Source: Transportation Research Board

Convened by Transportation Research Board, the TRANSED: Mobility, Accessibility & Demand Response Transportation Conference will be held virtually, September 12-16, 2022. This conference combines two long standing conferences with similar content: the “16th International Conference on Mobility and Transport for Older Adults and People with Disabilities (TRANSED)” and the “5th International Conference on Demand Responsive Transport (DRT)”. The theme of this combined conference is “Inclusive Accessible and Sustainable Demand Response Transportation”. The Conference aims to describe current global research, services to improve mobility and accessibility for individuals with disabilities and for older adults, and best practices in providing demand responsive transportation (paratransit).

The overarching conference theme addresses the chasm between academic research and real-world planning practice and project implementations of sustainable, inclusive and accessible mobility. Conferees will also address the disconnect between the transportation analyses that agencies conduct and conditions on the ground for providers of sustainable and accessible mobility solutions. Successful implementation of mobility concepts is reliant on inclusive design, a business and service plan to attract and retain riders and funding, staff and user training, and a comprehensive accessible technology base. Accordingly, we seek contributions from researchers, practitioners, and others, such as non-profits and charitable organizations and manufacturers. 

Participants will represent a wide range of lived and professional experiences and discuss how diverse perspectives are included in policy development, project selection, and mitigation to advance transportation inclusion and accessibility.

• Read more.

The U.S. Department of Transportation is hosting a virtual public meeting regarding air travel by persons who use wheelchairs on March 24, 2022. During this meeting, there will be an opportunity to listen and learn from persons who use wheelchairs on the difficulties that they encounter during air travel and for airlines to discuss both the challenges that they face in providing accessible air transportation and the actions that they are taking or plan to take to improve the air travel environment. The meeting will better enable the Department to move expeditiously on any necessary action to advance safe accommodations for air travelers with disabilities using wheelchairs. A detailed agenda will be posted shortly.

This meeting will be held via Zoom Video Webinar, and is scheduled for March 24, 2022 from 10:15 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Eastern. The meeting is open to the public subject to any technical and / or capacity limitations. CART and ASL interpretation will be provided; requests for additional disability-related accommodations must be sent to [email protected] by March 21, 2022.

Source: Housing and Services Resource Center (HSRC)

Join the Housing and Services Resource Center (HSRC) for a two-part webinar series starting on March 7.

The need to work collaboratively to create solutions to improve access to affordable, accessible housing and the critical services that make community living possible has never been greater. With new funding and flexibilities, states and local stakeholders have a not-to-be-missed opportunity to sustainably connect housing and services in ways that improve housing stability for older adults, people with disabilities, and people experiencing or at risk of homelessness.

Presented by NCIL and the KU RTC/PICL

NCIL is excited to announce the Home Mods Fact Sheet. This fact sheet is intended to support CILs looking to create or expand a home modification program. NCIL would like to thank the team at PICL (Promoting Interventions for Community Living) at the University of Kansas, as well as our featured CILs: PILR in Placer, CA; The Ability Center of Greater Toledo; and accessABILITY in Indianapolis for their support and guidance.

• Fact Sheet (PDF)
• Fact Sheet (Word)
• Fact Sheet (plain text)
• Fact Sheet (audio)

Home modifications or “home mods” are changes a person makes to make their home accessible to them. Home mods can be as simple as a small threshold ramp to get through a doorway or as major as a full renovation. Some of the most common home modifications are ramps, improvements to doorways and entrances, and bathroom modifications.

A lot of Centers for Independent Living (CILs) operate home modification programs to help people make their homes more accessible. In a 2021 NCIL / RTC/PICL survey on home mod programs, 70% of CILs reported operating a formal home mod program. Some CILs help recommend improvements, others help with minor home mods, and some CILs assist with everything from recommendations, planning, and construction.

This fact sheet will share resources for your CIL, along with promising practices and real world examples from several CILs with successful home modification programs: accessABILITY in Indianapolis, Indiana; The Ability Center of Greater Toledo in Ohio; and Placer Independent Living Resource Services (PIRS) in Auburn, California.

