[Nfbk] U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood

[Nickie Pearl]

U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood Takes Action to
Make Websites and Kiosks Accessible to Air Travelers with Disabilities


DOT 126-11
Monday, September 19, 2011
Contact: Bill Mosley
Tel.: (202) 366-4570

U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood Takes Action to Make Websites
and Kiosks Accessible to Air Travelers with Disabilities

The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), in its
ongoing effort to ensure equal access to air transportation for all
travelers, today proposed a regulation that would require airlines to
make their websites accessible to individuals with disabilities and
ensure that their ticket agents do the same. DOT also proposed that
airlines make automated airport kiosks at U.S. airports accessible to
passengers with disabilities. U.S. airports that jointly own, lease or
control such kiosks with airlines would also have responsibility for
ensuring the accessibility of automated airport kiosks.

“I strongly believe that airline passengers with disabilities should
have equal access to the same services as all other travelers,” said
U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood. “The Department of
Transportation is committed to ensuring that airline passengers are
treated fairly, and today’s action is part of that effort.”

Under the proposed rule, airlines would be required to
make their websites accessible to persons with disabilities over a
two-year period. Websites would be required to meet the standards for
accessibility contained in the widely accepted Website Content
Accessibility Guidelines. The requirement would apply to U.S. and
foreign carriers with websites marketing air transportation to U.S.
consumers for travel within, to or from the United States. Small
ticket agents would be exempt from the requirement to have accessible
websites.

In addition, airlines and airports that use automated kiosks for
services such as printing boarding passes and baggage tags would have
to ensure that any kiosk ordered 60 days after the rule takes effect
is accessible. Standards for accessibility would be based on
standards for automated transaction machines set by the Department of
Justice in its 2010 Americans with Disabilities Act rule. This
requirement would apply to U.S. and foreign carriers and U.S. airports
that own, lease or control automated airport kiosks at U.S. airports
with 10,000 or more annual boardings. The proposal asks for comment
on the cost and feasibility of retrofitting existing kiosks to make
them accessible.

This proposal is the latest in a series of DOT
rulemakings to implement the Air Carrier Access Act (ACAA). In the
ACAA rule issued in May 2008, DOT required carriers, among other
things, to make discounts available to passengers with disabilities
who cannot use inaccessible web sites and therefore must make
telephone or in-person reservations. Also, if passengers with
disabilities are unable to use the kiosk because it is not accessible,
carriers are required to provide equivalent service, such as having an
airline employee assist in operating the kiosk. However, these
provisions do not give passengers with disabilities, especially those
with visual and mobility impairments, independent access to the
websites and kiosks, and in this final rule the Department committed
to exploring how to make websites and kiosks accessible.

Comments on the proposal are due within 60 days of publication in the
Federal Register. The proposal is available on the Internet at
www.regulations.gov, docket DOT-OST-2011-0177. In addition, the
Department has partnered with Cornell University’s eRulemaking
Initiative (CeRI), Regulation Room, designed to improve the public’s
ability to understand and participate in this rulemaking process. A
goal of the CeRI team is to make Regulation Room as accessible to as
many users as possible. This partnership supports President Obama’s
open-government initiative. People wanting to discuss and learn about
this proposed rule should go to www.regulationroom.org.

-END-

The White House · 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW · Washington DC 20500 ·
202-456-1111

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