[nagdu] Cab drivers in DC pass blind people with guide dogs
Jewel S.
herekittykat2 at gmail.com
Wed Sep 8 22:52:39 UTC 2010
I was talking to a driver for the company I usually use for
non-scheduled (non-paratransit) trips. His company, Cardinal Cabs, has
never given me or anyone I know any trouble with accessibility. We
discussed the guide dog issue and what he would suggest as an
alternative for taxi drivers who genuinely cannot have a dog in their
cab, such as someone who is severely allergic. He made the comment
that he is severely allergic to dogs himself (what coincidence!), and
the last exposure he had (with medicine even) sent him intot he
hospital. The company he works for informed him he could not refuse a
customer with a service animal, but did offer a special accommodation
that I thik would be a good special accommodation for Muslims also.
All taxis have to have some way of speaking to headquarters, so if
they come across someone with a dog but can't (for religious or
medical reasons) take the dog into their taxi, they can call HQ and
request another cab be sent to this person ASAP. The cab driver who
spotted the person would be responsible for stopping and letting the
service dog owner of the situation and give them both the HQ phone
number and the employee numbers of himself and the cab driver who was
assigned to serve this person.
We must remember that we are not the only disabled people out there.
Taxi drivers can also be disabled with severe allergies, and I think
it is important to give accommodation for religious reasons. America
is the land of the free, and that means everyone, not just some.
Muslims are entitled to their religious opinions, but that doesn't
mean they should leave that person without transportation.
What do you guys think of this solution? As I said, this is a solution
currently being used by a cab driver in Raleigh, NC who is severely
allergic to dogs. He said that most cab drivers in the area are more
aware of the needs of the disabled because of the fact that our
paratransit system is contracted to taxis rather than buses. I tend to
agree. I also thinkn more cities should employ taxi drivers as
paratransit service providers as Raleigh does.
I'd love to hear what you all have to add to this!
On 9/7/10, Robert Stigile <rstigile at sbcglobal.net> wrote:
> Hello Marion and All,
> There has been a lot of discussion on this list, about taxi cab
> drivers in DC.
> This last Washington Seminar, I had my first experience of a
> driver, in a long time, that thought you needed to pay a fee for
> having the dog in the cab.
> He even went as far as trying to tell me, that the sign on the
> back window, told you how much extra it will be for the dog.
> I finally gave up trying to explain to him, that there should not
> be a extra charge, and said, well, if you are so inclined to
> charge an extra fee, then I guess I will have to take it out of
> your tip.
> He backed off at that point, and when we got out of the vehicle,
> I had someone read him the sign, of which it said, there is no
> extra charge for service animals.
> Here in my area, specifically the San Fernando Valley, a suburb
> of Los Angeles, we really do not have issues, because I have
> filed several complaints with the Department of Transportation,
> as well as our Division, CAGDU, has worked very hard, around the
> state, to inform the agencies that oversee the taxi cab
> companies, that it is our right to travel with a service animal,
> and because of the work we have done, a lot of the issues have
> disappeared.
> Once in a while, there will be a driver who thinks, he can get a
> way with not picking you up, but the dispatchers can tell when
> the driver is doing that, and they will suspend them, I have
> actually heard them over the radio or while on the phone, telling
> a driver they will need to bring their cab in, due to their
> behavior towards a blind person.
> So, it may be tedious for a while, but you have to file
> complaints.
> I hope this helps,
>
>
> Robert Stigile
> E-mail: rstigile at sbcglobal.net
> Skype: robertstigile1
>
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Marion Gwizdala" <blind411 at verizon.net
> To: "NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of Guide Dog
> Users"<nagdu at nfbnet.org
> Date sent: Tue, 07 Sep 2010 08:23:02 -0400
> Subject: Re: [nagdu] Cab drivers in DC pass blind people with
> guide dogs
>
> Will,
> There is no obligation, as I have stated, to inform the
> company of the
> presence of a guide dog. Again, if you are refused access
> because of your
> guide dog, I strongly suggest you file complaints as widely as
> possible.
