Notice2023-24422
Transportation Services for Individuals With Disabilities: ADA Standards for Transportation Facilities
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Published
November 6, 2023
Issuing agencies
Transportation Department
Abstract
The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT, or Department) is considering whether to amend the accessibility requirements for transportation facilities under the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) currently contained in Appendix A to DOT's regulations governing transportation services for individuals with disabilities. The Department may consider whether to improve access beyond the minimum standards established by the U.S. Access Board and Appendix A. The Department seeks suggestions from all transportation stakeholders--including transportation agencies, transportation riders (particularly those with disabilities), community members, advocacy groups, planning officials, States, cities, researchers and technology companies, and the private sector--on enhancements that the Department could consider with regard to the ADA standards for transportation buildings and facilities. The Department specifically seeks feedback on areas including, but not limited to vertical access, communications, and wayfinding. The Department also invites comment on any other aspects of the current accessibility requirements for transportation facilities under the ADA contained in DOT's regulations governing transportation services for individuals with disabilities.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 88 Issue 213 (Monday, November 6, 2023)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 213 (Monday, November 6, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 76272-76275]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2023-24422]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
[Docket No. DOT-OST-2023-0166]
Transportation Services for Individuals With Disabilities: ADA
Standards for Transportation Facilities
AGENCY: Department of Transportation (DOT).
ACTION: Request for information on accessibility improvements for
transportation facilities.
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SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT, or Department) is
considering whether to amend the accessibility requirements for
transportation facilities under the Americans with Disabilities Act of
1990 (ADA) currently contained in Appendix A to DOT's regulations
governing transportation services for individuals with disabilities.
The Department may consider whether to improve access beyond the
minimum standards established by the U.S. Access Board
[[Page 76273]]
and Appendix A. The Department seeks suggestions from all
transportation stakeholders--including transportation agencies,
transportation riders (particularly those with disabilities), community
members, advocacy groups, planning officials, States, cities,
researchers and technology companies, and the private sector--on
enhancements that the Department could consider with regard to the ADA
standards for transportation buildings and facilities. The Department
specifically seeks feedback on areas including, but not limited to
vertical access, communications, and wayfinding. The Department also
invites comment on any other aspects of the current accessibility
requirements for transportation facilities under the ADA contained in
DOT's regulations governing transportation services for individuals
with disabilities.
DATES: Comments should be submitted on or before January 5, 2024. DOT
will consider comments filed after this date to the extent practicable.
ADDRESSES: You may file comments identified by docket number DOT-OST-
2023-0166 by any of the following methods:
<bullet> Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a> and follow the online instructions for submitting
comments.
<bullet> Mail: Docket Operations, U.S. Department of
Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Ave. SE, West Building Ground Floor,
Room W12-140, Washington, DC 20590-0001.
<bullet> Hand Delivery or Courier: West Building Ground Floor, Room
W12-140, 1200 New Jersey Ave. SE, between 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. ET,
Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.
<bullet> Fax: (202) 493-2251.
All submissions received must include the agency name and docket
number DOT-OST-2023-0166. All comments received will be posted without
change to <a href="http://www.regulations.gov">www.regulations.gov</a>, including any personal information
provided. For information on DOT's compliance with the Privacy Act,
please visit <a href="https://www.transportation.gov/privacy">https://www.transportation.gov/privacy</a>.
For access to the docket to read background documents or comments
received, go to <a href="http://www.regulations.gov">www.regulations.gov</a> at any time and search for docket
number DOT-OST-2023-0166.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For general questions, Holly Ceasar-
Fox, DOT Office of General Counsel, (202) 366-7420 or
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#f59d9a99998cdb969094869487939a8db5919a81db929a83"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="4a222526263364292f2b392b382c25320a2e253e642d253c">[email protected]</span></a>. For program questions related to transit, John
Day, FTA Office of Civil Rights, (202) 366-1671 or <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#442e2b2c2a6a20253d04202b306a232b32"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="761c191e185812170f3612190258111900">[email protected]</span></a>.
For legal questions related to transit, Bonnie Graves, FTA Office of
Chief Counsel, (202) 366-0944 or <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#cfada0a1a1a6aae1a8bdaeb9aabc8faba0bbe1a8a0b9"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="3e5c515050575b10594c5f485b4d7e5a514a10595148">[email protected]</span></a>. For questions
related to intercity or high-speed rail, Alana Kuhn, FRA Office of
Chief Counsel, (202) 493-0842 or <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#85e4e9e4ebe4abeef0edebc5e1eaf1abe2eaf3"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="53323f323d327d38263b3d13373c277d343c25">[email protected]</span></a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
42 U.S.C. 12204 requires the Architectural and Transportation
Barriers Compliance Board (Access Board) to issue minimum guidelines
for accessibility under Titles II & III of the ADA. The ADA statute at
42 U.S.C. 12149 requires the Secretary of Transportation to develop and
implement regulations for certain public transportation facilities,
vehicles, and services consistent with the Access Board's guidelines.
