In New York, the power of the taxi cab is irrefutable. 13,237 cabs currently sail the asphalt sea we call the city. But the truth is people, taxis discriminate!!!! ....What? Did I just say that? Well, no...I didn't say that, those who uphold The Americans With Disabilities Act did. Apparently, "Wheelchair users have long been deprived of a quintessential New York City experience: riding in a taxi." .....Oh my, never ridden in a taxi? Poor baby! Taxis are unaccesable to those in wheelchairs, so the Governer and Mayor of New York recently announced that they would be putting out 2,000 taxis on the street that were handicap accesable, "setting aside up to $54 million in subsidies and loans to retrofit vehicles for wheelchair use or buy new wheelchair-accessible vehicles." I'm not trying to offend anyone, but to me this just seems silly. The plan is well intentioned, but rather than improving access for the disabled, it will require taxpayers and the taxi industry to foot the bill for taxis that will in all likelihood "rarely be used by the target ridership". A more sensible alternative would be to set up "a small fleet" of wheelchair-accessible cabs that disabled passengers could call upon, through a centralized dispatch system, at any time of day or night, as part of the region’s mass transit system. "Putting thousands of accessible cabs on the road looks good in theory, but how it will work in practice is a different matter. Quite possibly, the result will be further irritation — not enhanced mobility — for disabled New Yorkers." The idea looks good on paper, but in reality, it's just simply makes no sense.
After reading Matthew Daus' "Hailing The Wrong Taxi" I can't help but feel like people in general are so hung up about riding in a cab. This article was mostly logos. It caught my attention when it mentioned the rights of those in wheelchairs, it made me think of The Catbird Seat we read in our composition books. Overall I agree with the author, it's hard not to, he makes a very good case.
to read more on this article>>> Wrong Taxi <<<
Whoa whoa whoa. I did this article first.
ReplyDeletegood connection to the catbird seat! I agree with you in that the dispatch system will probably be the most effective...good job!
ReplyDeleteThis is one of those cases where I feel like government officials do silly, money wasting ideas because they feel pressure from people. Do any handicap people feel cheated out of being able to ride in a taxi? Maybe the vast minority. There were better resolutions to this I think.
ReplyDelete