Rail Travel

Hats off to Paul Quartz, a UK-based travel agent who not only battled Eurostar on behalf of his disabled client, but also won the skirmish. Still it could signal a potential trouble spot for other disabled travelers. 

Continue reading "Potential Access Problem on Eurostar Trains" »

With the Paralympic Games just around the corner, Whistler is putting the finishing touches on their access upgrades, and Vancouver is bracing for an influx of disabled visitors. And the province of British Columbia is looking for a few good Paralympic torchbearers -- 200 to be exact. If you live in Canada and are at least 13 years old, it could be you.

 

Continue reading "Want to Carry the Paralympic Torch?" »

There's good news in the air about accessible  rail travel in Canada.  VIA Rail just announced that they're going to add some access upgrades to their historic stainless steel rail cars. And according to VIA Rail sources, these upgrades will substantially increase the train's accessibility for disabled passengers.

 

Continue reading "Access Upgrades on Tap for VIA Rail" »

If a train trip through Scotland is in your future, then it's best to be aware of Scotrail's size limitations for assistive devices, especially if you are a scooter-user.

Just ask John Dunsmore, a scooter-user who was recently denied passage because his Mayfair Freerider scooter was five centimeters too long. That's less than 2 inches.

 

Continue reading "Scotrail Limits Scooter Size" »

Charles and I are on the road again; this time on a three week trip of the Western states, culminating in Oklahoma City. We're basically spending our time finding accessible options in the national and state parks, tourism sites and lodgings along the way. We'll check out a couple of larger cities too, and of course we also have a number of B&Bs on our itinerary. To date, it's been a very productive trip, and I look forward to more of the same in the next few weeks.

We spent a good deal of time talking to the folks at the Grand Canyon Railway and Xanterra Resorts while we were in Williams and the Grand Canyon. This included a tour of some of the accessible lodging options in Williams and up on the South Rim, which are managed by Xanterra. But my most interesting interview was with the reservation supervisor for the Grand Canyon Railway.

He went through all of the accessible options as we toured (and later rode ) the train, and I have to say that these folks are spot on as far as access goes. They see to every detail to make sure folks get the accommodations they need. They have a great system. But I'll save the details for a future issue of Emerging Horizons.

I also asked the reservation manager about problems they have encountered along the way, and how they were able to address them. To my great surprise he said that they have had several passengers who have run out of oxygen. This amazed me as the people that I've met who use oxygen are so meticulous and careful about all the details.

Well, in talking with the manager, he told me that some folks think it's just a two hour trip with a 3 hour stop at the canyon and then another two hours on the train, and they plan for that. Well, that's all well and good, but it should be noted that both the Williams depot and the South Rim of the canyon are at a high elevation - 7,000 feet. And you use more oxygen at 7,000 feet than you do at sea level. So if you plan for the regular amount that you would use at sea level, you will most likely run out at 7,000 feet. And that's not good.

So, a word of warning, if you are planning on visiting the Grand Canyon (or any other place with a high elevation) this summer, be sure and pack along enough oxygen for the higher elevation.

On the plus side, the Grand Canyon Railway folks have successfully dealt with oxygen emergencies in the past. Still, better safe than sorry - especially when we are talking about oxygen!!,

One of the advantages to blogging on the road is that I get immediate feedback from my readers, and sometimes that feedback directs me to cool accessible finds. Such was the case last week when Darryl read my blog and noticed I was near PA Amish country; and he quickly directed me to the Strasburg Railroad.

And I have to say, Darryl was spot-on with his recommendation! 

Located just 15 miles southeast of Lancaster in the heart of Amish Country, the Strasburg station features accessible parking, level access to the platform, ramped access to most of the shops and an accessible restroom. The 45-minute trip takes you through scenic Amish country and for an extra $5 you can enjoy lunch along the way.

 As far as access goes, there is a portable lift at the station that can be used on any of the cars; however access varies depending on the car. Most of the cars have narrow doorways, and wheelchair-users must walk and transfer to a seat in these cars. They can leave their wheelchair at the station and pick it up when they return. Folks who cannot transfer should make reservations in the baggage car, which has wider doorways, so wheelers can stay in their own wheelchair for the duration of the trip.

 Advance reservations are highly recommended during the busy summer and fall seasons, and the ticket agents are very well versed in the access features of the railway. So if you’re in the area, give the Strasburg Railroad a try – it’s affordable and accessible.

