3 ms·

This is a good point. Same with Uber. Most Cab companies are required to provide access to wheelchair bound and disabled members of society at no extra charge.

This is a good point. Same with Uber. Most Cab companies are required to provide access to wheelchair bound and disabled members of society at no extra charge. Not sure if Uber has the same requirement - and if and when it starts moving cab's out of business it will definitely prove to be a problem.

DanBC 10y ago
There's a few people with assistance dogs who get denied service by Uber. Sometimes that's because the driver has an allergy, but often it's just because. EDIT: here's one lawsuit from Arlington: https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/trafficandcommuting/blind-woman-sues-uber-says-she-and-her-guide-dog-were-refused-service/2016/06/02/7391156e-28f8-11e6-ae4a-3cdd5fe74204_story.html https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/trafficandcommuting/bli... Here's another from London: http://www.itv.com/news/london/2016-04-21/blind-woman-who-was-refused-uber-taxis-takes-drivers-to-court-for-discrimination/ http://www.itv.com/news/london/2016-04-21/blind-woman-who-wa... Note that London one has won repeated court cases for the exact same thing. Uber drivers keep refusing to take her and her dog; she takes them to court; she wins; she tries to get an Uber and the driver refuses to take the dog. Here's a case that Uber settled for a couple of hundred thousand dollars: http://motherboard.vice.com/read/what-uber-really-thinks-about-your-dog http://motherboard.vice.com/read/what-uber-really-thinks-abo...
afarrell 10y ago
> Not sure if Uber has the same requirement It doesn't. I've a friend (who might be popping on this thread here soon) who's been working with adapt.org on pressuring Uber on this issue. In theory, ridesharing should be much better for PWD than trying to hail a cab and cheaper than government services like the MBTA's The Ride. However it very much does not look like it is the case right now.
- aianus 10y ago
  Uber has wheelchair vehicles at the same price as UberX: https://newsroom.uber.com/canada/uberwav/ https://newsroom.uber.com/canada/uberwav/
  - afarrell 10y ago
    Oh wait they are rolling that out? I had thought they were just doing a perfunctory trial run in philly that they then cancelled. Huzzah!
    - bonniemuffin 10y ago
      A new "Access" option containing UberWAV appeared in my Uber app today in san francisco, with a popup telling me about it. So I guess it just rolled out to SF.
  - geofft 10y ago
    It looks like UberWAV in NYC provides app-based access to the existing fleet of wheelchair-accessible taxis: Uber will find a taxi and dispatch it to where you are, and you pay taxi fare. That technically works (assuming the dispatched taxi shows up), but I'm not really sure it should count, especially because Uber's obvious goal is competing with taxis and driving them out of business.
    - afarrell 10y ago
      > not really sure it should count If the discussion is around "is a wheelchair user able to hail a car and get moved A->B?" Why shouldn't it count? I suppose they it means that they aren't uprooting the medallion system in that corner of the economy, but that political goal shouldn't block providing access to wheelchair users. Plus, if we want WAVs to be able to operate medallionless, that can be more easily achieved through lobbying by activists who are upset about the higher costs. Uber can just funnel money to them. > assuming the dispatched taxi shows up I know there an issue with reliability of wheelchair repair appointments, but I'll admit myself ignorant of the current state of WAV hailing.
  - __derek__ 10y ago
    Is that only in Canada, though?
toomanybeersies 10y ago
Uber in New Zealand offers uberASSIST: https://newsroom.uber.com/new-zealand/uberassistnz/ https://newsroom.uber.com/new-zealand/uberassistnz/ Not sure if that's out of the kindness of their hearts, or because they've been made to do it by the govt.

DanBC 10y ago

There's a few people with assistance dogs who get denied service by Uber. Sometimes that's because the driver has an allergy, but often it's just because. EDIT: here's one lawsuit from Arlington: https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/trafficandcommuting/blind-woman-sues-uber-says-she-and-her-guide-dog-were-refused-service/2016/06/02/7391156e-28f8-11e6-ae4a-3cdd5fe74204_story.html https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/trafficandcommuting/bli... Here's another from London: http://www.itv.com/news/london/2016-04-21/blind-woman-who-was-refused-uber-taxis-takes-drivers-to-court-for-discrimination/ http://www.itv.com/news/london/2016-04-21/blind-woman-who-wa... Note that London one has won repeated court cases for the exact same thing. Uber drivers keep refusing to take her and her dog; she takes them to court; she wins; she tries to get an Uber and the driver refuses to take the dog. Here's a case that Uber settled for a couple of hundred thousand dollars: http://motherboard.vice.com/read/what-uber-really-thinks-about-your-dog http://motherboard.vice.com/read/what-uber-really-thinks-abo...

afarrell 10y ago

> Not sure if Uber has the same requirement It doesn't. I've a friend (who might be popping on this thread here soon) who's been working with adapt.org on pressuring Uber on this issue. In theory, ridesharing should be much better for PWD than trying to hail a cab and cheaper than government services like the MBTA's The Ride. However it very much does not look like it is the case right now.

aianus 10y ago
Uber has wheelchair vehicles at the same price as UberX: https://newsroom.uber.com/canada/uberwav/ https://newsroom.uber.com/canada/uberwav/
- afarrell 10y ago
  Oh wait they are rolling that out? I had thought they were just doing a perfunctory trial run in philly that they then cancelled. Huzzah!
  - bonniemuffin 10y ago
    A new "Access" option containing UberWAV appeared in my Uber app today in san francisco, with a popup telling me about it. So I guess it just rolled out to SF.
- geofft 10y ago
  It looks like UberWAV in NYC provides app-based access to the existing fleet of wheelchair-accessible taxis: Uber will find a taxi and dispatch it to where you are, and you pay taxi fare. That technically works (assuming the dispatched taxi shows up), but I'm not really sure it should count, especially because Uber's obvious goal is competing with taxis and driving them out of business.
  - afarrell 10y ago
    > not really sure it should count If the discussion is around "is a wheelchair user able to hail a car and get moved A->B?" Why shouldn't it count? I suppose they it means that they aren't uprooting the medallion system in that corner of the economy, but that political goal shouldn't block providing access to wheelchair users. Plus, if we want WAVs to be able to operate medallionless, that can be more easily achieved through lobbying by activists who are upset about the higher costs. Uber can just funnel money to them. > assuming the dispatched taxi shows up I know there an issue with reliability of wheelchair repair appointments, but I'll admit myself ignorant of the current state of WAV hailing.
- __derek__ 10y ago
  Is that only in Canada, though?

toomanybeersies 10y ago

Uber in New Zealand offers uberASSIST: https://newsroom.uber.com/new-zealand/uberassistnz/ https://newsroom.uber.com/new-zealand/uberassistnz/ Not sure if that's out of the kindness of their hearts, or because they've been made to do it by the govt.