Should Passengers have Rights to Accessible Lavatories?
FlyersRights is supportive of the proposed changes but questions if disabled passengers should have to wait 20 more years for the current ideas to begin to be implemented, and 40 to 45 years for most single aisle aircraft in existence to have the required accessible lavatory. When Congress passed the Air Carrier Access Act, it identified a problem and the Department of Transportation required an accessible lavatory on all twin aisle planes ordered more than one month after the rule or delivered twenty-five months after the rule. Here, the Department appears to be proposing compliance on aircraft ordered more than 18 years after this rule, delivered more than 20 years after this rule, or under a new type certificate more than one year after this rule.
This proposal means that accessible lavatories on the vast majority of flights will not be mandated until approximately 2045, more than 55 years after the Air Carrier Access Act and the twin aisle lavatory rule. Considering that commercial aircraft remain in service for an average of 20-25 years, we will likely see inaccessible lavatories exist up until 2065-2070, nearly 50 years from now and more than 75 to 80 years since Congress passed the Air Carrier Access Act. As long as passengers have no recourse in the event of a last minute airline equipment change, this will remain an accessibility problem throughout that time.
The airlines have already been preparing for accessible lavatories on single aisle aircraft. Aggressive seat size reduction allowing the addition of multiple rows of seats has been the solution to the airlines’ concerns expressed during the 1990 rulemaking process. Airlines today would still have more seats alongside accessible lavatories than they would have had in 1990 without an accessible lavatory. Accessible lavatories are a safety and health issue and should accordingly take precedence over 30-year-old economic arguments.
Besides the 18-20 year timeline being overly accommodating to the airlines’ balance sheets, such a delayed rule is vulnerable to more exemptions, waivers, delay, and repeal.
TAKE ACTION:
The Department of Transportation is seeking comments on its proposed rule for accessible lavatories on single aisle aircraft. Submit your comment or read more about the rule and other comments. Submit Your Comments Here
Deadline for Comments - May 27, 2022
We propose that this rule apply (1) to all aircraft ordered more than 1 year after the effective date of this rule, (2) to all aircraft delivered more than 3 years after the effective date of this rule, (3) to all new type certificates applied more than 1 year after the effective date of this rule, and (4) to all amended type certificates applied more than 3 years after the effective date of this rue.
The current rule provides for new type certificate applications but not for amended type certificate applications. Boeing in particular has preferred to seek amended type certificates, most recently with the Boeing 737 MAX 8, 9, and 10, all relating back to the original, new type certificate of the 737 in 1965. Boeing is even seeking exemptions to new certification rules for the Boeing 737 MAX 10.
The twin aisle lavatory rule had a much shorter implementation delay. Many provisions of the Americans With Disabilities Act also had much shorter implementation delays. Airports and public transportation have already made disability accommodations. Why should the airlines be afforded special treatment in denying many Americans equal treatment? In 1990, had the DOT rule applied to single aisle aircraft with a 30 year delay, which would have been hard for the airlines to object to, we would now have accessible lavatories on single aisle aircraft.
Please increase the weight you give to health, safety, and access consideration over the defunct economic arguments of the airlines. To the DOT officials in discussion with the airlines and weighing their economic arguments, I would offer the very first comment submitted to this docket. Caryn Coss wrote, “Please implement this good idea quickly so I can travel to other countries like Australia before I die!”
