Directs the department of transportation to conduct a study of the availability of wheelchair accessible vehicles, by county, in New York state outside of the city of New York; defines accessibility; requires a report to identify any existing local guidelines for accessible vehicles; directs development of benchmarks for increasing wheelchair accessible vehicles.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
7611
2025-2026 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
April 23, 2025
___________
Introduced by Sen. BYNOE -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
printed to be committed to the Committee on Transportation
AN ACT to amend the transportation law, in relation to a study of the
availability of wheelchair accessible vehicles in New York state
outside of the city of New York
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Legislative intent. This Legislature finds that no uniform
2 regulations exist across New York state outside of New York city which
3 defines a wheelchair accessible vehicle and, despite the need for mobil-
4 ity services for the disabled population, substantive information on
5 wheelchair accessible vehicle standards and the number of such vehicles
6 available does not exist in each county across New York state outside of
7 New York City.
8 As such, this Legislature finds that defining what constitutes a
9 wheelchair accessible vehicle, conducting a study on the number of
10 wheelchair accessible vehicles, creating benchmarks and grant supports
11 for the different counties across New York state other than New York
12 City, would allow for local authorities to make informed policies to
13 increase mobility transportation options for individuals who make use of
14 a wheelchair.
15 § 2. The transportation law is amended by adding a new section 14-o to
16 read as follows:
17 § 14-o. Wheelchair accessible vehicles. 1. For the purposes of this
18 section:
19 (a) "Taxicab" shall mean any motor vehicle, other than a bus, used in
20 the business of transporting passengers for compensation, and operated
21 in such business under a license or permit issued by a local authority.
22 Such term shall not include vehicles which are rented or leased without
23 a driver.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD11778-01-5
S. 7611 2
1 (b) "County" shall mean a county in the state of New York, outside of
2 the city of New York.
3 (c) "Wheelchair accessible vehicle" shall mean a vehicle, including a
4 taxicab, that has been inspected and approved by the municipal or local
5 authorizing body as possessing all of the following requirements:
6 (i) Mobility and accessibility
7 (A) The lift/ramp width shall be thirty inches minimum.
8 (B) The design load of the lift/ramp shall be at least six hundred
9 pounds.
10 (C) Controls for the lift/ramp shall be interlocked with the vehicle
11 to ensure that the vehicle cannot be moved while the lift/ramp is in
12 operation.
13 (D) Controls for the lift/ramp shall be of the momentary contact type
14 requiring continuous manual pressure to operate.
15 (E) The lift/ramp shall be equipped with an emergency deployment meth-
16 od in the event of power or mechanical failure.
17 (F) The installation of a lift/ramp shall include provisions to
18 prevent the lift/ramp from falling or folding any faster than twelve
19 inches/second in the event of any failure of the load-carrying compo-
20 nent.
21 (G) The lift/ramp platform shall be equipped with handrails on two
22 sides, a minimum of eight inches long and thirty inches above the plat-
23 form and move in tandem with the lift/ramp.
24 (H) The lift/ramp platform shall have barriers at least two inches or
25 higher to prevent mobility aid wheels from slipping off.
26 (I) Lift/platform surfaces shall be continuous and slip resistant and
27 accommodate four-wheel and three-wheel mobility aids.
28 (J) The transition from roadway or sidewalk and the transition from
29 vehicle floor to the ramp may be vertical without edge treatment up to
30 one-quarter inch.
31 (K) Ramps shall have the least slope practical and may not exceed a
32 one to four ratio when deployed to ground level.
33 (L) The lift/ramp attachment shall be firmly attached to the vehicle
34 so that it is not subject to displacement when loading or unloading a
35 heavy mobility aid and the gap between the vehicle and ramp may not
36 exceed five-eighths of an inch.
37 (M) The lift/ramp shall be usable in all weather conditions.
38 (ii) Doors, steps and thresholds
39 (A) For vehicles twenty-two feet in length or less, the overhead
40 clearance between the top of the door opening. The raised lift platform
41 or highest point of the ramp shall be a minimum of fifty-nine inches.
42 (B) Vehicle doorways in which a lift/ramp is installed shall have a
43 light above or beside each passenger access door to illuminate the load-
44 ing equipment. Such light shall be constantly lit during the loading or
45 unloading of passengers. The light shall be shielded to protect the eyes
46 of entering and exiting passengers.
47 (iii) Interior compartment
48 (A) Floor areas where people walk and securement locations shall have
49 slip-resistant surfaces.
