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.
