Provides improved access to taxicabs for persons with disabilities and authorizes the sale of 2,000 additional wheelchair accessible taxicab licenses in NYC; provides for the NYC taxi and limousine commissioner to set aside up to $100,000,000, but not less than $75,000,000, for the modification and upkeep of all medallion taxicabs and to offset any additional costs of medallion owners.
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A959A
SPONSOR: Kellner (MS) TITLE OF BILL: An act to amend the general municipal law, in relation
to providing for improved access to taxicabs for persons with disabili-
ties
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL: To improve access to taxicabs for
persons with disabilities and to authorize the sale of 2,000 additional
wheelchair accessible taxicab licenses in the city of New York.
SUMMA-
RY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:
Section 2: Municipal officers and boards having a population of more
than one million shall no later than April 13, 2015 adopt ordinances
providing:
a) "Accessible taxicabs" shall be any vehicle: equipped with a ramp, or
other device capable of transporting persons with physical disabilities,
including those who use wheelchairs, scooters, and similar devices;
complies with specifications of the Americans with Disabilities Act;
equipped with assistive listening system for persons with hearing
impairment than is connected with any intercom, video, or audio system
when it is installed; assures the technology utilized is compliant with
standards set by the Commissioner of Transportation and is tested by
local oversight authorities; is equipped with standardized signs in
Braille and Large Print for those with low vision; provides sufficient
floor space for a service animal; is equipped with a hearing device for
persons who are blind if the taxicab is a hybrid-electric vehicle as it
will not sound the same as a conventional gas-powered vehicle; that no
owner of a taxicab shall place it into service subsequent to October 1,
2016 when it is not an "accessible taxicab"; and that for the purposes
of the bill, "assistive listening system" shall mean situational-person-
al acoustic communication equipment designed to improve the transmission
and auditory reception of sound, including but not limited to standard
amplitude modulation (AM), frequency modulation (FM), audio induction
loop, infrared light sound, or hard wire systems.
Subsection 2:
a) The city of New York may, by local law authorize the New York city
taxi and limousine commission (TLC) or its successor agency, issue up to
two,thousand additional taxicab licenses, provided that such licenses
shall be restricted to vehicles designated for the purpose of transport-
ing persons in wheelchairs or other such devices. The taxicab licenses
shall be compliant with the standards set by the Americans with Disabil-
ities Act, and shall be issued by public sale and fully transferable.
b) For purposes of the bill, the term "wheelchair accessible taxicab"
shall refer to taxicabs compliant with the federal regulations of the
Americans with Disabilities Act, and the TLC shall prescribe by regu-
lation the procedures for the issuance and.public sale of such addi-
tional licenses, by public auction, sealed bids or other competitive
process.
c) For the sale of such additional 2,000 wheelchair accessible taxicab
licenses, the TLC shall set aside up to $100,000,000 but not less than
$75,000,000 for modification and upkeep of all medallion taxicabs and
offset the additional costs to medallion owners. The TLC shall determine
the subsidy based on the type of medallion issued.
JUSTIFICATION: It is a matter of fairness and in spirit with the prin-
ciples of the Americans with Disabilities Act that all residents and
visitors to New York City are afforded equal access to all modes of
transportation.
New York City is home to one of the largest taxi fleets in the world,
and while New Yorkers and tourists hailing a taxicab is a common sight,
this mode of transportation, virtually synonymous with the New York City
experience, is not accessible to all.
An estimated 90,000 wheelchair-users and 490,000 individuals with mobil-
ity impairments live in New York City, but only 233 of the 13,000 medal-
lion yellow cabs (less than 2%) are able to accommodate a wheelchair
passenger. Even fewer livery vehicles and limousines are accessible for
wheelchair customers. This inequity is an every day reality for wheel-
chair users who are often left stranded without access to a key element
of New York City's transportation infrastructure. The remaining modes of
transportation available to wheelchair users arc far from perfect. While
New York City Transit buses are wheelchair accessible, only a limited
number of subway stations are accessible to wheelchair users. In this
most basic of ways New York City lags behind other comparable cities,
like London, England, which has maintained a 100 % wheelchair accessible
taxi fleet since 1989. This bill requires that all new taxicabs be
equipped with a lift and ramp that allows for the safe transport of
wheelchair users and scooters.
Over 300,000 New Yorkers are estimated to be blind or of low vision.
For these individuals, consistency is the key to accessibility. So when
credit card machines, for instance, are in different locations within a
vehicle's cab or are designed differently, this is a barrier to service
for low-vision or blind individuals. Similarly, if a taxicab does not
have enough floor space to accommodate a service animal, an individual
traveling with one is not able to ride. Also, because many hybrid vehi-
cles make far less noise than conventional gasoline-powered cars, many
people of low-vision or blind individuals are unable to hear these vehi-
cles approach, creating a hazardous situation. Another problem exists in
relation to signage. in 1997, New York City's Taxi and Limousine Commis-
sion ordered all taxicabs to have Braille signage that provides the
taxi's medallion number, the word "complaints," and a customer service
telephone number located in a consistent location. Unfortunately,
signage relating to the rights of taxi cab consumers and fare schedules
are not provided in Braille and generally the font size for all of these
signs is very small, making it difficult for people who are of low
vision to read. This bill requires that taxicabs are compliant with
standard technology (with an exception for the testing of pilot programs
for new systems), provide sufficient floor space for a service animal,
require that hybrid-powered taxicabs are outfitted with a device that
enables the blind or low vision individuals to hear the vehicle
approach, and provides for large-print and Braille signage.
Approximately 10% of the U.S. population has some form of hearing loss,
putting the estimated number of New York City residents who are deaf or
hard of hearing at just under one million people. For these individuals
it is commonly difficult to communicate with the taxicab driver about
their destination, their preferred route, or to converse about the fare
and payment. This bill requires that new taxicabs be fitted with an
assistive listening system so that people who use a hearing aid can be
connected to an intercom, video, or audio system.
The sale of 2000 yellow taxicab medallions would provide much need need-
ed funding to City of New York, raising between $1.2 and $1.5 billion in
revenue. While proper funding to supplement the taxi industry's
new,costs will ensure the conversion to an accessible fleet is success-
ful.
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY: A.4406 of 2011-12
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS: To be determined.
EFFECTIVE DATE: This act shall take effect immediately.
