[nagdu] Chinese Bus Service: Shouldn't they be confronted as Uber is?

[Chaim B. Segal]

Hi All:

As I have been reading the posts on these lists concerning Uber's hearing, a thought is dawning on me which I thought I would put out there. 

Over the past few years, it seems as though we have had a major increase of Chinese immigrants to Ohio. I'm not sure how many of these people will actually stay around, or how many of them are temporary residents. My apartment complex is swarming with students from the University of Dayton, whose millionaire parents are paying for them to attend school here. I don't think that this group has anything to do with the folks I am mentioning below.

Before moving to Brooklyn last year, my oldest brother brought it to our attention that there is now a Chinese bus service which travels between Dayton, Cincinnati, and New York City.  Why only these three cities I don't know. Perhaps they stop in other places. Anyway, I was going to use this service to take a trip, and researched the operation online. I called their phone number, and asked the Chinese bloke who answered the phone a few things about their service. As I expected, they had a no pets policy. I then asked them if they were aware of the rights of guide dog users to be accompanied by their guide dogs in travel. The fellow had never heard of guide dog use before. He was adamant that I cannot travel on his service with a dog. Before this, I asked him if I could be given assistance off the bus at rest stops, and he said "no."  

I reported my finding to Seeing Eye, and I believe it was Walt Sutton who tried to give them a call. The number I passed on to him (which I forget) turned out to be that of a Chinese Restaurant. He recommended that I just not bother with this service, as for all anybody knows, they may be operating somewhat illegally anyway.

My oldest brother paid us a visit over the summer and used this Chinese bus service to get himself back to New York. Before using it, he thought it might be a viable means for my (blind) brother and I to travel to and from New York. After using it himself, he has changed his mind. The bus does not stop at any designated station terminal. They pick people up in neighborhoods which are out in the middle of nowhere. In New York, they drop people off in Chinatown, and leave it to them to travel with their luggage to where they need to go. It's more-or-less a bare-bones service. I'm not sure how crowded the buses are, but the bus, according to my brother, is not nearly as comfortable as a Greyhound. Baring this in mind, it's probably not a good idea for any of us to travel on this service using a guide. Moreover, I would probably not go to bat, unless I really thought I would use this service.

What does concern me, aside from the fact that to them a guide dog is as good as a pet, is the fact that they seem the least concern with regard to assisting any blind person, even if they are not using a dog. Parenthetically, I believe I asked the guy if their buses had wheelchair lifts, and apparently they don't. It seems to me that this service may be in violation of the ADA under many accounts. I'm wondering if these people should be informed that if they are operating a service in the United States, they must play by the rules. While I strongly feel the answer is obviously "Yes", I'm wondering if taking them to task will really accomplish anything. Somebody told me that the way they can even have a service like this is to do things under the table. Even if they are confronted, will they really listen?

What do you all think?

Chaim 

Chaim B. Segal
Customer Service Representative: Sinclair Community College, Dayton, Ohio

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