The Secretary may issue regulations that result in greater
accessibility than the minimum guidelines established by the Access
Board.
The current guidelines were developed nearly a quarter century ago
and adopted as regulatory standards by the Department in 2006.\1\ The
Department's experience administering these minimum standards for the
past two decades suggests that they have resulted in greater
accessibility than the standards \2\ that preceded them, but in many
cases extra efforts may still be required on the part of people with
disabilities to enter and use a facility. For example, accessible
entrances may be located in isolated locations away from entrances used
by members of the general public who do not require an accessible
entrance, and persons with sensory disabilities may need to rely on
information on a message board at station entrances while other members
of the general public are informed via public address systems. In other
cases, persons unable to navigate staircases may be faced with lengthy
ramps to cross from one rail platform to another. Such continuing
barriers may mean that many wheelchair users and persons with sensory,
cognitive, or processing disabilities remain dependent on paratransit
or private transportation rather than being able to use integrated
fixed route service.
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\1\ The Access Board published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking
in the Federal Register on November 16, 1999, and issued the Final
Rule on July 23, 2004. The Department of Justice adopted the
standards on September 15, 2010.
\2\ The standards adopted by the Department on September 6,
1991, were in effect until 2006.
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There have also been many developments such as advances in
technology since the standards were last updated, and the Department is
considering both physical access to and usability of facilities by
persons with sensory, cognitive, and other disabilities. The Department
strives to provide for equitable access to persons with disabilities
similar to that available to people without disabilities, including the
usability of the facility, so that persons with disabilities are able
to access and navigate public transit with the same ease, reliability,
and independence as any other user.
Complaints filed by the public, feedback from the disability
community, observations of and information gathered by Departmental
employees (with and without disabilities), media articles, and the
results of the Department's oversight activities have led the
Department to solicit feedback on the current standards. For some
disabilities, such as those affecting hearing, vision, or cognitive
function, the Department is aware of technological advancements (for
example, induction loops and mobile device applications), that would
help persons with those disabilities navigate the transportation system
with ease and independence. The Department is interested in learning
more about these technologies. For other disabilities, such as those
affecting mobility, the Department seeks feedback regarding, for
example, minimum standards that rely on a single point of access that
creates a situation where a single point of failure renders an entire
facility inaccessible and unusable by persons with disabilities, while
access to nondisabled persons is unaffected. The Department is
interested in learning how transportation facilities can be designed
and constructed such that accessibility features are resilient and
always available. The Department also seeks input to assist it in
understanding the magnitude of potential access issues that may exist
in transportation facilities and therefore requests any available
information and comments stakeholders may have on the number of all
end-users, not limited to users with disabilities, who would benefit
from specific standards in 49 CFR part 37 that may be improved or
implemented.
In addition to learning about specific standards in 49 CFR part 37
that may be improved or implemented, the Department is interested in
the end-user experience generally. These include experiences in
transportation facilities related to vertical access, communication,
wayfinding, or any other aspects of transportation facilities that
represent barriers for people with disabilities. The Department will
consider the extent to which the
[[Page 76274]]
Department has authority under the ADA to remove such barriers.
Through this request for information (RFI), the Department seeks
input as it considers whether to revise the existing DOT ADA
requirements for transportation buildings and facilities including
public transportation and intercity rail transportation (including
Amtrak). The Department poses seven questions below and looks forward
to feedback from all interested parties.
Vertical Access
1. It has become increasingly apparent that elevator maintenance
and reliability are a critical component of ensuring the accessibility
of a multi-level transportation facility such as subway and rail
stations. While the existing DOT ADA regulations require accessibility
features to be maintained in working order, repairs can be complex and
many entities do not have employees with the skillset necessary to
repair an elevator or the necessary components readily available, which
can add a level of difficulty to the repair process.\3\ Thus,
unreliable elevators create operational and administrative burdens for
entities covered by DOT's ADA regulations and can render transportation
facilities inaccessible for users for extended durations. The
Department is interested in learning about standards that would ensure
elevator reliability in transportation facilities.
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\3\ The Department recognizes that many elevator manufacturers
require that only their employees work on the elevator, and that
there are examples of arrangements where the third-party repair
person is available 7 days a week, 24 hours per day, but the
Department is also aware of arrangements where same-day, after
hours, weekend, or holiday service is not guaranteed (or is charged
at a premium).
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2. Elevators that are frequently out of service significantly
impact the ability of persons who cannot negotiate stairs to use such
transportation services. As a result, the Department understands that
many agencies involved in the construction or alteration of stations
initially plan for two or more elevators per bank instead of just one,
so that the station is not rendered inaccessible when one elevator
requires maintenance or repair. Despite planners' intentions, budgetary
considerations often result in the minimum legally required (not just
for accessibility), which means only a single elevator is provided. The
Department seeks public input on the impacts of the installation, for
future construction and alterations, of at least two elevators in
transportation facilities, or a combination of ramps and elevators,
where currently one elevator is required.
