Bill Text: NY S01531 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Requires safe passenger access to all for-hire vehicles.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-01-08 - REFERRED TO TRANSPORTATION [S01531 Detail]
Download: New_York-2019-S01531-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 1531 2019-2020 Regular Sessions IN SENATE January 15, 2019 ___________ Introduced by Sen. KENNEDY -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Transportation AN ACT to amend the vehicle and traffic law, in relation to requiring safe passenger access to all for-hire vehicles The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Section 375 of the vehicle and traffic law is amended by 2 adding a new subdivision 53 to read as follows: 3 53. Accessible side entry for taxicab and livery vehicles. (a) Every 4 taxicab and livery registered in this state that is required by local, 5 state, or federal law or regulation to be handicap accessible, or in any 6 way advertises its services as accessible to individuals with disabili- 7 ties and individuals who use wheelchairs, must be: (i) built as wheel- 8 chair accessible by the vehicle's original equipment manufacturer (OEM), 9 except as provided in paragraph (b) of this subdivision and (ii) 10 equipped to allow all passengers to enter the vehicle through a passen- 11 ger compartment side door. 12 (b) A taxicab or livery vehicle not built as wheelchair accessible by 13 the OEM, and subsequently converted, modified or altered to be wheel- 14 chair accessible, may only be used as a taxicab or livery vehicle with 15 the approval of the department of transportation. The department of 16 transportation shall require submission of crash test and safety data 17 for the model of converted, altered, or modified vehicle and consider 18 this data in making a determination to certify the vehicle for use as a 19 taxicab or livery vehicle, except that, no converted, altered or modi- 20 fied vehicle may be certified that has not been crash-tested and the 21 results submitted to the department of transportation. The department of 22 transportation shall issue rules to govern the approval process set out 23 in this paragraph and no converted, modified or altered vehicle may be 24 approved for use as a transportation taxicab or livery vehicle until 25 such rules have been issued. EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD02062-02-9S. 1531 2 1 § 2. This act shall take effect on the one hundred twentieth day after 2 it shall have become a law, provided that this act shall apply to taxi- 3 cab and livery vehicles registered with a state or local authority on 4 and after such effective date.