is hurting this City, is making life very stressful and costly in many ways, driving up Medicaid costs and Access-A-Ride costs because people can't get an accessible car services or taxis. We encourage the City Council to require all taxis to be green and accessible.

Respectfully submitted,

Jean Ryan, Vice Chair, Taxis for ALL Campaign
VP Public Affairs, Disabled In Action

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Group urges TLC: Don’t miss historic opportunity – Mandate wheelchair-accessible taxis to accompany shift to "green" vehicles

2008-04-17T08:12:00.001-04:00

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PDF printer-friendly version of Anne Davis letter to the TLC concerning the "iconic taxi"
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The Taxis For All Campaign urged Mayor Bloomberg and the Taxi & Limousine Commission to mandate a transition to wheelchair-accessible taxis and other for-hire taxis, similar to the forward thinking that made higher mileage vehicles a requirement.

The Taxis For All Campaign – which is made up of the largest disability organizations in New York City – has called for a gradual adoption of accessible vehicles, particularly in the yellow-taxi fleet, and more accessible service in the livery and black car industries.

"We support greener, less-polluting vehicles – who wouldn't? – but wonder why the city would mandate this innovation and reject another," said Anne Davis, the group's chair and a representative of the New York City Chapter of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society.

Holding signs reading "Green + accessible cabs: Perfect TOGETHER" and "We like green cabs – We'd LOVE it if we could ride in them!" at the TLC's April 17th meeting, the group urged commissioners to heed the interests of all New Yorkers, including the tens of thousands who cannot use for-hire cars because they are not designed to accommodate wheelchair users.

At the meeting, the TLC was expected to vote to require black cars to meet higher gas mileage standards starting in 2009. It approved a similar mandate for yellow taxis last year. Taxi fleet owners say it will take technological innovation to meet the TLC's miles-per-gallon requirements and that the ideal vehicle is not yet available – the same objection they and the TLC have been requiring wheelchair-accessible taxis. However, accessible taxis are now widely used across the U.S. and one company, Standard Taxi, is developing a new, factory-built accessible taxi.

The Taxis For All also released a letter to TLC Chairman Matthew Daus, urging him to include a representative from its group on the Iconic Taxi project.

"Unfortunately, the RFI does not declare that accessibility to people with disabilities, including those who use wheelchairs, is a bedrock requirement for a successful iconic taxi design... On the other hand, the City has taken the position that high gas mileage is a bedrock requirement for most future yellow cabs,and it is about to do the same with respect to black cars."

"By choosing to move forward with one innovation rather than both at the same time, the City is missing an historical opportunity to transform the taxi fleet," said Edith Prentiss of the 504 Democratic Club. "It's clear that if it's possible to produce a green taxi, you also can produce a green and accessible taxi." Currently, only about one percent of the city's more than 13,000 yellow cabs are accessible; very few livery or black cars are accessible.

City: For-hire vehicle complaints resolved more quickly

2008-02-15T17:01:00.004-05:00

Mayor Bloomberg released the Preliminary Mayor's Management Report (PMMR) for Fiscal Year 2008. According to PR Newswire:

"Taxi complaints are handled more efficiently: The average time to close a consumer complaint about for-hire vehicles dropped to less than 28 days, 61% better than last year's four-month period and 41% better than the year-end average. During FY 2007, the Taxi and Limousine Commission changed how it handles these complaints and also improved its tracking methods, resulting in a more streamlined and efficient process."

TLC approves FMI pilot

2008-02-14T13:22:00.005-05:00

Alexander Wood reports:

My take on the new pilot by Freedom Mobility Inc (FMI) -- which, incidentally, passed unanimously, is that competition is good.

There was a lot of talk about re-opening the RFI that Autovan responded to last year again, 6 months into Autovan's pilot, while all reports are that Autovan's vehicles are on the road and performing well, but, according to Peter Shenkman the TLC is awaiting additional data before evaluating the project and making recommendations re: rulemaking. But isn't competition a good thing?

If there is more than one retrofitter out there who can put accessible taxis on the road, then there will be more accessible vehicles on the road quicker, right? And presumably, that will keep the conversion prices competitive, as the companies strive to provide better service at lower cost...

FMI presented impressive testimony about providing accessible vehicles in the Houston and San Francisco markets (claiming that Houston has just ordered an additional 94 accessible taxis, making it the largest accessible fleet on the road in the US today... Not sure how many accessible cabs are on the road in Houston already with Greater Houston Transportation).

Evidently FMI was the original converter of the rear-entry Toyota Sienna, and has been doing such conversions for 20 years. There is a legal action between Autovan and FMI because folks at Autovan may have taken proprietary info about the conversion techniques of FMI to their new company when they were hired away (but all this was a bit mysterious, as the guy from FMI would not discuss the legal matter, so whatever came out was hearsay spilled by Daus, Salkin, Shenkman, and Gianoulis...

There is a medallion sale projected for some time in May. TLC is hoping to have updated rules by then, as Autovan is near supplying the data that shows what the pilot has demonstrated...

In the end, though, in my opinion, the TLC is acting in good faith letting FMI in the door. They have not rejected Autovan, and so far, the word has been positive about the accessible Siennas on the street, which is more than anyone can say for the Uplanders and Dodge Caravans on the road. Beresford Simmons (an owner/operator of accessible taxis) has had negative experiences with both vehicles, and says his accessible taxis have cost him tens of thousands in additional maintenance, and yet he continues to field those vehicles, and seems strangely happy to do so.

I left the hearing when Deborah Marton started her Design Trust spiel, as I have heard it many times, and sat through the entire hearing last week...

Daus acknowledged Michael Harris and Micah Kellner, and offered Micah an opportunity to speak, which the Assembly Member declined.

I do not see any reason to object to FMI entering the mix. But, of course, I could be wrong. There was a lot of negative feeling about their being allowed to enter the game at this late stage. One commissioner asked if a third company came forward if the whole process would be reopened? The concensus seemed to be that whatever gets more accessible vehicles on the road should be pursued. I like that concept, I admit.

TLC’s new accessible-taxi symbol

2008-02-13T12:06:00.001-05:00

Last week, the TLC revealed its new accessible taxi symbol (shown above with new "green" taxi symbol), which appears to have been designed without any input from wheelchair users. The reviews so far (from e-mails to the TFAC group):

Edith Prentiss: "As of February 1, the TLC changed the wheelchair symbol. This is a total joke. I think it looks like a Cirque du Soleil hoop dancer. [Council Member] John Liu was far from impressed."

Jean Ryan: "I could never see that symbol in a million years unless I was already getting into the cab. It's too small. But from a distance? Get real. What's wrong with something bigger and with using the standard universal wheelchair symbol? Why get fancy? (Because they haven't got the cars and medallions or the will to get more, so they have to play with the little symbols!)"

Your opinion?

Edith Prentiss: Testimony on behalf of DIA before City Council

2008-02-12T16:27:00.001-05:00

Edith Prentiss: Testimony on behalf of DIA before City Council

Testimony to the City Council's Transportation Committee
Oversight: Oversight - The Taxi of the Future: A Review of the Design Trust for Public Space's Taxi Plan

February 7, 2008

I am Edith Prentiss, the Vice President of Legislative Affairs of Disabled in Action of Metropolitan New York, the President of the 504 Democratic Club and a member of the Taxis For All Campaign.

