[NABS-L] Equal Access to Seating on Public Transportation

[Sami Osborne]

Hi again all,



I think Kendra's tips are pretty spot on, and I won't add anything more to them on here.



I do have something else to add that I forgot in my reply the other day. When traveling on any kind of public transportation, I've found that it helps if you have good travel skills using a cane and guide dog. For example, when I travel on a plane, I prefer to get assistance getting from the check-in desk, through security, and to the boarding gate at the airport (I might also request help if I need to use the restroom or want to grab a bite to eat as well). This is because airports and train stations are very open spaces, with not a whole lot of physical landmarks to help guide us. As a result, they're sadly not the best type of environments for blind people to be able to navigate on our own.



On the other hand, however, I can just use my cane when going down the jetway to get to the plane. This is because contrary to the general area in the airport, jetways/jet bridges are easy to navigate with a cane. There's a wall on the right hand side (and possibly on the left as well) that you can trail which helps guide you along the path from the terminal to the plane. Being able to enter/exit the plane on your own is especially helpful on an airline like Southwest, which as I mentioned earlier, has no assigned seating. If I were to get assistance down the jetway, then chances are the person helping me might automatically just bring me to the front-most seat on the plane. I personally hate the front rows on planes, primarily because you have no other option but to stow your carry-on bags in the overhead compartment. I like to listen to my Victor Stream when I'm flying on a plane, and I have much easier access to my bag when sitting in the back, since I can just stow it underneath the seat in front of me. Plus, when finding my own way towards a seat on the plane using only my cane, it's very likely the flight attendants could see that I was independent, and just as capable of doing at least some things the same way as sighted people.



I know I'm probably starting to ramble a little here, but the general gist of my email is that it  definitely help tremendously if you can do at least some things on your own, and not be fully 100% reliant on the airport or station employees for just about everything just because you happen to be blind... when you're traveling on a train, for example, you could try to find an empty seat using your cane. I'm not exactly sure how it works on Amtrak since I've never taken that on my own before, but I do know each car is separated by a door. So you can use your cane to try and find the door opener, then use your orientation and mobility skills to calculate how close or far you might have to travel to find an empty seat. Your cane or dog should let you know whether a seat is empty or occupied. Then, if you want to grab a bite to eat during the ride, ask the conductor where the cafe car is located in relation to where you're currently seated (in the airport, I usually just ask the gate agent to direct me to where the jetway is located in relation to the ticket counter using verbal directions. If they try to offer me help going down the jetway, I usually just tell them I don't need it. Sometimes they might send someone to follow me down the jetway, I guess just to make sure I make it safe and sound onto the plane. However, that person is typically walking right behind me and is therefore not personally guiding me).



So yes, it definitely helps a lot if you can incorporate your O and M and travel skills into your travels. I'm obviously not a mind-reader, so I can't tell what goes on inside the minds of airport and station employees. However, it's very likely that upon seeing a blind traveler finding a seat and/or entering and exiting the plane or train independently (along with just advocating for themselves), they might be thinking something along the lines of, Hmm. This person may be disabled, but maybe they're not completely incapable. That's definitely a good thing if nothing else.



Once again, I hope all this info is helpful, both what I just shared as well as in my other reply.



Thanks again, and please have a good evening.