 And if you’re just passing through Strasburg and want some rib-sticking Amish food, try the Good & Plenty restaurant. There’s lots of accessible parking in front and level access to the front door. The food is served family style, and like the name suggests, it just keeps on coming. It was the perfect place to stop before we hopped on the airplane home. After a beer in the terminal I slept for most of the flight! Now that’s the way I like to travel!

Great news on the accessible rail travel front - Canada's Via Rail just got nearly $700 million in funding to upgrade their services at Toronto's Union Station. This is huge news in Canada as it's the first significant injection of new money in years for cash-strapped Via Rail.

So what has that got to do with access?

Well a portion of the money ($175.9 million) is specifically earmarked for refurbishing the locomotives and passenger cars - and that refurbishing includes upgrading the accessible sleeping cars. Earlier this year the Canadian Supreme Court ruled Via Rail had to make their Renaissance rail cars (used on the popular overnight VIA train between Montreal and Toronto) more accessible.

Access improvements mandated by the court include widening the doors and adding wheelchair tie-downs to the accessible suites, modifying the economy washrooms, installing companion seats for the economy class wheelchair tie-down spaces and adding more moveable armrests to the economy class cars.

And now they have the money to make this ruling a reality.

This disability world is all abuzz about the latest Canadian Supreme Court ruling, in an ongoing battle that pitted a grass roots Canadian disability organization against Canada’s rail transportation giant. In a sense, it’s a true David and Goliath story.

It’s all about rail cars, the Renaissance rail cars used on the popular overnight VIA train between Montreal and Toronto, to be specific. VIA purchased these French-manufactured cars, which were previously used on European overnight trains, from Alstom Transport in 2000. Although these narrow cars have accessible sleeper units, their width presents a few barriers to independent wheelchair access. So the Council of Canadians with a Disability brought these access shortcomings to the attention of the Canadian Transportation Agency (CTA).

And in 2003, the CTA ruled that VIA must make access modifications to the Renaissance cars; including widening the doors and adding wheelchair tie-downs to the accessible suites, modifying the economy washrooms, installing companion seats for the economy class wheelchair tie-down spaces and adding more moveable armrests to the economy class cars.

VIA of course challenged that decision, and in 2005 a Federal Court ruled in their favor by deciding that VIA did not have to make the access modifications.

Fridays decision by the Canadian Supreme Court reversed that ruling. And as a result VIA will have to make access modifications to 30 of the 139 Renaissance rail cars.

But the ruling goes beyond making train travel more accessible. Disabled advocates hope it will also establish a legal precedent for other modes of travel, including air and bus services.

And with the “one-person, one-fare” issue (One-Person,-One-Fare) still up in the air, this ruling couldn’t have come at a better time.

As I was cleaning off my desk today, I happened across an interesting ADA-related decision. It's interesting for a couple of reasons. First off, it involves Amtrak, and to be honest there just aren't a lot of ADA cases filed against Amtrak. Second, it raises some interesting "what if" questions.

The plaintiffs in this case are a group of passengers who wanted to travel by train from Harrisburg to Washington DC. The group consisted of 23 people, including 13 wheelchair-users. Herein lies the problem. They all wanted to travel together in the same car, however in order to do this Amtrak would have to modify the existing accessible seating. Amtrak has the access required under the ADA (one wheelchair space and one wheelchair storage space per car) but they were willing to make modifications for this group. The catch is, they also wanted to charge $200 per ticket to make these modifications.

The passengers claimed this charge was not allowed under the ADA. Amtrak disagreed, so off they went to court.

In the end, U.S. District Judge Harvey Bartle III ruled in favor of Amtrak and said the railroad could charge extra fees for seating that is not required by federal law. The passengers, many of who are on fixed incomes, were disappointed; however looking at the larger picture, this decision also raises some interesting questions.

If, as the judge ruled, businesses can impose a surcharge for access modifications above the minimum requirements, what's to stop a 30-room hotel from charging extra for a room with a roll-in shower? After all, under the ADA, a roll-in shower isn't required in properties with fewer than 50 rooms.

This decision seems to create more questions than it answers. Will it hold up under future scrutiny? Time will tell, but for now expect to pay extra for group wheelchair-seating on Amtrak.