I would like to thank the Committee and especially the Chair, Council Member John Liu, for the opportunity to address the Committee on the Design Trust for Public Space's Taxi Plan. I must also thank former Council Member Margarita Lopez and its sponsors for Intro 84, as well as Council Member Oliver Koppel and its sponsors for Intro 378. I believe they who will be remembered in NYC's disability community's history as leaders when NYC's taxi fleet is finally accessible. This plan does not move us any closer to that goal.

I hope after hearing us testify for years, you all know, we believe, accessible taxis are a basic civil right. The lack of accessible vehicles adds to the huge under and unemployment rate for PWDS. The lack of equivalent transportation options impedes our ability to run from place to place and meeting to meeting like every other New Yorker. Having to utilize buses, due to the inadequacy of accessible subway service, and the problems of Access-A-Ride puts mobility impaired New Yorkers and visitors at an extreme disadvantage.

Now I have to admit the Taxi '07 Road Forward was interesting and pretty with its beauty shots of cabs and quotes from 500-plus New Yorker who completed the Design Trust's online survey. Of course, in the appendix we learn "some respondents with disabilities reported difficulty accessing the survey, perhaps limiting their response"

In the Design Trust's intro Deborah Marton stated that the stakeholders who were interviewed and who peer reviewed the document included "accessibility organizations". We assume by that they mean that their sole responsibility to include the disability community was met by interviewing Jean Ryan of DIA and Terry Moakley of United Spinal's Taxi for All North America who are both members of the Taxis For All Campaign.

But unlike other stakeholders, we were not invited to peer review the document. In the TLC's intro., Matt Daus stated "progress is a "two-way street"involving the "give and take" of all identifiable stakeholders" I certainly feel as a wheelchair user we not even part of the discussion.

Commissioner Daus further stated that the TLC is no longer referring to the project as the "Taxicab of the Future"but rather as the "Taxicab of Tomorrow." I guess wheelchair using PWD are neither part of the future or tomorrow as we continue to be left on the side walk." The plans includes the following which has me shaking my head asking so?

"Hailing a cab, with its promise of freedom, power, and anonymity, is the quintessential New York City act. Stick an arm in the air, and a taxi will take you where you want to go at any time of day or night. ...The system also includes the streets and sidewalks that taxis and passengers rely on and that every New Yorker maintains with tax dollars.

This civic investment in taxi infrastructure, buttressed by laws that oblige taxis to service anyone who hails them, point to an important fact: taxis are an extension of New York City's public space.

The Design Trust for Public Space and the TLC have collaborated to develop these principles as a foundation for the TLC's future goals: 1. taxi system should offer taxi services that are safe, comfortable, and easy to use for all passengers and drivers; 2. provide a good economic value to passengers and service providers; 3. efficiently match the supply of taxi services with passenger demand; & 4. Contribute to the environmental sustain-ability of the city. "

Although the plan for or five times touches on wheelchair uses and once on "riders with visual disabilities" it fails to mention the piloted assistive listening systems (loops that transmit amplified sound into hearing aids) taxis. Also neglected are closed captioning on monitors as well as any adaptive technology for the fare machine.

The plan further fails to address the inadequate marking denoting an accessible taxi. Until February 1st, there were blue/white and one black/white wheelchair and the green/white ear symbol. The new wheelchair symbol looks like a Cirque du Soliel hoop dancer. I challenge any of you to actually hail an accessible or looped taxi first find one lit up then look at the panel over the rear wheel and fight off other taxi seekers. (See http://www.nyc.gov/html/tlc/html/home/home.shtml)

A true example of the plan's lack of consideration and inclusion is in the index. Wheelchair is cross-referenced to accessibility which is defined as:

"a broad term that can include both availability and physical access and user comfort. How enjoyable a cab ride is depends in part on sufficient accessibility, but also on more intangible qualities, such as intuitive ease of use and pleasure provided by good design." Good design does that include the total lack of leg room in the hybrids?

"The necessary level of vehicle accessibility is a matter of some debate: Manufacturers advocate a solution that addresses the majority of people with disabilities who have sufficient mobility to transfer to a lowered car seat (approximately 60 to 70 percent) rather than the minority who require fully wheelchair-accessible transportation."

The plan fails to recognize that many PWDs can transfer to a "lowered seat" but that our chairs can't be folded and stowed in a trunk.

"The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 requires all transportation services to provide equivalent service for persons with disabilities. However, the ADA defines accessibility requirements only for vans and buses, not for passenger sedans. In New York City s case, this lack of Federal standards essentially exempts yellow cabs from accessibility standards." But in the soon-to-be-post Crown Vic era, what sedans will we have left? Then won't the ADA kick in?

The Taxis For All Campaign questions the will and intent of the Mayor and the TLC. If the Mayor can mandate green why can't he mandate accessibility? If the TLC were truly interested in providing transportation to all, why has it failed even at enforcing the For Hire Vehicle Regulation?

Whether this is the Taxi or the Future or Tomorrow, the design demonstrates all the more as to why we need Intro 378 to be enacted. The Design Trust's plan totally ignores the transportation needs of the disability community citing a longer time line. While it proposes using taxis to replace lowly utilized bus routes. Excuse me, but in the out lying and distant reaches of New York City, it is unlikely that there are subway much less accessible subways. Now they propose using inaccessible taxis to replace under utilized buses.

I'll remember that the next time I'm wheeling home from 220th to 186th St (from the Allen Pavilion's) ER at 3 AM in upper Manhattan when bus service is greatly curtailed.

WNYC: City Asking Automakers for "Car of the Future"

2008-02-07T21:45:00.001-05:00

by Kathleen Horan

The city is asking automakers to come up with designs for a cab for the future.

REPORTER: It would be one that will burn alternative fuels, and will be wheelchair-accessible. Taxi and Limousine Commissioner Matthew Daus.

DAUS: Big on the inside and small on the outside - one that looks good that's durable - people will look at it and they'll say that's great - it really belongs here.

REPORTER: Daus says the TLC is working with auto manufacturers to design and produce a vehicle specially made to be used as a taxi. The TLC plans to send out requests to auto makers next week. The City Council's Transportation Committee is looking into the recommendations made by the TLC and the Design For Public Trust that made suggestions about how to spruce up cabs.

Taxi probe: Cabbies staying off cell phones

2008-02-07T16:15:00.001-05:00

AP story

Undercover inspectors are finding cabbies largely play by New York City's rules when it comes to cell phones.

Inspectors and police officers have taken more than 1,200 rides disguised as everyday passengers since "Operation: Secret Rider" began Jan. 23. Taxi & Limousine Commission officials said Wednesday that fewer than 100 summonses for cell-phone use have been issued so far.

TLC Chairman Matthew Daus says that's encouraging, but the initiative will continue.

The undercover agents look for drivers talking on cell phones while the cab is moving, refusing to accept credit cards or otherwise violating regulations.