3. Many commuter and intercity rail stations rely on long switch-
back ramps to provide an accessible route between platforms on either
side of the tracks, or to multiple platforms within a station. These
ramps, which can be hundreds of feet long, often present a barrier to
persons who cannot negotiate steps, but also cannot travel the
distances required to traverse the ramp. However, the simplicity of a
non-mechanical ramp means that maintenance costs are relatively low and
repairs are few and far between, unlike more complex elevators. The
Department is seeking comment on the use of elevators in lieu of ramps
in transportation facilities, or a single elevator in addition to the
ramp, if the vertical distance or ramp length exceeds a certain
threshold, including information on an appropriate threshold.
Communications
4. The Department of Justice's current ADA standards for buildings
and facilities contain provisions requiring assistive listening systems
in assembly areas. See 28 CFR 35.151(c)(3); 36 CFR pt. 1191, app. B at
344. The Department seeks comment on the feasibility of extending such
requirements to transportation facilities such as rail stations to
enable real-time announcements for persons who are deaf or hard of
hearing or because of their disability rely on text-based
communications to access information. Current requirements for
transportation facilities stipulate only that the same information
provided audibly must be provided visually. This often takes the form
of messages written on a dry-erase board in the station entrance by
personnel or information relayed directly to the passenger by
personnel, which prevents the transmission of real-time announcements
that often relate to service changes or safety/security matters, forces
passengers who are deaf or hard of hearing to identify themselves, is
not reliable at larger stations with multiple entrances, and is not
possible at unstaffed stations. The Department is aware that induction
loop technology is in use in some stations, enabling those with a T-
coil in their hearing aids to receive messages directly, but seeks
comment on how widespread this technology is used among deaf and hard
of hearing persons. The Department also seeks comment on other
technologies that may provide the same benefit to the same or a larger
audience at transportation facilities, such as real-time text-
messaging.
5. The Department also seeks comment on other means by which the
content of audible announcements of the type typically relayed by
public address systems at transportation facilities can be provided in
real-time in a visual format, such as changeable electronic message
boards, as well as information pertaining to the number and placement
of necessary displays throughout a station environment, including
spacing, scale, and frequency.
6. In addition, the Department seeks comment on technologies that
can provide an audible component to information currently displayed in
visual format at transportation facilities. For example, many transit
systems and intercity stations use changeable electronic message
displays to communicate information about the next train scheduled to
arrive at a station, such as the line, number of cars, and estimated
time of arrival. Most such systems lack an audible component to make
this information accessible to individuals who are blind or have low
vision. What commercially available technologies might be appropriate
for deployment in a transit, Amtrak, or commuter rail station
environment to convey information provided visually in an audible
format? How should such information be broadcast? Would an interface
with a smart device be appropriate or sufficient, or should an audible
component be provided directly on the station's display device?
Wayfinding
7. The Department seeks comment on technologies to enable effective
wayfinding within the transit station, intercity and commuter rail
station environments for persons who are blind or have low vision, and
to accommodate neurodiversity (e.g., autism, intellectual disability,
etc.). The Department is aware of technologies capable of real-time
transcription of speech and those involving the use of Bluetooth
beacons that interface with smart devices and seeks comment on the
usability of such systems from the end-user perspective. The Department
is also interested in alternative technologies that may be available,
potentially without the use of handheld devices, and the acceptance of
technologies that do rely on such devices within the general community
of persons who are blind, have low-vision, and/or are neurodiverse.
General
In addition, the Department invites comment on all other areas of
the current DOT ADA standards, found in Appendix A to 49 CFR part 37,
which govern rail stations and stops of all types, bus stops and
transfer stations, landside facilities, office buildings housing
transit agency personnel,
[[Page 76275]]
conference facilities of the type often employed for board meetings and
public hearings, businesses housed in transit facilities, and
individual elements such as track crossings, ramps, parking lots and
structures, fare vending machines and collection equipment, and
accessible paths of travel. If the public has information on how these
standards do or do not currently support equitable access, please
submit comments to the docket for this rulemaking activity.
All interested parties are encouraged to respond to this RFI.
Submissions are strictly voluntary. Individuals or entities responding
to this RFI should state their role as well as knowledge of and
experience with the ADA in a transportation environment. DOT may
request additional clarifying information from any or all respondents.
If a respondent does not wish to be contacted by DOT for additional
information, a statement to that effect should be included in the
response. All information submitted should be unclassified and should
not contain proprietary information, as it will be posted to
<a href="http://www.regulations.gov">www.regulations.gov</a> without changes.
DOT is not obligated to officially respond to the information
received, but the responses will assist DOT in its consideration of
whether to revise the ADA standards for transportation buildings and
facilities.
Comments may be submitted and viewed at Docket No. DOT-OST-2023-
0166 at <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a>.
Signed pursuant to authority delegated at 49 CFR 1.27(a) on
October 31, 2023.
Subash S. Iyer,
Acting General Counsel, Department of Transportation.
[FR Doc. 2023-24422 Filed 11-3-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-57-P
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