This was due, in part, to the absence of a diagram illustrating the required pattern. The DRC staff member and the employee's manager sign the form as well as the employee. Section 37.87 is amended by redesignating the present paragraph (d) as paragraph (e) and adding a new paragraph (d) to read as follows:@ 37.87 -- Purchase or lease of used intercity and commuter rail cars. (4) In all signage designating priority seating areas for elderly persons and persons with disabilities, or designating wheelchair securement areas, the entity shall include language informing persons sitting in these locations that they should comply with requests by transit provider personnel to vacate their seats to make room for an individual with a disability. In the most recent case, a visually impaired individual apparently fell onto the tracks of a Maryland commuter rail system and was also fatally injured by a train. In the NPRM, the Department emphasized that its concerns were neither about the basic design of the [*63093] detectable warnings or their usefulness to people with vision impairments. DRC staff will talk with the employee and the supervisor to understand the scope of the job and to find effective solutions. Current products (including some developed. of detectable warning materials had been the result of a combination of first-generation materials and improper installation and/or maintenance by rail properties. In issuing the NPRM, the Department stated that the existing design for detectable warnings standard fulfills detectability and safety requirements. Our staff will work with you to understand how your limitations impact your ability to perform your critical job tasks. A statement of the eligibility requirements for coverage including: (A) The condition under which dependent enrollees may be added to those originally covered; (B) Any limiting age for enrollees and dependents, including effects of Medicare eli-gibility; and (C) A clear statement regarding the cover-age of newborn children. The equivalent facilitation sections for vehicles and facilities are basically parallel. The existing detectable warning requirement, without change or postponement, will continue to apply to construction of new stations and alterations of existing stations platforms. DREDF also cited ADA legislative history favoring use of lifts by standees, the practices of some transit agencies which allow standees to use lifts, extra costs to paratransit systems if ridership on fixed route systems by standees were limited, and a general concern that ADA regulations' protections should not be weakened. Transit providers may, if they choose, provide additional accommodations, such as retrofitted handrails on existing lifts or on-board wheelchairs. PAGE 1558 FR 63092, *63098Taking this approach would have the advantage of reducing the Department's administrative workload. 12101-12213); 49 U.S.C. Four transit agencies went further, asserting that standees should be permitted to use only those buses that fully meet the requirements of 49 CFR part 38 (the Department's ADA vehicle standards). Therefore, complete Non-assertion of penalties due to reasonable Loss contingencies resulting from illegal acts Transit providers have asked the Department whether they have an obligation under the ADA to direct other passengers to move from designated priority seats or from fold-down seats over a wheelchair securement location when a passenger with a disability enters the vehicle. The latter group of commenters said that, in a vehicle that did not meet part 38 standards, there were safety concerns relating to door height, smoothness of operation etc. In the NPRM, the Department sought comment on how the proposed Access Board ATM standard modifications would affect automatic fare vending and collection systems. Some commenters pointed out that the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) had not adopted a detectable warnings standard, drawing the conclusion that this placed the viability of the current Federal standard in question. Secure .gov websites use HTTPS Others said that they did not want to spend substantial sums of money on detectable warnings until there was certainty about what design would best answer the concerns that have been raised. Web(7) Eligibility. 12. The one exception concerns the EEC, Inc. "arcing" lift cited in the New York PTSB comment. Even should the ultimate result of the Access Board's rulemaking process be to delete or modify the requirement for detectable warnings in other contexts, there would not be any inconsistency between the Access Board guidelines and DOT regulations, since the guidelines serve as minimum requirements that DOT may exceed in its standards. With the exception noted below, the existing @ 37.165(g)-which requires transportation providers to permit standees to use lifts, without restriction-will remain in effect. At the same time, the Department was aware that rail operators had expressed a number of concerns about the detectable warnings requirement. The extension we have provided in this rule should be adequate to permit an aggressive effort by rail properties to address successfully practical concerns about installation. In Boston, a blind individual received fatal injuries when she fell off a platform and received a shock from the electrified "third rail." 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The entity shall permit individuals with disabilities who do not use wheelchairs, including standees, to use a vehicle's lift or ramp to enter the vehicle. The language which applies the "driver request" provision to rail systems only to the extent practicable seems necessary. Other commenters suggested adding safeguards to ensure accessibility. In making the request available for public review, the entity shall ensure that it is available, upon request, in accessible formats. For a short-term lease of commuter rail cars (i.e., for a period of seven days or less; the Department sought comment on whether this is the appropriate period), Amtrak and commuter authorities could have, in standing. The Department is also making two minor technical corrections to its rule establishing standards for accessible vehicles. United States, Email: drc@dot.gov Consultation with these individuals and groups shall take place at all stages of the development of the request for equivalent facilitation. If passengers expect detectable warning materials to be on the edge of the entire platform, and several feet of material is missing because the adhesive has failed, someone could fall off the platform because the expected warning was absent. DOT staff were also contacted by a disability group representative who believes that standees should be accommodated on all lifts. (An equipment manufacturer, a person with a disability, and one other commenter also took this position). An official website of the United States government Here's how you know. Common transportation