Representatives of the Taxi Workers Alliance, an advocacy group, call the program sneaky and disrespectful to drivers.

The Sun: Commission could have $1 congestion fee on cabs

2008-01-10T19:12:00.001-05:00

Taxi Prices May Rise With Congestion Pricing

By JARED IRMAS
Special to the Sun
January 10, 2008

Hailing a cab in the city's proposed congestion zone could add a dollar to the fare if a state commission's recommendation is sent to Albany and the City Council for approval.

The Congestion Mitigation Commission is set to recommend today four scenarios for the implementation of the mayor's congestion pricing plan, which would charge drivers about $8 to enter and drive in most of Manhattan during peak hours.

One scenario would charge taxi passengers $1 for trips that originate below 60th Street.

"Taxis relieve stress on the subway and bus system," Michael Wolos, a spokesman for the Metropolitan Taxi Board of Trade, an industry trade group representing a quarter of the city's medallion fleets, said. "It should be recognized that people using taxicabs are using city streets efficiently. They shouldn't be punished for it."

A spokesman for Mayor Bloomberg, John Gallagher, wrote in an e-mail message last night that the commission "has done a thorough job of evaluating options and has put forth proposals that should be considered on the merits. It's important that the proposal ultimately recommended by the Commission meets the combined objectives of reducing congestion and providing funds for much needed mass transit improvements."

Other scenarios include scrapping congestion pricing in favor of tolls on the East and Harlem River bridges, and restricting vehicular travel based on the last digit of a car's license plate number.

Several transit advocates declined to comment last night. The Empire State Transit Alliance, a consortium of civic, environmental, and commuter groups, will release its own recommendations once the commission presents their report today.

The commission will send its final recommendation to the mayor's office on January 31. Any plan must be approved by the state Legislature, the governor, and the City Council.

Post: MetroCard swipe in fare of the future

2007-12-19T11:01:00.001-05:00

By Patrick Galluhue, Transit Reporter
December 19, 2007

The taxi of the future could accept MetroCards.

The Taxi and Limousine Commission is thinking about creating a kind of unlimited card for cabbies - which is just one of a long list of recommendations put forth in a taxi-industry study, TLC officials announced yesterday.

Commission Chairman Matthew Daus announced the completion of the two-year, $150,000 report by the Design Trust for Public Space, which is being contemplated as a potential roadmap to the future for the taxi industry.

"It lays the groundwork for a new generation of taxis and an improved taxi system that we will all enjoy soon," said Deborah Marton, the executive director of Design Trust. "The TLC can continue the momentum forward armed with the most comprehensive taxi-system analysis and set of recommendations ever set anywhere."

Some of the study's recommendations are already in the works, including gas-efficient vehicles, global-positioning systems and touch-screen video technology.

But others would be brand new to New York.

In addition to looking at "fare integration" with buses and subways - possibly using the tap-and-go smart-cards currently being tested by the MTA - the report suggests exploring "ride-share fares" for people going the same way.

But the report also adds that past ride-share trials have not met with much success in other cities or in New York.

The 159-page study also presents a list of alternatives to taxi medallions.

"In London, cabbies have to pass the famous 'knowledge test' of the city's downtown streets, requiring two years of intensive study," the report states.
"This examination, rather than any numerical limit, provides a formidable barrier to entering the taxi market."

City Limits: Whether Hybrid or Guzzler, Taxis Still Not Accessible, July 30, 2007

2007-08-07T20:05:00.002-04:00

City Limits WEEKLY
Week of: July 30, 2007
Number: 598

WHETHER HYBRID OR GUZZLER,
TAXIS STILL NOT ACCESSIBLE

Within five years, the city plans to renew the entire taxi fleet to make it less polluting - but not more handicapped-accessible. By Heather Appel

Alexander Wood recently saw something in Union Square that was, to him, as rare as a unicorn. It was an accessible taxicab that Wood was able to board in his wheelchair something he'd never done in his years living here.

For Wood, who heads the Disabilities Network of New York City, the 81 accessible taxicabs currently on the road and the additional 150 expected in the next year are good news. After all, in 2004 there were only five such vehicles operating. But he considers a total of 230 accessible vehicles, out of some 13,000 yellow taxicabs, insufficient to serve the estimated 65,000 people who use wheelchairs in New York City.

When Mayor Bloomberg announced plans this May to convert the entire taxi fleet to hybrid gas-electric vehicles by 2012, some disability advocates were stunned that none of those hybrid vehicles are required to be wheelchair accessible. Most agree that saving 22 million gallons of fuel and reducing carbon emissions by 215,000 tons, according to administration figures, is a good thing but they wonder why such a massive transition wouldn't take advantage of the opportunity to address a longstanding complaint of people with disabilities.

"The thing is, this is a solve-able problem," says Joe Rappaport, an advocate with the Taxis for All Campaign, a coalition that has been fighting for more accessible taxis since 1994. "It should fit in with the Bloombergian view of the world, which is that there are technological means of making progress."

But the administration has raised objections over the cost and aesthetics of potential accessible vehicles that could meet the needs of disabled riders, he said.

In fact, the hybrid models under consideration by the Taxi and Limousine Commission (TLC), made by Toyota, Honda and Ford, cannot be modified to include a wheelchair ramp. Regarding the absence of accessible cabs in the hybrid phase-in plan, Matt Sapolin, commissioner of the Mayor's Office for People with Disabilities, said that regular, non-hybrid vehicles that are wheelchair-accessible would be allowed to stay in the taxi fleet after the transition.

In terms of adding more accessible vehicles to the fleet, administration officials say they are still searching for a solution that meets everyone's needs. There's nothing to prevent medallion owners from buying or retrofitting accessible vehicles, but TLC standards and regulations make it costly to do so.

"Our ultimate goal is to see the design and manufacture of a vehicle that satisfies the TLC's 'wish list' with such attributes as accessibility, clean fuel, pleasing aesthetics, iconic design, sturdiness," and more, said TLC Deputy Commissioner Allan Fromberg.

To maximize the use of the 230 accessible vehicles expected to be on the road by next year, the TLC favors a dispatch system that would allow callers to call 311 or another central number and request a car that can accommodate a wheelchair or scooter. That's a contentious proposal among disability activists. Some think it's the only reasonable solution right now, because there are such limited options even though wait times can take up to an hour. Members of the Taxis for All Campaign, on the other hand, are wary, arguing that a dispatch solution lets the administration off the hook on the long-term goal of getting more accessible vehicles on the road, and eventually converting the entire fleet to universally-accessible vehicles.

For a commuter like Edith Prentiss, who lives in Washington Heights and uses an electric wheelchair, the dispatch system offers little progress. "If I had an hour to wait for a taxi to turn up, why would I be bothering?" she said. "I might as well take the bus." Prentiss believes these transportation obstacles contribute to the "horrendous unemployment rate" among people with disabilities, over 30 percent nationwide.