A message from the Department of Transportation

On Monday, January 24 and Wednesday, January 26, the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) will host two virtual workshops highlighting the ten Semifinalists for DOT’s Inclusive Design Challenge. The Challenge aims to generate solutions to enable people with physical, sensory, and cognitive disabilities to use automated vehicles to access jobs, healthcare, and other critical destinations.

Please join us to learn about the designs and progress and offer real-time feedback. Five teams will present in each session; advanced registration is required.

Session 1 (Register for Session 1)

Monday, January 24, 2022

11:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Eastern

Session 2 (Register for Session 2)

Wednesday, January 26, 2022

1:30 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. Eastern

Learn more about the Inclusive Design Challenge by visiting the website and stay engaged by signing up for email alerts.

The US Department of Justice has filed a lawsuit against Uber Technologies Inc. (Uber) for charging people with disabilities wait time fees if they took longer to enter an Uber vehicle due to their disability. Please read the Justice Department’s press release on the lawsuit to learn more. Please share this notice with your network and take action if you were charged wait time fees.

• View the complaint

From the press release:

If you believe you have been a victim of disability discrimination by Uber because you, or someone you were traveling with, were charged wait time fees, please contact 833-591-0425 (toll-free), 202-305-6786, or send an email to [email protected]. For more information on the ADA, please call the department’s toll-free ADA Information Line at 1-800-514-0301 (TDD 800-514-0383) or visit www.ada.gov. For more information on the Civil Rights Division, please visit www.justice.gov/crt.

Friday night, the House passed the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, the bipartisan infrastructure package that passed the Senate in August. President Biden is expected to sign the bill soon.

The package includes $1.2 trillion in investments into the country’s infrastructure, including transportation, internet, and utilities. Some of the key items included and funded in the bill include: repairs to roads, bridges, and other infrastructure; clean water access; broadband internet, including efforts to close the digital divide; efforts to tackle climate change; public transit modernization; electric vehicles; grants to improve legacy passenger rail accessibility (a version of the All Station Accessibility Program (ASAP) Act); and Amtrak accessibility improvements, including the addition of a disabled person on the Amtrak Board of Directors. You can find more details in the White House fact sheet.

This package represents a historic investment in our country’s infrastructure. It will improve transportation, address climate change, reduce inequities, and create jobs. It is, however, important to note that the infrastructure bill did not pass together with the Build Back Better Act. (Read more about the Build Back Better Act.) While these were separated into two packages early on, alone they make up only part of the President’s legislative agenda.

The House did not vote on the Build Back Better Act. They did take a procedural vote that will allow the final vote to happen. A Congressional Budget Office (CBO) score on the bill is expected this week. It is expected the House will vote on the Build Back Better Act when they return from recess during the week of November 15. It will then move to the Senate, where Senate Majority Leader Schumer has said he hopes to pass the package before Thanksgiving. In the meantime, keep calling your Members of Congress to ensure it gets over the finish line! Check out our previous alert for more information.

On January 27, President Biden signed an Executive Order (EO) on combatting climate change. The EO also announced the creation of the Justice40 Initiative (“Justice40”).

The goal of Justice40 is to work toward equity for communities that have been marginalized. Many of these communities have been harmed by underinvestment in important programs and services. These include transportation, housing, water, healthcare, and more. Justice40 will try to fix this. Justice40 will direct 40% of federal investments in covered programs to disadvantaged communities. Interim guidance with recommendations has been released.

The US Department of Transportation (USDOT) is working to developing their approach to Justice40. To start things off, they will host two virtual meetings. These meetings are open to the public. People who join the meetings will hear from USDOT leaders. People can also provide input. Please see below for information and to decide which session(s) to attend.

Read more about the DOT’s Justice40 efforts. If you have questions about the meetings or Justice40, contact [email protected].

Source: Administration for Community Living (ACL)

Are you serving people at risk of eviction or who have been evicted? Are you working with landlords whose tenants are behind on rent as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic? Do you serve people facing housing instability or economic hardships?

If you answered, “yes,” to any of those questions, then this webinar is for you! Join the Administration for Community Living, in partnership with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, the U.S. Department of Treasury and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau on September 30 at 11:00 am ET to learn about tools and information you need to help the people you serve to learn more about and apply for Emergency Rental Assistance resources.

Registration is required, and the webinar will be recorded. If you have any questions, please send an email to [email protected].