Rochester flocks to ridesharing but wheelchair users left out

Aleanna Siacon

Democrat and Chronicle

Public transportation is the norm for many wheelchair users, like 27-year-old Jensen Caraballo.

While Rochester rallied to take advantage of Uber and Lyft on June 29, wheelchair users were left waiting curbside.

Uber and Lyft recently announced the city's most popular drop-offs include Murphy’s Law, Frontier Field, Radio Social, Lux Lounge and the Amtrak station.

But while Rochesterians flock to rideshare for wining, dining and having a good time, users can't hail a wheelchair-accessible vehicle with either company.

Read:Here are the top Rochester destination spots for Uber, Lyft riders

The state Legislature has passed measures and established a task force to put rideshare companies on notice, but until accessible vehicles are on the streets, wheelchair users will wait longer than the rest of Rochester for rideshare.

“This is a multibillion-dollar business that needs to require accessibility ... for Americans with disabilities,” said Stephanie Woodward, director of advocacy at the Center for Disability Rights. “If it was a brick-and-mortar store entering the state, or the city of Rochester, we would require it to comply with the ADA, and we should require the same of ridesharing.”

As Uber and Lyft mark over a month upstate, Woodward said the CDR is ready to use advocacy and pursue litigation if ridesharing companies fail to provide service to wheelchair users.

“Unless they start putting action into what they’re saying, and actually having accessible vehicles, we’re certainly not letting them off the hook,” she said.

Watch:D&C rides Uber and Lyft

Left at curbside

Jensen Caraballo (right) is secured to the Q'POD wheelchair passenger station on an RTS bus.

Public transit is the norm for many wheelchair users, but the prospect can come with headaches — from navigating routes to ending up stuck if the bus is running off schedule.

Jostling around in a wheelchair secured to a bus by worn metal hooks and seat belts, 27-year-old Jensen Caraballo lurches slightly, and jiggles with every bump in the road.

“For a normal day … if the weather is nice, I can just hop on the bus, but that depends on if the bus is full,” he said. “If it is snowing, I’ve gotten stuck on the snow and I’ve had to wait for people to pull me out, and if it’s raining, sometimes I just have to stay home and I can’t go out.”

Caraballo lives with spinal muscular atrophy type 2, a condition marked by progressive muscle weakness.

At 15, he was placed into foster care and subsequently institutionalized. He spent his high school years living in a nursing home, until the CDR helped him petition the court system for attendant services, which allow him to live independently.

Caraballo now has an apartment in Charlotte and works as a CDR peer specialist. Travel plays a big role in his work, as he often meets with peers throughout Rochester to provide assistance and mentorship, but he can't afford a wheelchair lift van with the accommodations he needs.

Uber, Lyft now available: What we know now

Although there are other transportation options for wheelchair users, Caraballo said they don’t quite fit the bill.

Insurance providers cover medical services, such as Medicab or Medical Motor Transit, but Caraballo said non-medical transportation can be costly.

“Disabled people don’t only go to the doctor’s,” he said. “If I wanted to go to the movies or the mall, I think I would have to pay $70 for non-emergency transportation.”

So, he frequently schedules rides with RTS Access, a paratransit service that provides door-to-door assistance, or just heads to a bus stop.

“I just want to be able to make it to work, or other things,” Caraballo said.

Jensen Caraballo arrives at the Transit Center on St. Paul Street on his way to work.

Transit alternatives promoted as convenient and affordable, such as taxis, and their biggest competitor — rideshare — have been slow to serve passengers with wheelchair accessibility needs.

Advocacy groups across the country have filed several lawsuits claiming these services violate Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, which requires privately-owned transportation businesses to provide accessible vehicles.

“If wheelchair users can’t use the service, then obviously, you’re leaving out a large population of disabled people,” Caraballo said. “Access to the community and to transportation is vital. We want to be integrated into the community, and the only way that we can do that is if the community works with us to figure out a way.”

Unreliability

Despite disability policies and wheelchair-accessible options published online, in areas where wheelchair-accessible vehicles are available, Uber and Lyft users across the country have experienced unreliable or unavailable transportation.

According to CNN, users who tried the wheelchair-friendly services UberWAV and UberASSIST in San Francisco, Los Angeles and Portland reported finding either zero or only one car available and wait times between 25 and 45 minutes.

Frustrated by sparse vehicle availability, Disability Rights Advocates hit Uber with a class-action lawsuit on July 18, citing discrimination against wheelchair users in New York City.

Many of Lyft’s accessible vehicle dispatch services must be booked at least 24 hours in advance, and users are advised to reach out to their local vendors (if available) to sign up.

“Depending on the vendor, it may take several weeks to complete the enrollment process before being able to book a ride in their respective cities,” Lyft’s website states.