> this means with the agency that regulates the cab company, your
> state's
> human rights department, law enforcement, and the DOJ. If you
> ever need any
> assistance, please do not hesitate to call upon me!
>
> fraternally yours,
> Marion Gwizdala, President
> National Association of Guide Dog Users
> National Federation of the Blind
> 813-626-2789
> Blind411 at Verizon.net
> HTTP://NAGDU.ORG
>
>
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "William ODonnell" <william.odonnell1 at yahoo.com
> To: "the National Association of Guide Dog UsersNAGDU Mailing
> List"
> <nagdu at nfbnet.org
> Sent: Monday, September 06, 2010 7:21 PM
> Subject: Re: [nagdu] Cab drivers in DC pass blind people with
> guide dogs
>
>
> Many times, I have been told that they will not take people since
> the
> oporator did not inform the driver that there was a dog, etc.
> The
>
> --- On Mon, 9/6/10, Marion Gwizdala <blind411 at verizon.net> wrote:
>
> From: Marion Gwizdala <blind411 at verizon.net
> Subject: Re: [nagdu] Cab drivers in DC pass blind people with
> guide dogs
> To: "NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of Guide Dog
> Users"
> <nagdu at nfbnet.org
> Date: Monday, September 6, 2010, 2:11 PM
> Will,
> I'm not sure what you mean by needing to
> "go on explaining and waiting for the approval of the
> supervisor"! If you mean that you are advising them that you
> will be accompanied by a guide dog, the way to resolve this
> is to not tell them. You are under no obligation to do so
> under the law; likewise, they are obliged under the law to
> transport you. The presence of your guide dog is irrelevant,
> so don't tell them!
> What I did here in Tampa is to call about
> ten minutes aftter my first call to check on whether or not
> the call had ben dispatched. Generally, they would tell me
> what cab number was dispatched to pick me up. If the cabbie
> refused to carry me, I would advise him that I am blind and
> my dog is a service animal. If the driver continued in the
> refusal, I would let him drive away so that there was a
> clear refusal. In Florida, violation of the law is a second
> degree misdemeanor and, as per resolution 2010-25, it is now
> the policy of the NFB to work for the same penalties in all
> states. File a complaint against the cabbie and against the
> company. The company may claim that they have no control
> over their drivers if the drivers are independent
> contractors; however, the law does not see it this way and,
> when the owners of the cab companies find themselves paying
> their high-priced attorneys to defend them against charges
> of discrimination, they will start making some changes!
>
> Fraternally yours,
> Marion Gwizdala
>
>
>
> ----- Original Message ----- From: "William ODonnell"
> <william.odonnell1 at yahoo.com
> To: "the National Association of Guide Dog UsersNAGDU
> Mailing List" <nagdu at nfbnet.org
> Sent: Monday, September 06, 2010 9:47 AM
> Subject: Re: [nagdu] Cab drivers in DC pass blind people
> with guide dogs
>
>
> The same thing goes on here in NYC. If you need a
> cab, you can get a yellow cab in Manhattan; however, outside
> the city, it is a hit or miss issue with the car
> companies. First, you need to call for the cab and go
> on explaining and waiting for approval of the supervisors,
> dispatchers, and drivers. If you are trying to get a
> cab on the street, well, good luck. The yellow cabs I
> mention above are the ones from the medallion Taxi and
> limousine commission (TLC). They will usually pick you
> up; however, then you need to go on with the explanations
> that the dog is a service dog and will not harm anyone
> because very often you here the fear from the driver that
> the dog may harm them.
> --- On Sun, 9/5/10, Dan Weiner <dcwein at dcwein.cnc.net
> wrote:
>
> From: Dan Weiner <dcwein at dcwein.cnc.net
> Subject: Re: [nagdu] Cab drivers in DC pass blind
> people with guide dogs
> To: "'NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of
> Guide Dog Users'" <nagdu at nfbnet.org
> Date: Sunday, September 5, 2010, 7:42 AM
> Granted, Sherri, the wording is
> regrettable, but the fact is we're not
> going to win on some of these points and in the case
> of the
> article we'd be
> missing the forest for the trees pointing that out,,
> or however that goes.
