Bill Text: NY A06201 | 2017-2018 | General Assembly | Amended

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Bill Title: Relates to taxi and limousine services equipped with wheelchair accessible vehicles.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 23-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2018-06-04 - print number 6201a [A06201 Detail]

Download: New_York-2017-A06201-Amended.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
                                         6201--A
                               2017-2018 Regular Sessions
                   IN ASSEMBLY
                                    February 27, 2017
                                       ___________
        Introduced  by  M.  of  A.  PICHARDO, DAVILA, MOSLEY, BENEDETTO, JOYNER,
          BLAKE, JEAN-PIERRE, CRESPO, QUART -- Multi-Sponsored by --  M.  of  A.
          HYNDMAN  --  read once and referred to the Committee on Transportation
          -- recommitted to the Committee on Transportation in  accordance  with
          Assembly Rule 3, sec. 2 -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered
          reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee
        AN  ACT  to  amend  the  administrative code of the city of New York, in
          relation to taxi  and  limousine  services  equipped  with  wheelchair
          accessible vehicles
          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
     1    Section 1. Legislative findings. The legislature  finds  and  declares
     2  that the public health, safety and welfare of New Yorkers who use wheel-
     3  chairs traveling to, from and within the city of New York is a matter of
     4  substantial  state  concern,  including access to safe and reliable mass
     5  transportation such as for-hire-vehicles. The majority of residents  and
     6  non-residents  of  the  city  of  New  York  who  use wheelchairs do not
     7  currently have efficient access to accessible for-hire-vehicles  in  the
     8  city of New York. The legislature finds and declares that is it a matter
     9  of  public  health,  safety  and welfare to ensure adequate and reliable
    10  accessible transportation to disabled individuals that  use  wheelchairs
    11  in  the  city of New York. Additionally, New York city has grappled with
    12  the issue of providing efficient for-hire-vehicle service to people  who
    13  use  wheelchairs  for  decades. Unfortunately, it efforts have proven an
    14  abject failure as its rules and regulations fail  to  comport  with  the
    15  business  structure  of  the  fore-hire-vehicle  model. This failure has
    16  manifested itself in the inability to achieve  equivalent  services,  as
    17  admitted  by the TLC commissioner. This legislative initiative creates a
    18  system that has proven successful in other states  in  providing  people
    19  who use wheelchairs with transportation. Moreover, this legislation uses
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD10233-03-8
        A. 6201--A                          2
     1  a  similar  model  to  that  the TLC has implemented for the yellow taxi
     2  system.
     3    §  2.  The  administrative  code of the city of New York is amended by
     4  adding a new section 19-548 to read as follows:
     5    § 19-548 For-hire accessible wheelchair  transportation.  a.  The  New
     6  York city taxi and limousine commission is authorized to promulgate such
     7  rules  and  regulations  as  it  shall  deem  necessary to implement the
     8  provisions of this section.
     9    b. The New York city taxi and limousine commission shall contract with
    10  one entity to provide wheelchair accessible vehicles through  a  central
    11  dispatch service. Such dispatch service shall be responsible for provid-
    12  ing for-hire wheelchair accessible transportation.
    13    c.  The New York city for-hire bases, as defined by regulations of the
    14  New York city taxi and limousine commission, shall not be subject to New
    15  York city taxi and limousine commission regulations related to  accessi-
    16  ble vehicles for disabled passengers.
    17    d.  The  New  York  city  taxi and limousine commission shall issue an
    18  annual report regarding the efficacy of the central dispatch service  in
    19  providing  people  who use wheelchairs with for-hire-vehicle transporta-
    20  tion. Such report shall include metrics describing number  of  rides  in
    21  each borough and time between dispatch and pickup of passengers.
    22    § 3. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after
    23  it  shall have become a law. Effective immediately, the addition, amend-
    24  ment and/or repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the implemen-
    25  tation of this act on its effective date are authorized to be  made  and
    26  completed on or before such date.