Sami   On Jan 31, 2023 5:03 PM, Kendra Schaber via NABS-L <nabs-l at nfbnet.org> wrote:
>
> Hi all!
> There's something wrong with that kind of experience! Luckily, the Americans
> with Disabilities Act(ADA) is on our side here. I'm a regular user of my
> local city bus. If I wanted, I could use the seats in the back of the bus,
> but I choose the ones up in the front because it gives me the opportunity to
> talk with the driver whenever I need to do so such as whenever I need to
> make sure that I'm getting off at the right stop, particularly when I'm
> using a stop that's not on the local list of announced bus stops since they
> usually stick to the major stops. I also will sometimes have to inform the
> driver when the recorded announcements are not working because I have
> noticed that I'll often notice this before the drivers do. I'm not forced to
> use these seats in the front, I do it by choice to take care of these
> practical needs, particularly when I notice that technology on the bus isn't
> working correctly.
>    I have used Amtrack in the past, and probably will use them again in the
> future. I have not had problems with finding a seat, or even, one that I
> don't prefer. I usually will go ahead and get on early when it's an option,
> but I choose it when I use any kind of public transportation anyway.
>     I have had the worst general luck with airport security. I find them to
> be over zellas, particularly at the airport security lines. Ok, I have had
> my share of errors when I've forgotten to empty a water bottle, but that was
> totally my fault. Oops! Beyond that, I have had one experience where I was
> assisting a blind traveler with their flight when the airport security
> decided to give both myself and the other traveler a whole body search, even
> though we have told the security staff the rules of the ADA. Mind you, I was
> not flying myself on this particular trip, but it still happened anyway.
>      On an unrelated trip, this time, I was flying by myself, coming home
> from visiting family in Houston, Texas. During my flight, I had a layover in
> Pheonox, Arazona. I was trying to catch my connecting flight there. The
> plane I was on was running late going into Phenox, Arazona due to one of the
> summer storms they had in Arazona. The airport staff went ahead and gave me
> the wheel chair, even though I didn't need it, and mind you, I wound up
> missing my connecting flight after all. I still managed to take an
> alternative route home, going through Vegas before I made it home. Mind you,
> this was back in 2007, and it was before I knew all of the ADA's rules
> regarding flying. I also was doing everything I knew to catch my connecting
> flight even though that didn't work out. In any case, even to this day, I
> still warn anyone who's blind and who flies through Pheonox that the staff
> there believe in playing the wheelchair card and to make sure to be very
> emphatic when one puts their foot down. I also make it a point to refuse to
> allow security to take my cane away, accept for when it's not avoidable for
> them to do so. Since I use a folding cane, by choice, I'll fold it whenever
> it's not needed, accept for when I'm on the bus, which is helpful because it
> shows to the world that I can get it out of anyone's way, but that when I'm
> using it, I don't use it for fun, but most importantly, that I'm blind and I
> know what I want and when I want it. I have also used the cart on more than
> one occasion, both at Amtrack and at the airport because it's practical to
> do so when it's needed. I'm sure that I'll fly again just like I did in the
> past. I know that I have the ADA on my side and that I'm willing to enforce
> it when it's needed. I have flown on other, very successful flights without
> ADA violations. I have had my share of successful rides on Amtrack, also
> without ADA violations. I continue to ride the city bus without problems
> every day that I attend school in person.
> Kendra
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: NABS-L <nabs-l-bounces at nfbnet.org> On Behalf Of Elizabeth Sprecher via
> NABS-L
> Sent: Saturday, January 28, 2023 5:12 PM
> To: nabs-l at nfbnet.org
> Cc: Elizabeth Sprecher <elizabeth.sprecher103 at gmail.com>
> Subject: [NABS-L] Equal Access to Seating on Public Transportation
>
> Hi all,
> Is it just me or does anyone else going through the same thing, and what’s a
> solution.
> Why are blind people forced to use the quote, priority seating on public
> transportation? I noticed this not only in Chicago, but also on amtrack
> trains. I was at a train station in Ann Arbor and was walking out to catch
> the train with everyone else. Before the train arrived at the station,
> someone working there stood next to me with a ramp. When the train stopped
> he immediately spoke to the workers on the train and said I was visually
> impaired without my permission. Then he told everyone to wait while he
> helped me on the train. He directed me to a seat he said was by the
> bathroom, and the last seat on the train. I said I wanted to sit by the
> other seats since these two seats were separate from all the other. He also
> said that they were sold out and asked if this was okay?
> So I sat there while all the other passengers had the freedom to sit where
> ever they wanted. I’m kind of insulted that the reason they had me sit there
> was because the bathroom was behind the seat.
> Doesn’t anyone else feel bothered by this? What can we all do to break this
> barrier that isolates people with disabilities from everyone else on public
> transportation? Does anyone care about this?
>
> Sent from my iPhone
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