> At lease when I lived in Maryland I can tell you that
> access was a problem
> when it came to cabs.
> And, those friends of mine who lived in DC would
> confirm
> the estimate of
> half the drivers passing by or not taking you.
>
> This is the height of absurdity and even shameful,
> that
> we've had eighty
> years of guide dog training here in the USA and it's
> still
> that way.
> And like it or not, nine times out of ten in my neck
> of the
> woods in
> Maryland it was people from the mid East, Africa and
> Asia,
> emigrants in
> other words, who did the worst offending in this
> regard.
> This is the first
> time in my life, sorry to say, that I started feeling
> a
> real hostility to
> emigrants, who, in my way of thinking, were dishing
> out to
> people from here
> worse treatment then they were getting. They had jobs
> and
> could find them
> quickly again, no skin off their nose to treat a
> blind
> person like dirt.
> And, guys, don't start with me the old chorus of how
> they're afraid of dogs,
> etc. I couldn't care less, it isn't a dog popularity
> contest we're in here.
> The reasons are immaterial to me, how to reverse this
> trend
> is what I'm
> interested in.
>
>
> Sad but true it was a lot of folks from other lands
> who did
> this.
> .
> Not that there weren't any good old native American
> born, white and black
> guys, who had their chance to step up to the plate and
> be
> butt holes because
> there were.
> So, you were lucky if you got drivers who knew you, or
> I'd
> take numbers of
> cabbies I liked and give them some business on the
> side,
> but frankly, the
> fact that we have to do that means there's something
> seriously wrong.
> I mention that because some blind friends there said
> rather superciliously,
> "well, what I do is make sure I get the drivers who
> don't
> mind dogs". I'm
> beating my head against a wall, here, guys, but the
> cabbies
> are supposed to
> take us, ain't up to us to get a little black book of
> people who decide it's
> convenient to follow the law.
> Now, here in Florida, I've only taken a few cabs
> recently
> as I'm trying to
> save money, so what can you tell me about access here,
> or
> Marian in Tampa,
> etc?
>
> There would be only two reasons that at some point I
> decide
> not to choose a
> guide dog as my main means of mobility:
> 1. It's hard on me to see them get old and so on,
> very hard.
> 2. This access situation.
> When I call a cab, I should not have to have my heart
> in my
> mouth wondering
> whether they're going to see me and drive away. One
> of the drivers who
> liked me told me that several of them who didn't like
> dogs
> would just not
> come if they knew it was a dog user and say they came
> and I
> wasn't there, or
> other little tricks.
> In Prince George's County, Maryland, the company had
> some
> GPs system whereby
> they could tell which driver was nearest to whatever
> location I was calling
> from and he would be assigned. Now, that would mean I
> could very often and
> would get a person for whatever reason, decided to
> drive
> away or in some
> other way treat me like the scum of the Earth because
> I
> dare to want to be
> independent and use a guide dog.
>
> Of course they're computers, the cab company's may not
> be
> the most accurate,
> I called once from my cell phone when at Dunkin''
> Doughnuts
> and every time I
> called from my cell they'd say "Oh, we'll send
> someone to the Dunkin'
> Doughnuts, and I had to make sure they got it before
> they
> hung up.
> One day I got really frustrated and said, I don't care
> who
> you send but make
> it someone who understands English and make sure
> they're
> not an idiot."
> I swear, one of the cab drivers thought this was
> funny
> because whatever
> dispatcher had put that under my phone number on the
> computer, so it would
> come up as "has a guide dog, wants someone who
> understands
> English, doesn't
> want an idiot.".
> Still, all of those qualifications didn't help
> sometimes--smile
>
> Rant over
>
>
> Dan W.
>
>
>
>
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--
~Jewel
Check out my blog about accessibility for the blind!
Treasure Chest for the Blind: http://blindtreasurechest.blogspot.com
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