Uber sued over lack of wheelchair access

The ride-sharing company Uber was sued on Tuesday by disability

rights groups for discriminating passengers with mobility disability in

New York City.

In the proposed class-action complaint, Uber was accused of violating

New York City Human Rights Law because 99.9 percent of its more than

58,000 vehicles in the city are unusable by people in wheelchairs.

"Uber purports to have some accessible vehicles in its fleet, but

passengers attempting to use Uber's accessible service face extended

wait times, or are still denied access to the service altogether,

demonstrating that the new service is nothing more than window-dressing,

designed to avoid government regulation and legal requirements," the

complaint said.

The 31-page lawsuit was filed in New York Supreme Court in Manhattan

by Disability Rights Advocates, a national nonprofit legal center, on

behalf of advocacy groups and individuals including the Brooklyn Center

for Independence of the Disabled, Taxis for All Campaign, Disabled in

Action of Metropolitan New York, Valerie Joseph, and Gabriela Amari.

The case followed earlier lawsuits by civil rights groups in Chicago

and Washington D.C. accusing Uber of failing to provide access to those

in wheelchairs.

Uber said in a statement that its "technology has expanded access to

reliable transportation options for all riders, including those with

disabilities and has enabled people with disabilities to earn income in

new ways."

"While there is certainly more work to be done, we will continue

advocating for a solution that offers affordable, reliable

transportation to those who need a wheelchair accessible vehicle," the

company said in an email reply to Xinhua.

In August 2016, Uber NYC launched a pilot to provide UberX WAV to

riders in wheelchair with the goal of expanding service over time. The

company said it currently has nearly 200 WAV (wheelchair access

vehicles) in New York City.