Resistance to accessible taxicabs sounds familiar to those who fought to make public buses accessible in the 1970s and 1980s - and they're now a vital transit link. Some officials argue that not enough people with disabilities ride taxis to make it worthwhile. And, by now, disabled riders know they have to depend on other modes of transportation.

Users find those other options leave something to be desired, however. There are about 54 accessible MTA stations out of 468 subway stations citywide, and half of those are in Manhattan. Elevators are often out of service, and the MTA hotline updating their status can be inaccurate.

There's a car service called A Ride for All that people were optimistic about when it began in 2003, offering for-hire vans with wheelchair lifts. The service was popular at first but then became kind of a "subscription service" for people who could reserve for regular appointments. The cars are rarely available on short notice, and fares have increased to a minimum of $45 per ride.

Then there's Access-a-Ride, the city's transit system that provides vans for people with disabilities, which is often criticized for being slow, late, and difficult to use. With Access-a-Ride, riders must call well in advance and share rides with several others.

This leaves the majority of people with mobility disabilities taking the bus, which is slower than the subway and may require several transfers.

Despite some small gains, some say that the situation won't really improve unless New York City pressures the auto manufacturing industry to create a "purpose-built" i.e. custom-made vehicle that's fuel-efficient and accessible. A model of one such vehicle, the Standard Taxi, was displayed at the New York International Auto Show this March, earning rave reviews from disabled riders and elected officials who tested it.

At least one hack was impressed by it, too. "In my opinion, the best wheelchair car they had, the city turned it down," said taxi driver Beresford Simmons. He's familiar with current technology, because he acquired a discounted accessible medallion in 2005 and has been driving a minivan with a wheelchair ramp ever since.

Simmons said he picks up passengers with wheelchairs as often as he can, but that many more accessible cabs are needed. He worries that drivers who work for large fleets can't afford the time to do special pick-ups through a dispatch system like the one proposed. As an independent owner, he's able to set his own schedule and can work beyond the usual 12-hour shifts, he said.

One solution Simmons and others mentioned would be to provide incentives to drivers picking up disabled passengers. Another solution would be to put a better quality vehicle on the road that doesn't require as much assistance from the driver like the Standard Taxi.

Fromberg said nothing is on or off the table, but that the Standard Taxi is not yet being manufactured yet, so there's nothing to consider. News accounts say the company expects to start production in 2008.

~

Disability activists are pushing for a bill in City Council (Introduction 378), that would require accessible vehicles to be phased in over time as old cabs are retired. Despite one hearing in the transportation committee, and thousands of postcards in support mailed to City Hall, the bill doesn't appear destined for passage. "There's not enough support for an immediate mandate on the industry right now," said Councilman John Liu, chair of the transportation committee. "A universal mandate [for accessible vehicles] could double the cost of a taxi to $40,000 a year," he said.

An earlier Council bill, passed in December, required the TLC to present a plan and schedule within 180 days for increasing the numbers of green and accessible taxis. Those 180 days have passed, and the TLC has provided little information on increasing accessible yellow cabs, and no information at all on plans for "for-hire vehicles" livery cabs, black cars and limos.

Fromberg, of the TLC, said the city's Economic Development Corporation issued a request for proposals for a consultant who can design an "iconic" New York taxi that meets the needs of all riders. He said that the goal is to have a design for a purpose-built vehicle by next spring, but the TLC doesn't make any commitments or set any standards for accessible cars.

"Obviously, we are optimistic," said Fromberg, but "I could not commit to it as a guarantee."

In the meantime, the Disabilities Network of New York City, Easter Seals, the Mayor's Office for People with Disabilities and other organizations are planning to hold forums on accessible taxis and for-hire vehicles in each borough in the next few months, which participants hope will lead to some long-term solutions.

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), which had its 17th anniversary on July 26, says that taxis cannot deny service to disabled riders who are capable of getting in and out of a cab, and it regulates the features of accessible taxis (a certain amount of space for wheelchairs, tie-downs, etc.), but it does not mandate that cabs be modified to be accessible.

People with disabilities say there's just not enough incentive right now for auto makers to produce the vehicles they need. Manufacturers would respond to a clear demand for accessible vehicles, just like they did in the past with safety glass, seatbelts and airbags, technologies they once insisted would be a hardship for the industry. And they say cost and durability concerns are overblown and that if the vehicles were bought in bulk, they would be affordable to medallion owners. Other cities have been able to provide more accessible cab service, such as Chicago, Montreal, Las Vegas and London, where the entire fleet is accessible to wheelchairs.

- Heather Appel

Whether Hybrid or Guzzler, Taxis Still Not Accessible

2007-07-30T00:00:00.000-04:00

Within five years, the city plans to renew the entire taxi fleet to make it less polluting - but not more handicapped-accessible.

Link to original article:
http://www.citylimits.org/content/articles/viewarticle.cfm?articlenumber=3380

By Heather Appel
City Limits
WEEKLY #598
July 30, 2007

Alexander Wood recently saw something in Union Square that was, to him, as rare as a unicorn. It was an accessible taxicab that Wood was able to board in his wheelchair – something he'd never done in his years living here.

For Wood, who heads the Disabilities Network of New York City, the 81 accessible taxicabs currently on the road and the additional 150 expected in the next year are good news. After all, in 2004 there were only five such vehicles operating. But he considers a total of 230 accessible vehicles, out of some 13,000 yellow taxicabs, insufficient to serve the estimated 65,000 people who use wheelchairs in New York City.

When Mayor Bloomberg announced plans this May to convert the entire taxi fleet to hybrid gas-electric vehicles by 2012, some disability advocates were stunned that none of those hybrid vehicles are required to be wheelchair accessible. Most agree that saving 22 million gallons of fuel and reducing carbon emissions by 215,000 tons, according to administration figures, is a good thing – but they wonder why such a massive transition wouldn't take advantage of the opportunity to address a longstanding complaint of people with disabilities.

"The thing is, this is a solve-able problem," says Joe Rappaport, an advocate with the Taxis for All Campaign, a coalition that has been fighting for more accessible taxis since 1994. "It should fit in with the Bloombergian view of the world, which is that there are technological means of making progress."

But the administration has raised objections over the cost and aesthetics of potential accessible vehicles that could meet the needs of disabled riders, he said.

In fact, the hybrid models under consideration by the Taxi and Limousine Commission (TLC), made by Toyota, Honda and Ford, cannot be modified to include a wheelchair ramp. Regarding the absence of accessible cabs in the hybrid phase-in plan, Matt Sapolin, commissioner of the Mayor's Office for People with Disabilities, said that regular, non-hybrid vehicles that are wheelchair-accessible would be allowed to stay in the taxi fleet after the transition.

In terms of adding more accessible vehicles to the fleet, administration officials say they are still searching for a solution that meets everyone's needs. There's nothing to prevent medallion owners from buying or retrofitting accessible vehicles, but TLC standards and regulations make it costly to do so.

"Our ultimate goal is to see the design and manufacture of a vehicle that satisfies the TLC's 'wish list' with such attributes as accessibility, clean fuel, pleasing aesthetics, iconic design, sturdiness," and more, said TLC Deputy Commissioner Allan Fromberg.

