News

Government calls for airport kiosk accessibility

September 22, 2011

The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), in its ongoing effort to ensure equal access to air transportation for all travelers, today proposed a regulation that would require airlines to make airport kiosks accessible to passengers with disabilities. U.S. airports that jointly own, lease or control such kiosks with airlines would also have responsibility for ensuring the accessibility of automated airport kiosks.

"I strongly believe that airline passengers with disabilities should have equal access to the same services as all other travelers," U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said in a press release. "The Department of Transportation is committed to ensuring that airline passengers are treated fairly, and today's action is part of that effort."

The law would require that any kiosk ordered 60 days after the rule takes effect to be accessible. Standards for accessibility would be based on standards for automated transaction machines set by the Department of Justice in its 2010 Americans with Disabilities Act rule. This requirement would apply to U.S. and foreign carriers and U.S. airports that own, lease or control automated airport kiosks at U.S. airports with 10,000 or more annual boardings. The proposal asks for comment on the cost and feasibility of retrofitting existing kiosks to make them accessible.

The law would also require airlines' websites to be accessible. The new proposal is the latest in a series of DOT rulemakings to implement the Air Carrier Access Act (ACAA). In the ACAA rule issued in May 2008, DOT required carriers, among other things, to make discounts available to passengers with disabilities who cannot use inaccessible web sites and therefore must make telephone or in-person reservations. Also, if passengers with disabilities are unable to use the kiosk because it is not accessible, carriers are required to provide equivalent service, such as having an airline employee assist in operating the kiosk. However, these provisions do not give passengers with disabilities, especially those with visual and mobility impairments, independent access to the websites and kiosks, and in this final rule the Department committed to exploring how to make websites and kiosks accessible.

Comments on the proposal are due within 60 days of publication in the Federal Register. The proposal is available on the Internet at www.regulations.gov, docket DOT-OST-2011-0177.

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