[infoshare] Fw: Disabled suing left and right over MTA cuts and PRESS CONFERENCE
- From: "Maria" <malyn87@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: "Info" <infoshare@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Thu, 19 Aug 2010 07:36:02 -0400
Good morning friends,
Below is some info which Ellen Rubin shared with us, and we felt it should be
shared with all of you.
Sent: Tuesday, August 17, 2010 11:43 PM
Subject: Fwd: Disabled suing left and right over MTA cuts and PRESS CONFERENCE
Here is an opportunity to jump on the band wagon against the MTA cuts and TLC
inaccessible solutions!
Post to Infoshare if you think it is appropriate!
Hugs, El
Date: Tue, 17 Aug 2010 22:25:31 -0400
Subject: FW: Disabled suing left and right over MTA cuts and PRESS
CONFERENCE
The lawsuits are mounting over the Metropolitan Transportation Authority's
service cuts; disabled New Yorkers suing MTA, threatening same for Taxi &
Limousine Commission.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
By Jeremy Smerd
Published: August 17, 2010 - 3:33 pm
The Taxi & Limousine Commission thought it was doing New Yorkers a favor when
it authorized dollar vans to drive along five bus routes eliminated by the
Metropolitan Transportation Authority earlier this summer. But if those vans
aren't equipped with wheelchair lifts, advocates for the disabled plan to sue
the commission to stop them from putting the vans on the road.
"If the TLC wants to go ahead with inaccessible vans, we will sue them," said
Jim Weisman, an attorney with the United Spinal Association.
In a separate legal action, disabled riders on Tuesday sued the MTA over the
service cuts, saying they violate the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Those service cuts helped the MTA present a balanced $12 billion budget to
its board last month. The budget included savings from service cuts and
reductions, including cost saving changes made to the Access-a-Ride program for
disabled riders. But advocates for riders who use wheelchairs say the cuts
violate federal law guaranteeing them equal access to the same transportation
system used by non-disabled riders.
"The combination of all these cuts means people with mobility impairments
don't have transit options," said Jane Stevens, director of litigation for the
New York Legal Assistance Group, which is representing one of the plaintiffs.
The plaintiffs want the MTA to restore eliminated and reduced bus and
Access-a-Ride service. The MTA declined to comment.
The TLC approved its van program last month and had planned to have the vans
on the road yesterday, but a TLC spokeswoman says the vans won't be on the road
until mid-September.
The TLC's foray into territory normally reserved for the state-run MTA has
also drawn the attention of the largest union representing transit workers, the
Transport Workers Union Local 100, which filed an application to operate a van
along one of the five bus routes.
Awarding the union workers a contract could pit against each other two
historical allies-the TWU and disabled riders. It's unclear whether the TWU
would operate wheelchair accessible vans if awarded the contract. The TLC is
not requiring the vans be equipped with wheelchair lifts.
The three disabled riders who sued the MTA recounted in the lawsuit how the
service changes made taking public transit more difficult. RueZalia Watkins,
who lives in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, but works in Manhattan for the Mental
Health Association of New York, claims the bus cuts have made it almost
impossible to commute to work and to travel for her work. She's used a
wheelchair for 17 years because of a combination of serious heart and lung
ailments. She depends on Access-a-Ride to get to work but says it's not
practical to use Access-a-Ride for work trips during the day because it was too
complicated to book trips.
She doesn't use the subway because some gaps between the platform and the
train cars are too wide. Earlier this year, she was unable to board a C train
at the Hoyt-Schermerhorn station. To make it onto the next train, she had to
call the police.