To maximize the use of the 230 accessible vehicles expected to be on the road by next year, the TLC favors a dispatch system that would allow callers to call 311 or another central number and request a car that can accommodate a wheelchair or scooter. That's a contentious proposal among disability activists. Some think it's the only reasonable solution right now, because there are such limited options – even though wait times can take up to an hour. Members of the Taxis for All Campaign, on the other hand, are wary, arguing that a dispatch solution lets the administration off the hook on the long-term goal of getting more accessible vehicles on the road, and eventually converting the entire fleet to universally-accessible vehicles.

For a commuter like Edith Prentiss, who lives in Washington Heights and uses an electric wheelchair, the dispatch system offers little progress. "If I had an hour to wait for a taxi to turn up, why would I be bothering?" she said. "I might as well take the bus." Prentiss believes these transportation obstacles contribute to the "horrendous unemployment rate" among people with disabilities, over 30 percent nationwide.

Resistance to accessible taxicabs sounds familiar to those who fought to make public buses accessible in the 1970s and 1980s - and they're now a vital transit link. Some officials argue that not enough people with disabilities ride taxis to make it worthwhile. And, by now, disabled riders know they have to depend on other modes of transportation.

Users find those other options leave something to be desired, however. There are about 54 accessible MTA stations out of 468 subway stations citywide, and half of those are in Manhattan. Elevators are often out of service, and the MTA hotline updating their status can be inaccurate.

There's a car service called A Ride for All that people were optimistic about when it began in 2003, offering for-hire vans with wheelchair lifts. The service was popular at first but then became kind of a "subscription service" for people who could reserve for regular appointments. The cars are rarely available on short notice, and fares have increased to a minimum of $45 per ride.

Then there's Access-a-Ride, the city's transit system that provides vans for people with disabilities, which is often criticized for being slow, late, and difficult to use. With Access-a-Ride, riders must call well in advance and share rides with several others.

This leaves the majority of people with mobility disabilities taking the bus, which is slower than the subway and may require several transfers.

Despite some small gains, some say that the situation won't really improve unless New York City pressures the auto manufacturing industry to create a "purpose-built" – i.e. custom-made – vehicle that's fuel-efficient and accessible. A model of one such vehicle, the Standard Taxi, was displayed at the New York International Auto Show this March, earning rave reviews from disabled riders and elected officials who tested it.

At least one hack was impressed by it, too. "In my opinion, the best wheelchair car they had, the city turned it down," said taxi driver Beresford Simmons. He's familiar with current technology, because he acquired a discounted accessible medallion in 2005 and has been driving a minivan with a wheelchair ramp ever since.

Simmons said he picks up passengers with wheelchairs as often as he can, but that many more accessible cabs are needed. He worries that drivers who work for large fleets can't afford the time to do special pick-ups through a dispatch system like the one proposed. As an independent owner, he’s able to set his own schedule and can work beyond the usual 12-hour shifts, he said.

One solution Simmons and others mentioned would be to provide incentives to drivers picking up disabled passengers. Another solution would be to put a better quality vehicle on the road that doesn’t require as much assistance from the driver – like the Standard Taxi.

Fromberg said nothing is on or off the table, but that the Standard Taxi is not yet being manufactured yet, so there's nothing to consider. News accounts say the company expects to start production in 2008.

Disability activists are pushing for a bill in City Council (Introduction 378), that would require accessible vehicles to be phased in over time as old cabs are retired. Despite one hearing in the transportation committee, and thousands of postcards in support mailed to City Hall, the bill doesn't appear destined for passage. "There's not enough support for an immediate mandate on the industry right now," said Councilman John Liu, chair of the transportation committee. "A universal mandate [for accessible vehicles] could double the cost of a taxi to $40,000 a year," he said.

An earlier Council bill, passed in December, required the TLC to present a plan and schedule within 180 days for increasing the numbers of green and accessible taxis. Those 180 days have passed, and the TLC has provided little information on increasing accessible yellow cabs, and no information at all on plans for "for-hire vehicles" – livery cabs, black cars and limos.

Fromberg, of the TLC, said the city’s Economic Development Corporation issued a request for proposals for a consultant who can design an "iconic" New York taxi that meets the needs of all riders. He said that the goal is to have a design for a purpose-built vehicle by next spring, but the TLC doesn't make any commitments or set any standards for accessible cars.

"Obviously, we are optimistic," said Fromberg, but "I could not commit to it as a guarantee."

In the meantime, the Disabilities Network of New York City, Easter Seals, the Mayor's Office for People with Disabilities and other organizations are planning to hold forums on accessible taxis and for-hire vehicles in each borough in the next few months, which participants hope will lead to some long-term solutions.

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), which had its 17th anniversary on July 26, says that taxis cannot deny service to disabled riders who are capable of getting in and out of a cab, and it regulates the features of accessible taxis (a certain amount of space for wheelchairs, tie-downs, etc.), but it does not mandate that cabs be modified to be accessible.

People with disabilities say there's just not enough incentive right now for auto makers to produce the vehicles they need. Manufacturers would respond to a clear demand for accessible vehicles, just like they did in the past with safety glass, seatbelts and airbags, technologies they once insisted would be a hardship for the industry. And they say cost and durability concerns are overblown and that if the vehicles were bought in bulk, they would be affordable to medallion owners. Other cities have been able to provide more accessible cab service, such as Chicago, Montreal, Las Vegas and London, where the entire fleet is accessible to wheelchairs.

AP article on GPS plans

2007-06-11T23:45:00.000-04:00

The Taxis For All Campaign spoke out against these plans a year or so ago.

NYC Taxi Cabs Offer High-Tech Hardware

By JENNIFER PELTZ
The Associated Press
Sunday, May 13, 2007

NEW YORK -- To taxi officials, the touch-screen monitors popping up in cabs help passengers make the most of the 13 New York minutes spent on an average ride.

Passengers can pay by credit card _ no more fumbling for cash and tip. As a cab heads through Greenwich Village, for example, passengers can find ads and reviews for neighborhood bars and restaurants. They can also view news stories and an electronic map of their cab's progress.

The monitors are now in 200 city cabs as an experiment, but a plan to put them in all 13,000 cabs has angered many drivers. They see the technology as an expensive imposition that would cost them money and allow taxi owners and officials to check up on them.

The issue has a delicate history: A 2003 experiment with touch-screen television in taxis ended within months, amid passenger antipathy. And the drivers' group leading the opposition to the monitors notes that it carried out a crippling one-day taxi strike over other issues in 1998.

The Taxi and Limousine Commission is scheduled Thursday to consider an Oct. 1 deadline for all of the city's cabs to start installing the systems.

"This project is nothing short of revolutionary and evolutionary for the taxi industry," Taxi and Limousine Commissioner Matthew W. Daus wrote in a recent agency newsletter.

The commission called for the technology while approving a 26 percent fare increase in 2004, and the agency argues that both riders and drivers stand to benefit.

The credit-card option is expected to prove popular with customers in what is now a mostly cash, $1.8 billion-a-year business. Officials say it could translate to bigger tips and more fares from riders short on cash.