Read:Uber, Lyft now available: What we know now

The CDR was very involved in trying to delay or prevent legislation from approving ridesharing statewide until companies had wheelchair-accessible vehicles ready to go, rather than fighting for accessibility while rideshare was already in operation, Woodward said.

“Every wheelchair user that I know in Rochester hasn’t tried to (use rideshare services),” Woodward said. “Why would they waste their time calling a vehicle they know they can’t get into?”

Jensen Caraballo is involved with ADAPT, a national grassroots organization for disability rights activists who engage in nonviolent direct action to raise awareness of issues affecting people with disabilities. He has decorated his power wheelchair with the name of the organization.

By law

New York state Assemblyman Kevin Cahill (D-Ulster, Dutchess County) sponsored the bill allowing rideshare operations upstate. He said the law Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed in June recognizes the needs of people with disabilities.

Read:It's official: NY ride-hailing law takes effect June 29

Within the legislation: Ride-hailing companies cannot set discriminatory rates for passengers who use handicapped-accessible vehicles, and the New York State Transportation Network Company Accessibility Task Force will be established to analyze and maximize services for persons with disabilities.

Over a month since rideshare has rolled out, members of the task force have yet to be appointed, and Cahill said there is no time frame.

The only concrete deadline is for the task force's report due New Year's Day 2019.

“They would have plenty of time, even if they weren’t appointed until Jan. 1 of 2018, or even later, to examine that which has already occurred and arrive at a quality report,” Cahill said.

By law, Cahill said transportation network companies must have accessibility standards and nondiscriminatory policies already in place before the task force issues its report.

“There’s no waiting for the disabilities task force,” he said. “That’s not permitted. … There’s nothing in our law that allows these companies to do business without having a clear policy of access and nondiscrimination in place before they do business.”

If a specific driver does not provide service to a wheelchair user, a complaint can be filed with the New York State Division of Human Rights, which will investigate violations. Thereafter, the division can authorize the DMV to suspend the driver's TNC permit.

Read:Uber, Lyft get DMV approval for launch in NY

If a bulk of complaints are filed and TNCs are found to be responsible for an overarching failure to serve riders with disabilities, Cahill said their licenses to operate can be withdrawn.

Staying on task

Uber policy director Josh Gold said UberWAV (wheelchair-accessible vehicle) is available in cities where the company has been operating for over five years. However, the company is looking forward to working with the New York task force in a timely manner.

“I think it’s important for us to provide affordable, reliable transportation services for everyone everywhere. That includes people who require wheelchair-accessible vehicles,” he said.

Read:Uber will pay a $98K fine in NY

Gold said wheelchair-accessible vehicles run about $30,000 over four years, so while the company recognizes their supply must increase, it is an investment for drivers.

Seeking solutions, Uber has piloted a program in New York giving incentives to drivers to make that investment, and Gold said their company has also looked into working with the state to extend the tax credit for such a vehicle use.

In other cities, Uber has purchased wheelchair-accessible vehicles for drivers to lease and partnered with wheelchair-accessible transportation sub-contractors.

“In Philadelphia, we just finished a program to get close to 100 wheelchair-accessible vehicles on the streets,” Gold said.

A Pennsylvania ridesharing bill required a minimum of 70 wheelchair-accessible vehicles by the end of June 2017.

Jensen Caraballo, a 27-year-old from Charlotte with spinal muscular atrophy type 2, waits at the bus stop for a ride to work. Without a car of his own, Caraballo relies on public transportation options.

While wheelchair users in upstate New York wait, Gold said Uber has begun discussions with an assisted living community about how they can make sure everyone has access to affordable and reliable transportation.

Lyft provided the following statement via email:

"Lyft is committed to ensuring people who need rides the most are able to get them. Many disabled individuals who were previously underserved now count on Lyft as a reliable, safe, and affordable way to get around. We are in ongoing discussions about how we can expand mobility options for the entire disability community, including passengers who need wheelchair-accessible vehicles."

ASIACON@GANNETT.COM

At a glance

When Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed the ride-hailing law included in the state budget, rideshare companies were cleared to launch in upstate New York on June 29.

To prevent issues experienced across the country, the law established regulations to protect both drivers and passengers, including those with disabilities.

Rideshare companies are required to have disabilities policies already in place, and the New York State Transportation Network Company Accessibility Task Force must issue a report to assess and maximize services by Jan. 1, 2019.

If companies do not uphold nondiscriminatory policies and fail to provide services to disabled riders, their licenses to operate can be withdrawn.

Taxi talk

Taxis have also come under fire for accessibility, and changes are happening steadily. Following a class-action lawsuit filed by a coalition of disabilities advocates in 2011, a federal judge ruled in their favor and oversaw a 2013 settlement to make half of New York City's 13,000-plus yellow cab fleet wheelchair accessible by 2020.