REP. WEINER, EASTER SEALS, DISABILITY ACTIVISTS
ANNOUNCE NEW INITIATIVE TO ESTABLISH
WHEELCHAIR LIVERY SERVICE FOR FIVE BOROUGHS
New York City – According to a new study conducted by Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-Queens & Brooklyn), 32% of livery car companies in New York City refuse to pick up people confined to wheelchairs, and only 11 out of the 415 surveyed are in compliance with a City regulation that requires wheelchair accessibility, but which is only being partially enforced. Weiner, a Member of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, announced a new initiative to establish City-wide service for wheelchair passengers, in conjunction with the Easter Seals.
When most of us call a cab, we expect it to come promptly, and to take us where we need to go at a reasonable price. But for people in wheelchairs, it’s rarely that simple. In fact, according to the Weiner wheelchair study, hundreds of livery car companies–the only kinds of cabs that you can call to come pick you up–either refuse to pick up wheelchair passengers, or have no cars specially equipped to carry them.
HIGHLIGHTS OF THE WEINER WHEELCHAIR STUDY:
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132 Companies Refuse Wheelchair Passengers – 132 out of 415 livery companies contacted said they would not pick up a passenger in a wheelchair. That’s 32%, or nearly a third.
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Only 47 Companies Provide Vehicles Designed for Wheelchair Passengers -- Only 47 companies–11% of those surveyed--provide access to vehicles specially equipped to accommodate the needs of wheelchair passengers, like vans fitted with lifts and ramps and which have enough room for passengers to remain in their wheelchairs. That means that when calling 237 other livery companies, the only option wheelchair passengers have is to put their chair in the trunk of a car, which may be no option at all for those in electric or unfoldable chairs, or those who’s health make it untenable.
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Fares Are Up To 10 Times More Expensive -- 30 of the 47 companies that provide specially equipped rides charge wheelchair passengers more than able bodied passengers, for the very same trips. V & V Car & Limo, for example, charges $20 to take passengers from Brooklyn to JFK, unless they’re in a wheelchair, in which case passengers are referred to a service that costs $250.
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Some Companies Impose Service Restrictions on Wheelchair Passengers – 6 of the 47 companies that provide specially equipped rides said that they weren’t available when called. 3 companies required reservations, 2 said their van was not in working order, and 1 gave no explanation.
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That Leaves Only 11 Companies That Are In Compliance with City Regs -- According to City regs on the books but not being enforced, livery companies are required to provide access to specially equipped vehicles with the same fare rate, response time, and availability as standard cabs. Only 11 companies fulfill these requirements.
If you’ve ever called a cab to come and get you, you’ve called a livery service. They’re the only kinds of cabs in New York City that the average citizen can summon by a phone call (yellow cabs must be hailed). When you call a livery company, a car is radio dispatched to your location.
Livery cars are of particular importance to the wheelchair bound, as they may have limited access to personal automobiles, as well as particular difficulty attracting the attention of a yellow cab, or navigating crowded subway platforms or buses.
On November 16, 2000, the New York City Taxi & Limousine Commission (TLC) promulgated a regulation requiring all cabs, including livery, to give wheelchair bound passengers access to specially equipped vans upon request, with the same fare structure, response time and availability as standard cabs. Enforcement of the TLC regulation was supposed to begin on October 31, 2001, but the Commission temporarily suspended enforcement after the attacks on the World Trade Center. Then, on July 31, 2002, the TLC announced that enforcement with regards to black cars–car service available to corporate clients–would begin as of September 3, 2002. To date, enforcement of the reg has been applied only to black cars.
Today, Weiner and the Easter Seals announced a new initiative designed to bring all livery car companies in compliance with the TLC regulation. Weiner is pushing to secure approximately $500,000 in this year’s transportation authorization bill which will be used by the Easter Seals to purchase and equip 10 vans for wheelchair passengers. Easter Seals will then work with the livery companies to dispatch the vans to wheelchair bound passengers. Easter Seals already successfully operates such a service for black cars.
"Calling a cab to take you where you want to go is a convenience many of us take for granted," said Rep. Weiner. "But for a person confined to a wheelchair, it may mean the difference between getting out to see a loved one, making a critical appointment or not going at all. It’s imperative that we find a way to provide people in wheelchairs with safe, prompt taxi service, at a reasonable cost."
To conduct the wheelchair cab study, staff in Rep. Weiner’s Queens office obtained a list of all the livery cab companies in the TLC. For the purposes of this study, livery cabs refers to neighborhood or community car services. The list contained 504 entries, a list reduced by Weiner staff to 473 when accounting for duplicates. On Monday May 19 and Tuesday May 20, staff called the 473 companies to ask them whether they pick up wheelchair bound passengers and, if yes, under what conditions. Staff were able to successfully contact 415.
Raw numbers contained in the study are based on the 415 contacts made. Percentages are extrapolations, based on the 415 contact sample set.