The global positioning system in the technology will also automate required record-keeping and give drivers crucial information about traffic or lost items. If a customer reports losing a wallet, for example, the taxi commission could send alerts to drivers in the neighborhood where the customer was dropped off to be on the lookout.

The commission has approved tests of four systems and may endorse them for sale within days. Taxi owners would choose from the four systems, at a maximum three-year cost of $7,200 for equipment and various fees, although commission officials expect the cost will be far less in many cases. Vendors say advertising can offset at least some of owners' costs.

Objecting drivers have raised concerns about the costs of the hardware, credit-card fees and potential working time lost if the systems need repair. Some worry that the global-positioning system will be used to track their movements, although the taxi commission says it will record only the pickup and drop-off points and fare, which drivers already are required to log.

"It's trampling on our constitutional rights, and it will cut deeply into our income," said Bill Lindauer, who drove a cab for 30 years and is a member of the organizing committee of the New York Taxi Workers Alliance, a drivers' advocacy group with more than 7,000 members.

The alliance held a rally in March to protest the new systems, and Lindauer said this month that the group was exploring legal and political avenues for trying to block the plan.

But some drivers embrace the technology, which came free for those who offered their cabs as proving grounds.

Cesar Norena, a 17-year taxi driver testing a system made by Englewood, N.J.-based TaxiTech, says passengers have made liberal use of its features, and he believes the credit-card option will boost business.

"People really like it," he said, "and as a driver, I really like it, too."

A study in contradictions

2007-06-07T16:18:00.001-04:00

Linda Ostreicher writes:

Here's Mayor Bloomberg's position statements about accessible taxis a little over a year ago:

"I am proud to partner with the Council to increase the number of hybrid, alternative fuel and wheelchair accessible taxis," said Mayor Bloomberg. "All New Yorkers deserve access to our City's yellow cabs and increasing the number of hybrid and alternative fuel taxis means cleaner air and greater energy independence."

Not to mention the Council's:

"While we support the Mayor's call to make our City more environmentally-friendly, it's also important that taxi cabs are accessible to as many New Yorkers as possible," said Speaker Quinn. "...By adding 204 wheelchair accessible taxis this year, we are taking a step toward our ultimate goal of making every taxi in New York wheelchair accessible."

"We should do everything possible to give people who use wheelchairs and scooters the same ability to get around town as everyone else," said Councilmember Liu.

Note: This entry ends here.

Alexander rides a "unicorn"

2007-06-07T09:18:00.001-04:00

OK, Folks:

Tonight marks a personal milestone in my life: I rode in a wheelchair accessible taxi from Union Square. I was at the bus stop, stranded at the curb and feeling low because two buses had passed me for one reason or another (one's lift was broken, and the other had 2 wheelchair passengers already, so it was fully booked as far as I was concerned, as I use a wheelchair. I was about to call the MTA Complaint line (but of course, couldn't find the number), when I noticed a woman getting out of a taxi in the bus stop. The taxi had an access symbol on it, so I flagged it down. It was great. The driver had never driven a Chevy Uplander before, as he is only an occasional driver, but he figured out how to fold up the seat and deploy the ramp in 2 seconds flat. We had an uneventful and smooth ride to where I live down near Battery Park at the bottom of West Street. The meter was at $10. I was so excited I gave him a $5 tip.

Yippee! It's progress! But in the end, it's just one accessible taxi ride in the last 3.5 years in New York City! The last time I was in an accessible for-hire-vehicle was when I went to Christie's to pick up some chairs I bought at auction and I loaded them into an A RIDE FOR ALL van. I should say that I got yelled at by Les Jacobs, who did not like his car service being used as a moving van. Is that company still in business?

Anyway, it would be great if there were more accessible taxis on the road.

Does anyone else have a similar experience to report?

Let us know,
Alexander

A friend in City Hall...

2007-06-04T17:48:00.000-04:00

Here's the Daily News article about Mayor Bloomberg's "green fleet" proposal, which does not include a provision for wheelchair-accessible vehicles, along with his comment:

When The News asked Bloomberg about the criticism from the handicapped, the mayor dismissively replied, "I'm sure you have found somebody that isn't happy and we appreciate the efforts that you make."

Groovy eco trip
Bloomy says city cab fleet to be enviro-friendly by 2012

BY PETE DONOHUE and MICHAEL SAUL
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITERS

Wednesday, May 23rd 2007

Mayor Bloomberg looks like he's in cruise control at press conference outside City Hall yesterday to tout proposed new hybrid vehicles for city cab fleet by 2012.

New York City will have a fully hybrid fleet of yellow taxicabs by 2012, with new mileage standards kicking in as early as next year, Mayor Bloomberg proposed yesterday.

Beginning October 2008, all new taxis in the fleet will be required to achieve a minimum of 25 miles per gallon. One year later, newly purchased cabs will be required to achieve a minimum of 30 miles per gallon.

Given the fuel efficiency of vehicles available on the market today, these new environmentally friendly standards would effectively limit the fleet to hybrid vehicles, city officials said.

"It will be the largest, cleanest fleet of taxis anywhere on the planet," Bloomberg declared.

The announcement - details of which were first reported in yesterday's Daily News - comes a month after Bloomberg unveiled an ambitious 127-point plan he described as the broadest scale attack on global warming undertaken by any city ever.

Bloomberg, who continues to deny interest in running for President, took time yesterday to tout the taxi proposal on NBC's "Today Show" and CNN's "The Situation Room."

The Ford Crown Victoria, which accounts for roughly 90% of the city's 13,000 yellow cabs, gets 14 miles per gallon. By increasing fuel efficiency to 30 miles per gallon, officials estimate the average taxi operator will save more than $10,000 per year.

The city currently has 375 hybrid vehicles on the streets. By October 2010, that number should grow to 7,000.

Officials also said yesterday they will be moving forward on greening the city's 35,000 for-hire vehicles. The city plans to come up with standards for those vehicles in the future.

The new rules are expected to be approved by the city's Taxi and Limousine Commission within the next few months.

Evgeny Friedman, who owns a fleet of about 800 cabs and currently has 120 hybrids, called the hybrid proposal a "no-brainer." He said drivers who rent his fleet of cars make more money. They shell out between $7 and $9 a day for gasoline, compared with $30 for the Crown Victorias, and the maintenance expenses are far lower, he said.

Matthew Daus, head of the Taxi and Limousine Commission, dismissed criticism that hybrids would be less roomy, less comfortable and provide less trunk space.

Stunning some industry officials, Daus said, "When it comes to legroom and trunk space, I think the biggest priority for us, the city and the mayor is basically the environment."

"That comes first. Everything else will fall into place."

Yesterday, several groups representing handicapped people criticized the mayor for failing to make taxis more handicap-accessible. Less than 100 cabs are handicap-accessible today, advocates said.

Michael Harris, campaign coordinator for the Disabled Riders Coalition, said he's disappointed with Bloomberg's "blatant disregard" for the handicapped.

When The News asked Bloomberg about the criticism from the handicapped, the mayor dismissively replied, "I'm sure you have found somebody that isn't happy and we appreciate the efforts that you make."