Article can be found at
http://www.crainsnewyork.com/article/20100817/FREE/100819837
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fw: *PRESS CONFERENCE TODAY 3:00* MTA TRANSIT CUTS CHALLENGED IN LAWSUIT
FILED BY DISABLED NEW YORKERS AND THEIR ADVOCATES
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
MTA Transit Cuts Challenged by
Disabled New Yorkers and Their Advocates:
Claim that the MTA's June 27th Service Cuts Violate
Americans With Disabilities Act and
Disproportionately Impact Mobility-Impaired New Yorkers
Media Advisory
Brooklyn, NY, August 17, 2010
Contact: Jane Greengold Stevens, (212) 613-5031 (o); (718) 791-3408
(cell)
Pavita Krishnaswamy, (718) 246-3269 (o); (718)
809-2863 (cell)
WHAT:
You are invited to a media briefing on a lawsuit being filed today against
the Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA) and New York City Transit (NYCT) by
plaintiffs RueZalia Watkins, Anthony Trocchia, and Clara Reiss, all people who
are unable to travel long distances on their own or make use of the subway
system because of their mobility impairments. Along with Disabled In Action of
Metropolitan New York and The Brooklyn Center for the Independence of the
Disabled Inc., they are challenging cuts to the City's bus system and its
complementary paratransit system that leave them without public transportation
service comparable to that provided to non-disabled people, in violation of
their rights under the Americans with Disabilities Act and Section 504 of the
Rehabilitation Act of 1973.
Speakers will include:
Plaintiffs RueZalia Watkins, Anthony Trocchia, and Clara Reiss
Plaintiff Disabled In Action by Jean Ryan
Plantiff Brooklyn Center for the Independence of the Disabled by Marvin
Wasserman
Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz
New York City Council Member Letitia James
Jane Greengold Stevens of New York Legal Assistance Group, and
Pavita Krishnaswamy of South Brooklyn Legal Services
WHEN:
Tuesday, August 17, 2010 at 3:00 p.m.
WHERE:
Brooklyn Borough Hall, Brooklyn, NY
WHY:
The service cuts, implemented on June 27, 2010, by MTA and NYCT have forced
transit passengers either to travel a greater distance to an alternate bus
route or to travel by subway rather than by bus. For Plaintiffs, however, both
of these options are impossible, thus imposing a greater hardship on people
with disabilities than on people without disabilities. And they cannot rely on
the City's already overburdened paratransit system - Access-A-Ride - because
rather than ensuring that additional resources are devoted to Access-A-Ride in
anticipation of the increase in demand occasioned by the reduction in bus
service, the Defendants have instituted or approved significant cuts to the
system.
Plaintiffs are seeking a declaration that the Defendants' failure to provide
people with disabilities with access to public transportation violates the ADA
and Section 504 and a permanent injunction directing the Defendants to restore
bus service and maintain Access-A-Ride service necessary to provide to people
with mobility impairments access to public transportation comparable to that
provided to non-disabled riders.
###
About South Brooklyn Legal Services
South Brooklyn Legal Services is dedicated to helping low-income residents of
Southern and Western Brooklyn with their civil legal problems. It ensures equal
access to justice for the people of Brooklyn by providing free counsel and
legal advice to those who would otherwise be unable to afford it. For more
information on South Brooklyn Legal Services and Legal Services NYC please
visit www.legalservicesnyc.org.
About New York Legal Assistance Group
The New York Legal Assistance Group (NYLAG), founded in 1990, is a
not-for-profit law office providing free civil legal services to low-income New
Yorkers. A full service agency, NYLAG provides consultation, representation,
and advocacy. In 2009, NYLAG directly served more than 46,000 individuals and
NYLAG's Special Litigation Unit (SLU) helped thousands of additional clients
through successful impact litigation.
About Disabled in Action of Metropolitan New York
Disabled In Action of Metropolitan New York ("DIA") is a membership
organization that advocates for the civil rights of, and services for, people
with disabilities. DIA has been a plaintiff in previous civil rights lawsuits
on behalf of people with disabilities, including a lawsuit to obtain
ADA-compliant paratransit services for people with disabilities in New York
City.
Brooklyn Center for the Independence of the Disabled
Brooklyn Center for the Independence of the Disabled, Inc. ("BCID") is a
not-for-profit membership organization located in Brooklyn, NY. The
organization's mission is to empower people with disabilities by improving the
quality of their lives and fostering their integration into the mainstream of
society. BCID attempts to achieve these goals through provision of services, as
well as by advocating for the removal of physical, attitudinal, and
communication barriers for people with disabilities.
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