Appeals court rules against disability advocates

Excerpt from Washington Post: (click for entire article)

A federal appeals court struck down a ruling Thursday that would have required New York City to give taxi licenses only to vehicles that are wheelchair accessible — disappointing disability advocates upset that fewer than 2 percent of city cabs can accommodate wheelchairs.

The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the Americans with Disabilities Act doesn’t require the city to demand that cabbies serve the disabled. Instead, the court ruled, in this case the ADA only bars the city Taxi & Limousine Commission from discriminating against disabled people seeking a license to drive a cab.

The law “prohibits the TLC from refusing to grant licenses to persons with disabilities who are otherwise qualified to own or operate a taxi,” the justices wrote. “It does not assist persons who are consumers of the licensees’ product.”

The decision was a blow to disability advocates, who had heralded the lower court ruling that declared access to such services “a basic civil right.”