Note: This entry ends here.

Daily News letters smack Bloomberg on taxis

2007-06-01T10:18:00.000-04:00

May 29, 2007

Car service

Washington: Mayor Bloomberg dodged addressing concerns of people with disabilities regarding the accessibility of taxis in New York ("Groovy eco trip", May 23). Without proper consideration of the barriers aspects of car design present to people with disabilities, an entire mode of transportation is made completely off-limits to an entire population of people. This is a matter of civil rights, not preferences, and the mayor would do well to acknowledge the difference.

-- President and CEO Andrew J. Imparato, American Association of People with Disabilities

Berkeley, California: Mayor Bloomberg's recent statement of complete disregard for the needs of people with disabilities in New York City for disability-accessible taxis not only hurts New York's aging and physically impaired residents, but is also an insult to other Americans with disabilities like me who travel to New York regularly on business or to simply see a play or a museum exhibit. His callousness is truly shocking.

-- Marilyn Golden, Disability Rights Education & Defense Fund

Note: This entry ends here.

Daily News: Medallion prices at $600,000

2007-06-01T10:11:00.001-04:00

You think they might be able to pay a bit more for an accessible vehicle? (Though we should note that, in many cases, the vehicle purchaser is not the medallion holder.)

Cab licenses at Cadillac prices

Wednesday, May 30th 2007, 4:00 AM

Two city taxi medallions have been sold on the private market for a record-breaking $600,000 each - showing demand for the scarce licenses is stronger than ever.

The buyer operates a fleet of yellow cabs and closed the deal last month, according to the company that made the loan, Medallion Financial Corp.

The value of the metal shields has been climbing steadily in recent years - up from $195,000 in 2001 - outperforming the stock market and even red-hot real estate.

The reason is that the city strictly limits the number of medallions. There are 13,087 in circulation now, but only 1,300 of them have been auctioned in the past 70 years.

Bidding at the rare auctions has been frenzied, and the top price at the last one in June 2006 was $554,148.

Medallions bought at auction can be resold on the private market. The name of the seller and buyer in the latest sale were not disclosed.

The city applauded the inflationary trend.

"This record sale price says that the New York City taxi industry is healthier and more vital than ever before," said Taxi and Limousine Commissioner Matthew Daus.

Tracy Connor with News Wire Services

Note: This entry ends here.

Hybrid Yellow Cabs: Don't Forget the Disabled

2007-05-29T09:53:00.000-04:00

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New York Times
Published: May 29, 2007

To the Editor:

Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg's announcement that the city's yellow taxi fleet will become completely hybrid within five years (news article, May 23) callously ignores the immediate transportation needs of people with severe physical disabilities who cannot enter or exit currently approved hybrid taxi vehicles, as well as New York City's growing aging population, who are much more likely to acquire a physical impairment.

Despite the availability today of half a dozen minivans that can be modified for easy access for all people, and the continuing development of a factory-built wheelchair accessible sedan that can carry four additional seated passengers, to be available for purchase next year, the mayor chooses to ignore those citizens most in need of disability-friendly taxi service.

Terence J. Moakley
Project Manager, Taxis for All-North America
United Spinal Association
Jackson Heights, Queens
May 23, 2007

Statement of Anne Davis, Chair, Taxis For All Campaign on Mayor Bloomberg's Clean-air Taxi Plan

2007-05-22T00:00:00.000-04:00

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Anti-Discrimination Center of Metro New York
Brooklyn Center for Independence of the Disabled (BCID)
Center for Independence of the Disabled in New York (CIDNY)
Disabilities Network of New York City (DNNYC)
Disabled in Action of Metropolitan New York (DIA)
504 Democratic Club
New York Lawyers for the Public Interest (NYLPI)
New York City Chapter, National Multiple Sclerosis Society
United Spinal Association (USA)

May 22, 2007

To hear Mayor Bloomberg's announcement, you would never know that New York City lags far behind other cities in providing accessible taxis for wheelchair users. His failure to commit to a gradual transition to a wheelchair-accessible taxi fleet represents a shocking failure of vision.

Wheelchair-accessible cabs are currently available, new models are under development, and a mandate for accessibility would spur further innovation. But the Bloomberg administration has refused to join the majority of City Council members who support Intro. 378 -- The Accessible and Green Taxi Transition Law.

While Intro. 378 would mean a fully accessible, green fleet around 2015, under Mayor Bloomberg's proposal, the fleet would be fully green by 2012 but not accessible until some undetermined time in the long distant future.

A fully accessible fleet would save money on paratransit costs and would make a vital part of the city's transportation system accessible to all.

The Taxis For All Campaign has long supported a cleaner taxi fleet: we breathe the same air as everybody else. We are eager to work with Mayor Bloomberg not only to have cleaner taxis but also to have a full fleet of taxis we can actually use.

For more information, contact Anne Davis at 917-331-8410
or Joe Rappaport at 212-662-4449. Visit www.taxisforall.org

Wheelchair Users from Across U.S. Call for More Accessible Service in New York

2007-04-11T09:00:00.000-04:00

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Anti-Discrimination Center of Metro New York | Center for Independence of the Disabled in New York (CIDNY | Disabilities Network of New York City (DNNYC) | Disabled in Action of Metropolitan New York (DIA) | 504 Democratic Club | New York Lawyers for the Public Interest (NYLPI) | New York City Chapter, National Multiple Sclerosis Society | United Spinal Association (USA)

For Immediate Release:
April 11, 2007

For More Information, contact:
Joe Rappaport, 212-662-4449 or 646-284-1078
Jean Ryan, 917-658-0760

On 100th Anniversary of Gasoline Taxi in New York City, Advocates from Across Country Ask:
"Why Can't Wheelchair Users Get a Ride?"

Taxi '07 Exhibit Shows New Accessible Vehicles on the Way.
But San Francisco, Chicago, Houston and Other Cities
Offer Far Better Service Already

The Taxis For All Campaign joined out-of-town wheelchair users attending a "Taxi Summit" to urge New York City leaders to "stop making excuses" for the lack of accessible yellow cabs here.

Meeting at the Javits Center's Taxi '07 Exhibit on Wednesday with wheelchair and scooter users, taxi fleet owners, regulators and taxi officials from San Francisco, Chicago and other cities, the group spoke out about how New York City lags many U.S. in offering wheelchair accessible taxis. Only 37 cabs are accessible out of 13,087 medallions.

Many members of the group rolled their way to the Javits Center site from the Marriott Marquis Hotel in Times Square - where the Taxi Summit is taking place - because the lack of accessible vehicles makes it virtually impossible to get to the Javits Center by taxi.

"It's extraordinary that the biggest taxi-using city in the nation can't figure out how to get accessible taxis on its streets," said Jean Ryan, vice-chair of the Taxis For All Campaign. "The city loses out economically when it can't offer accessible cabs to its own residents and to visitors," Ryan added.

New York City Mayor Bloomberg and the City Council have resisted mandating a gradual transition to an accessible fleet, even though the city's Taxi & Limousine Commission regulates every aspect of the yellow-taxi industry.