barriers include long travel distances, lack of vehicle, transportation cost, inadequate infrastructure, and adverse policies affecting The Department is free to consider safety or reliability information that may be developed by the Access Board as it reviews detectable warnings. The authority citation for 49 CFR part 37 continues to read as follows: Authority: Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. Operators can only make the request but cannot enforce it. Consultation with these individuals and groups shall take place at all stages of the development of the request for equivalent facilitation. Provided, that an entity is not required to permit such individuals to use a lift Model 141 manufactured by EEC, Inc. statement regarding inability to obtain 20590. However, it is not a condition to the Close of Escrow that Seller obtain Estoppel Certificates from those A-Tenants in excess of the Minimum Number of Estoppels. Web_____ Statement regarding inability to obtain reasonable transportation (applies to 2 designation above) _____ Proof of SR-22 insurance (if applicable) Documentation of Entities shall not claim that a determination of equivalent facilitation indicates approval or endorsement of any product or method by the Federal government, the Department of Transportation, or any of its operating administrations.5. The Department's proposal was based on a belief that rail operators may need additional time to resolve concerns over adhesion, durability, and maintainability of detectable warning materials in the context of key station modifications. If you are deaf, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability, please dial 7-1-1 to access telecommunications relay services. The Department stated in the NPRM that having an adequate detectable warning system to warn blind and visually impaired passengers that they are near a platform edge is a vital safety matter for these passengers. We also agree with the commenters who suggested that priority seating signs should specify that non-disabled persons should move to make room for someone who needs a priority seat. (iii) The entity shall sponsor at least one public hearing on the request and shall provide adequate notice of the hearing, including advertisement in appropriate media, such as newspapers of general and special interest circulation and radio announcements. * * * * *PAGE 2658 FR 63092, *631026. There are no Federalism impacts sufficient to warrant the preparation of a Federalism assessment. These concerns include the possibility of adhesive failures and "lift-off" (i.e., the corners of segments of the materials may come up) as well as durability. This can happen in one of two ways. The FTA Administrator sent letter to a number of manufacturers to inform them that their designs appeared to meet the dimensional requirements intended by the Access Board. In @ 37.167, a new paragraph (j) is added, to read as follows:PAGE 2758 FR 63092, *63103@ 37.167 -- Other service requirements. In the course of preparing this document, DOT staff noticed two technical errors in 49 CFR part 38. It is the Department's understanding that this material involves a flat, painted-on surface with a sandpaper-like texture, which does not meet the Federal standard for a detectable warning. OTHER ACCEPTABLE DISABILITY-RELATED INQUIRIES AND MEDICAL EXAMINATIONS OF EMPLOYEES. 57 0 obj
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In view of the close relationship between the coverage of airport facilities under the ADA, section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, and the Air Carrier Access Act, the Department is clarifying the facilities section to specifically include requests for equivalent facilitation that arise concerning airport facilities under all three statutes. One disability community commenter and one state or local agency working on disability matters recommended that, regardless of other considerations, each train always have at least one accessible car (after July 1955, presumably). Entities shall not cite these determinations as indicating that a products or methods constitute equivalent facilitations in situations other than those to which the determinations specifically pertain. Thirteen of the remaining comments were from manufacturers of detectable warnings and associated products, with four from state or local agencies working on disability matters and two each from state or local transportation agencies and other commenters. Some of these commenters expressed the concern that requiring enforcement could lead to confrontations between drivers and passengers or could disrupt service. (4) In the case of a request by a manufacturer or a private entity other than an air carrier, the manufacturer or private entity shall consult, in person, in writing, or by other appropriate means, with representatives of national and local organizations representing people with those disabilities who would be affected by the request. If a van is being used for specialized paratransit service for individuals with disabilities, then this provision-which addresses only to those vehicles. The last paragraph of @ 38.113, entitled Signage and currently designated as paragraph (3), is redesignated as paragraph (e). Other firms claim that their products comply, even though the products differ from those diagrams which were submitted to FTA. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites. (2) This requirement applies to light rail, rapid rail, and commuter rail systems only to the extent practicable. The final rule specifically bars claims by manufacturers that an equivalent facilitation determination constitutes a product endorsement by the Department. One of these commenters opposed the public hearing requirement, while another said public participation should receive greater emphasis. Copies of the final rule are available in alternative formats on request. The concern expressed by these providers was essentially that some older models of lifts have no handrails or other means of preventing a standee user from losing his or her balance and falling while the lift is in operation. Because this action had already been taken, it is not necessary for this document to further amend the regulatory text. Under the proposal, rail operators would have had until January 26, 1995, to complete installation of detectable warnings. Commenters also asked for more clarification or guidance on certain subjects. All of these, in PTSB's view, present clear safety hazards to standees. All it takes is a brief moment of fatigue, or distraction, or disorientation, in the complex and sometimes confusing environment of a rail station, and even a very experienced blind rail system user can make what, in context, is a fatal misstep. Provide additional accommodations, such as retrofitted handrails on existing lifts or on-board wheelchairs warrant preparation... 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