New York City Access-A-Ride Program Cost Saving Changes
Author: United Spinal Association
Published: 2010/03/24 - Updated: 2024/06/18
Publication Type: Informative
Category Topic: Disability Transport Services - Academic Publications
Page Content: Synopsis - Introduction - Main
Synopsis: Proposed Access-A-Ride cuts will have negative impact on individuals with disabilities in New York City. If we had more accessible taxi and livery vehicles in New York City, they could become the 'workhorses' of Access-A-Ride and reduce demand for A-A-R trips.
Introduction
United Spinal Association Board member Terence J. Moakley testified before the New York City Council Committee on Transportation on Tuesday March, 23rd that proposed Access-A-Ride cuts will have a negative impact on individuals with disabilities living in New York City.
Main Content
Mr. Moakley further testified the 1990 Americans with Disabilities Act requires that paratransit services like Access-A-Ride must be provided in any U.S. community that provides public transportation service.
Mr. Moakley proposed several cost saving changes to the Access-A-Ride program. He stated:
"A totally wheelchair-accessible yellow taxi fleet must be developed in our city."
He added:
"If we had more accessible taxi and livery vehicles in New York City, they could become the 'workhorses' of Access-A-Ride and reduce demand for A-A-R trips. Further, we believe that accessible taxis and livery vehicles would provide such service for much less than the $66 cost per trip of Access-A-Ride today. Remember, taxis and liveries are the original 'paratransit' vehicles. Transportation agencies in other cities know this, and saving money is why many such agencies integrate taxis into their ADA paratransit service."
Mr. Moakley reminded the Council that the wheelchair-accessible MV-1 taxi, formerly known as the "Standard Taxi," will begin to roll off the assembly line in Indiana in October. Principles of this company The Vehicle Production Group recently unveiled an accessible "livery" version of their vehicle, also available in October.
Another recommendation was that "feeder service" wherein the consumer takes an Access-A-Ride Vehicle for a small portion of a long trip, and then completes the trip on an accessible bus or train should be reconsidered as a cost-reducing method.
Mr. Moakley concluded by recommending that New York City Transit vastly expand its travel training services availability, either in-house or by contract.
"Travel training started here in 1960 at the Department of Education. Travel trainers teach persons with disabilities and seniors how to use local public transportation safely and independently. Many transit agencies around the nation have travel trainers at the initial ADA paratransit eligibility screening. If NYCT grows its travel training availability, we believe that this effort can help to reduce A-A-R costs," he said.
Related Information
- Access-A-Ride Paratransit Users Win Case Against MTA for Equal Fare Discounts: Supreme Court of NYS denies MTA and the NYC Transit Authority motion to dismiss its case for Equal Fare Discounts, ruling in favor of the plaintiffs.
- Historic Settlement to Make NYC Subway Accessible to Disabled: State and Federal courts grant final approval to historic settlement to make the NYC subway accessible to people who need stair-free access.
- United Spinal Association Sues MTA for Inaccessible Subway Stations: Class action suit is brought by United Spinal Association whose members live with physical disabilities due to spinal cord injuries and disorders.
Attribution/Source(s): This quality-reviewed publication was selected for publishing by the editors of Disabled World (DW) due to its relevance to the disability community. Originally authored by United Spinal Association and published on 2010/03/24, this content may have been edited for style, clarity, or brevity.