On Tuesday, Taxi and Limousine Chair Matthew Daus, a Bloomberg appointee, admitted that "other cities are certainly ahead of us" in impromptu remarks before the summit attendees.

Promising signs

Speakers at Tuesday's summit session described success stories in San Francisco - where accessible vehicles manage to run for years amid the hills and steep slopes - and in Chicago, Houston and Alabama, among other locations. In London, every single taxi is accessible, an initiative that started after city leaders mandated a transition in 1989.

Another promising sign is the development of new accessible vehicles, including a fully accessible vehicle by a Michigan-based company, Standard Taxi, on display at the Taxi '07 Exhibit. The exhibit, funded by Standard, also features other innovative, accessible taxi models in development. The Taxi '07 exhibit is a project of the Design Trust for Public Space.

"This exhibit shows it can be done - and the experience of other cities shows accessibility is achievable already," said Anne Davis, chair of the Taxis For All Campaign.

Little progress in New York City

In a letter to TLC Chairman Daus, 50 groups and Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer urged the City to abandon plans for a "call-in" system that wheelchair users described as an "Access-A-Ride Jr."-and to support legislation that "would, gradually, lead to full conversion of the yellow cab fleet so that all New Yorkers can use our city's taxis."

The groups also wrote:

"The TLC's own description of the dispatch system shows a 'passenger service level' in which 50% of wheelchair users who call for a cab would wait more than 40 minutes for a pick-up. Why should any New Yorker put up with such a substandard system?

And this is no 'stop-gap' measure, since with no TLC and legislative commitment to a phased-in transition to accessible and green vehicles, the 'gap' goes on forever."

City Council Intro. 378, introduced by Council Member Oliver Koppell and sponsored by 26 council members, would - over a period of several years - require taxi operators to buy accessible and lower-polluting vehicles. In 2006, the Council passed legislation that would require another 150 accessible taxi medallions to be sold. They will be in service in late 2007 or in early 2008, the TLC says.

The city's taxi industry has opposed the bill, just as the auto industry resisted seat belts, air bags, and fuel economy requirements until the government required them to introduce them.

"If the Bloomberg administration wants to show it means business, it'll adopt a mandate that will make accessible taxis a reality in the next several years, not in the 2020s or 2030s," said Terry Moakley, another Taxis For All Campaign member. "It's time to stop making excuses when other cities leave us behind."

LETTER to Taxi and Limousine Commission Chair Matthew Daus

2007-04-11T08:00:00.000-04:00

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April 11, 2007

Matthew Daus
Commissioner/Chair, New York City Taxi and Limousine Commission
40 Rector Street
New York, NY 10006

Dear TLC Chair Daus:

Our groups write to urge you to abandon any proposal for a central dispatch system-an "Access-A-Ride Jr."-and to support legislation that would, gradually, lead to full conversion of the yellow cab fleet so that all New Yorkers can use our city's taxis.

We also urge you to advance the date of the long-overdue sale of 150 new accessible yellow taxis and get them onto New York City's streets for regular hail service as soon as possible. These vehicles have been authorized for sale for more than a year.

40 minutes or more for a cab

A dispatch system would create a separate and unequal system in which only wheelchair and electric scooter users would have to phone in for a yellow cab – a vehicle that may never show up if it gets stuck in traffic or picks up a street hail. (The Access-A-Ride users in our groups know all too well the delays that are inherent in a call-in system.) The TLC's own description of the dispatch system shows a "passenger service level" in which 50% of wheelchair users who call for a cab would wait more than 40 minutes for a pick-up. Why should any New Yorker put up with such a substandard system?

And this is no "stop-gap" measure, since with no TLC and legislative commitment to a phased-in transition to accessible and green vehicles, the "gap" goes on forever.

Lack of political will

The lack of wheelchair service in New York City is not a lack of available technology but a lack of political will. Until legislation passes that mandates a conversion to accessible and green cabs over a reasonable period, the taxi industry will resist the change, just as the auto industry resisted seat belts, air bags, and fuel economy requirements.

Taxis in London have been accessible for years, with a transition starting in 1989. Nearly two decades later, it's long past due for the City of New York to afford wheelchair users the same basic opportunity to get around our city.

Yours truly,

Anne Davis
Taxis For All Campaign

Hon. Scott M. Stringer
Manhattan Borough President

Craig Gurian
Anti-Discrimination Center of Metro New York

Patricia Walls
504 Democratic Club - North Star

Edith Prentiss
504 Democratic Club

Rhonda Longstreet-Lawlor
Action Toward Independence

Ann Berson
Alzheimer's Association, NYC Chapter

Margaret M. Groce
Association of Travel Instruction

Paul Feurstein
Barrier Free Living

Joan Serrano
Brooklyn Center for Independence of the Disabled

Chris Hilderbrant
Center for Disability Rights

Susan Dooha
Center for Independence of the Disabled, New York

Hazel Lee-Briggs
Center for Independent Living of South Jersey, Inc.

Frank Randazzo
Chippewa Democratic Club

Ken Struve
City Access New York

Chris Rosa
Student Disability Services,
City University New York

Vuka Stricevic
Community Access

Alan Goldblatt
CWA Local 1180 Committee on Members with Disabilities

Janice L. Schacter
Deafness Research Foundation

Carr Massi
Disabled In Action of Metropolitan New York

Sandy Hecker
Disabilities Network

Alexander Wood
Disabilities Network of New York City

James Brennan
Friends of Seravalli

Judy Lear
Gray Panthers NYC

Anna Capell
Handicapped Adult Association of Co-Op City

Christina Curry
Harlem Independent Living Center

Jane Thompson
Helen Keller Services for the Blind

Cliff Perez
Independent Living Center of the Hudson Valley Inc.

Molly Krakowski
JPAC

Lewis Goldstein
Lamba of Bronx County

TK Small
Largest Minority

Long Term Care Community Coalition

Margie Rubin
Mobility Impaired Artists Westbeth

Mindy Jacobsen
National Federation of the Blind of New York State

New York Lawyers for the Public Interest

Renate K. Alpert
New York Metro Gallaudet University Alumni Association

Joseph M. Jabaley
National Multiple Sclerosis Society,
New York City Chapter

Brad Williams
New York State Independent Living Council

Bruce Darling
Regional Center for Independent Living

Virginia Granato
Roosevelt Island Disabled Association

Rev. Lucius Walker, Jr.
Salvation Baptist Church

Ramon Aldecoa & Michelle Teusch
Self-Advocacy Association of New York State

Dorothy Doran
Staten Island Center For Independent Living

Bernie Abramowitz
Staten Island Amputee Club

Mary Somoza
Synergia

Pam Bates
TLC Advisory Committee

Terry Moakley
United Spinal Association

Urban Justice Center

Hermina Jackson & Virtus Haynes Acting Group

Melvyn Tanzman
Westchester Disabled On the Move Inc.

Rafaela Puerto
344 East 28th Street Tenant Association

Address return mail c/o:

Terry Moakley
Taxis For All Campaign
United Spinal Association
75-20 Astoria Boulevard, Jackson Heights, NY 11370