A federal judge last week rejected New York City’s motion to throw out a suit seeking to increase the number of wheelchair-accessible taxis in the city’s fleet. With the city about to finalize a deal requiring cab owners to replace their existing vehicles with Nissan vans, several wheelchair-bound New Yorkers sued in January to require that a greater proportion of taxis have ramps.
The suit, Noel v. New York City Taxi and Limousine Commission, 11-CV-237, claims that to come into compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Taxi and Limousine Commission must require more ramps than are now in 132 cabs. That number represents only 1.7 percent of the 13,237-taxi fleet, according to Julia Pinover, a staff lawyer with Disability Rights Advocates, which is representing the plaintiffs. The city argued that the ADA specifically exempts it from having to equip cabs with ramps.
