|
 |
DOT 25-04
Contact: Bill Mosley
Tuesday, March 9, 2004
Tel.: (202) 366-4570
DOT, Northwest Reach Settlement
Over Treatment of Passengers With Disabilities
The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) today announced the issuance of an
order reflecting a settlement with Northwest Airlines regarding the carrier’s
treatment of air travelers with disabilities.
The order finds that Northwest violated the Air Carrier Access Act (ACAA) and
federal regulations by failing to comply with requirements for in-cabin stowage
of passengers' folding wheelchairs. The carrier is ordered to cease and desist
from future violations of the ACAA and DOT’s rules prohibiting discrimination
against passengers with disabilities. The order also assesses a civil penalty of
$225,000 against the carrier.
“With this settlement, the department sends a clear signal that we all must work
to ensure that passengers with disabilities have equal access to air travel,”
said U.S. Transportation Secretary Norman Y. Mineta.
DOT rules require carriers to provide in-cabin stowage for at least one
passenger’s standard-size folding wheelchair on new aircraft and require
carriers to permit the stowage of passengers’ wheelchairs in overhead
compartments and under seats if the aircraft has such areas available and
stowage can be accomplished in accordance with Federal Aviation Administration
safety regulations. DOT's Office of Aviation Enforcement and Proceedings
(Enforcement Office) has advised carriers that a standard-size folding
wheelchair measures 13 inches by 36 inches by 42-50 inches when folded.
The Enforcement Office launched an investigation of Northwest’s compliance with
the requirements for in-cabin stowage of passengers' folding wheelchairs in 2002
after it learned that the carrier’s practices might not be consistent with the
ACAA rules. As part of its investigation, the Enforcement Office placed 10 calls
to the Northwest reservations system and asked if the carrier would allow a
passenger to stow a folding wheelchair in one of its aircraft. In all but one of
these calls, the reservation agent said Northwest’s aircraft could not
accommodate a passenger’s folding wheelchair inside the cabin. In discussions
with Northwest, the carrier acknowledged that its designated priority spaces
were too small to stow a standard-size folding wheelchair, but added that it
plans to create a new, larger priority space on its aircraft.
According to the settlement, Northwest may offset $205,000 of the civil penalty
by installing a new closet large enough to fit a standard-size folding
wheelchair on the carrier’s 27 Airbus A319 and A320 aircraft not now required to
comply with the rule. The consent order also requires Northwest to ensure that
each aircraft with 100 or more passenger seats that it orders in the future has
a closet within the passenger cabin to stow one standard-size folding
wheelchair.
The department has previously issued enforcement consent orders against several
other carriers for violations of the ACAA rules, which combined with today’s
actions are part of its ongoing effort to ensure nondiscrimination in air travel
based on disability.
The text of the order is available via the Internet at
http://dms.dot.gov, docket OST-2003-16943.
-end-