50 (B) A minimum clear floor area of thirty inches by forty-eight inches
51 shall be provided for each wheelchair position.
52 (C) Regarding seating configuration, vehicles twenty-two feet in
53 length or less shall provide forward/rear seating only.
54 (D) Ramp stowage shall be accomplished in a manner as not to pose a
55 hazard to passengers or impinge on a passenger's mobility aid.
S. 7611 3
1 (E) Interior handrails and stanchions shall permit sufficient turning
2 and maneuvering space for mobility aids including wheelchairs to reach
3 securement location from lift/ramp.
4 (F) Handrails and stanchions shall be provided in the entrance to the
5 vehicle in a configuration which allows people to grasp the assists from
6 outside the vehicle while starting to board, and to continue using the
7 assists throughout the boarding process.
8 (iv) Secure systems
9 (A) A vehicle shall possess a wheelchair securement system that is
10 able to securely anchor the wheelchair into the vehicle, or able to
11 encompass both the occupant and the wheelchair to ensure they are
12 securely anchored into the vehicle.
13 (B) For each mobility aid securement device, a passenger seat belt and
14 shoulder harness shall be provided for use by mobility aid users. Such
15 seat belts shall be in addition to a device which secures the mobility
16 aid itself.
17 (C) Securement systems shall be stowed in a way so as not to pose a
18 hazard to passengers when not in use.
19 2. The commissioner shall conduct a study relating to the availability
20 of wheelchair accessible vehicles in every county. Each county shall
21 provide the department with relevant data which will allow the depart-
22 ment to complete this study. The scope of such study shall include:
23 (a) A compilation of data from each county on the number of taxicab
24 operators within their jurisdiction.
25 (b) The size of the fleet of each taxicab company or operator.
26 (c) The number of wheelchair accessible vehicles that comprise the
27 fleet of each taxicab company or operator.
28 (d) The catchment areas of each taxicab company or operator.
29 (e) Any existing county policies or laws which set guidelines on the
30 number of wheelchair accessible vehicles available in each county or
31 policies regarding the licensing of wheelchair accessible vehicles by
32 any taxicab company.
33 3. All information compiled by the wheelchair accessible vehicle study
34 under subdivision two of this section shall be assembled and integrated
35 into a statewide mapping platform in order to identify areas of the
36 state which may have an accessibility desert and/or insufficient number
37 of wheelchair accessible vehicles. Such map shall include:
38 (a) An overlay of the different existing county policies or laws which
39 set guidelines on the number of wheelchair accessible vehicles.
40 (b) An overlay of existing programs which provide wheelchair accessi-
41 ble transportation services in each county.
42 (c) All other information as outlined under the wheelchair accessible
43 vehicle study in subdivision two of this section.
44 (d) All information included in the study shall be made available
45 digitally and be accessible to the public on the department's website.
46 4. Upon completion of the wheelchair accessible vehicle study pursuant
47 to subdivision two of this section, the department, in conjunction with
48 the office for people with developmental disabilities and the department
49 of health, shall complete an assessment of each county's data to deter-
50 mine if there is an accessibility desert due to an insufficient number
51 of wheelchair accessible vehicles, and create benchmarks developed
52 through analysis of U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey data
53 on the prevalence of ambulatory disabilities. This assessment shall
54 suggest grant programs or tax incentives to increase the number of
55 wheelchair accessible vehicles.
S. 7611 4
1 5. The department shall complete an assessment of all existing wheel-
2 chair accessible vehicle policies or plans and determine if such plans
3 are insufficient. Upon determination that a county has an insufficient
4 plan or is absent of a plan to meet the needs of its constituency, the
5 department shall require such county to submit a plan that meets the
6 department's benchmarks in order to increase wheelchair accessible vehi-
7 cle transportation.
8 6. Within one hundred eighty days of the publication of the wheelchair
9 accessible vehicle study map as set forth in subdivision three of this
10 section, the commissioner shall deliver a copy of the findings of the
11 study and the benchmarks established pursuant to subdivision four of
12 this section to all stakeholders and post such findings on the depart-
13 ment's website. Notification shall be provided to each county subject to
14 this section. Within one hundred eighty days of the publication of the
15 wheelchair accessible vehicle study map, each county shall create and
16 submit a plan to the department pursuant to subdivision five of this
17 section.
18 § 3. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall
19 have become a law.
