Please be advised that this document has not been reviewed for legal sufficiency by the U.S. Department of Transportation or the U.S. Department of Justice.

Questions and Answers

This document is part of a series devoted to increasing the understanding and awareness of the transportation provisions of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

The U.S. Department of Transportation is responsible for the enforcement of ADA transportation requirements. This information is intended solely as informal guidance. It is neither a determination of legal rights and/or responsibilities under the ADA, nor is it binding on any agency with enforcement responsibility under the ADA.

1. When is a transportation system "Demand Responsive"?

   An advance request for service is a key characteristic distinguishing a demand responsive service. Systems, like a dial-a-ride van system or a taxi or limousine service, are clearly demand responsive. With demand responsive service, an active step must be taken before the individual can access the service (e.g., the individual must make a telephone call).

   Some services (e.g., certain commuter bus or commuter rail operations) may use flag stops, in which a vehicle along the route does not stop unless a passenger flags the vehicle down. A traveler staying at a hotel usually makes a room reservation before hopping on the hotel shuttle. This kind of interaction does not make an otherwise fixed route service demand responsive. On the other hand, we would regard a system that permits user-initiated deviations from routes or schedules as demand responsive. (§37.3)

   
   
2. What is meant when a transportation provider is said to be "Not Primarily Engaged"?

   Many private businesses have transportation as their primary business. For example, taxi companies and inter-city bus companies are primarily engaged in the business of transporting people. Many other businesses transport people, but do so only as a secondary part of the business. These businesses include hotels that operate a shuttle to the airport or schools that provide bus transportation. Such businesses are not primarily engaged in the business of transporting people. Such businesses must adhere to different rules than those that are primarily engaged in the business.

   The line between primarily engaged and not primarily engaged entities is drawn with respect to the specific bus, van, or other service which the entity is providing. For example, there is an obvious sense in which an airline or car rental company is primarily engaged in the business of transporting people. If the airline or car rental agency runs a shuttle bus from the airport terminal to a downtown location or a rental car lot, however, that shuttle service is covered by the "not primarily engaged" requirements of the regulations. This is because the airline or car rental agency is not primarily engaged in the business of providing transportation by bus or van. The relationship of the bus or van service to an airline's main business is analogous to that of a shuttle to a hotel. For this purpose, it is of only incidental interest that the main business of the airline is flying people around the country instead of putting them up for the night. (§37.105)

   
   
3. What are the requirements for university transportation systems?

   Private university-operated transportation systems are subject to the regulations for private entities not primarily engaged in the business of transporting people.

   With one important exception, public university-operated transportation systems are subject to the requirements for public entities. For public university fixed route systems, the requirements for commuter bus service would govern. This has the effect of requiring the acquisition of accessible vehicles and compliance with most other provisions of the regulations, but does not require the provision of complementary paratransit or submitting a paratransit plan.

   The nature of the systems involved -- demand responsive or fixed route -- determines the precise requirements involved. (§37.25)

   
   
4. Are elementary and secondary schools required to provide accessible transportation?

   The transportation regulations of the ADA do not apply to public school transportation. However, the general rules of title II program accessibility may apply. In addition, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) presents specific requirements for public school transportation of children with disabilities. The U.S. Department of Education Office of Special Education Programs has excellent materials available on IDEA.

   The transportation requirements of ADA do not apply to the transportation of school children to and from a private elementary or secondary school, and its school-related activities, if the school is providing transportation service to students with disabilities equivalent to that provided to students without disabilities. If the school does not meet the requirement of this paragraph for exemption from the requirements of this part, it is subject to the requirements for private entities not primarily engaged in transporting people.

   Given the constitutional law on church-state separation, it is likely that church-affiliated private schools do not receive Federal financial assistance. To the extent that these schools' transportation systems are operated by religious entities or entities controlled by religious organizations, they are not subject to the ADA at all. (§37.27)

   
   
5. What must airport shuttle services do to meet accessibility requirements?

   Private jitney or shuttle services that provide transportation between an airport and destinations in the area it serves in a route-deviation or other variable mode are subject to the requirements of this Part for private entities primarily engaged in the business of transporting people which provide demand responsive service. They may meet equivalency requirements by such means as sharing or pooling accessible vehicles among operators, in a way that ensures the provision of equivalent service. (§37.33)

   
   
6. Are the requirements the same for other shuttle services such as hotel shuttles?

   Shuttle systems and other transportation services operated by privately-owned hotels, car rental agencies, historical or theme parks, and other public accommodations are subject to the requirements for private entities not primarily engaged in the business of transporting people. The requirements for demand responsive or fixed route service may apply, depending upon the characteristics of each individual system of transportation. (§37.33)

   
   
7. Are recreational vehicles required to be accessible?

   Conveyances used by members of the public primarily for recreational purposes rather than for transportation (e.g., amusement park rides, ski lifts, or historic rail cars or trolleys operated in museum settings) are not subject to the transportation requirements of the ADA. Such conveyances are subject to Department of Justice regulations implementing Title II or Title III of the ADA, as applicable.

   The criterion for determining what requirements apply is whether the conveyances are primarily an aspect of the recreational experience itself or a means of getting from Point A to Point B. At a theme park, for instance, a large roller coaster (though a "train" of cars on a track) is a public accommodation not subject to the transportation requirements of the ADA; the tram that transports the paying customers around the park, with a stop at the roller coaster, is a transportation system subject to the provisions for entities not primarily engaged in transportation. (§37.37)

   
   
8. If employers provide transportation service must that service be accessible?

   Transportation services provided by an employer solely for its own employees are not subject to the transportation requirements of the ADA. Such services are subject to the regulations of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission under Title I of the ADA and, with respect to public entities, the regulations of the Department of Justice under Title II of the ADA.

   This exclusion applies to transportation services provided by an employer (whether access to motor pool vehicles, parking shuttles, employer-sponsored van pools) that is made available solely to its own employees. If an employer provides service to its own employees and other persons, such as workers of other employers or customers, it would be subject to the transportation requirements for private entities not primarily engaged in the business of transporting people or the public entity rules, as applicable. (§37.37)

   
   
9. Are private clubs and religious entities required to make their transportation services accessible?

   Transportation systems operated by private clubs or religious organizations or entities controlled by religious organizations are not subject to the transportation requirements of the ADA. (§37.37)

   Vehicle Acquisition

   
   
10. Must private entities not primarily engaged in transportation acquire accessible vehicles?

    The rules for acquiring vehicles by private entities not primarily engaged in the business of transporting people are summarized in the following table:

    
    

    Private Entities Not Primarily Engaged (§37.105)
    System Type	Vehicle Capacity	Requirement
    Fixed Route	Over 16	Acquire accessible vehicle
    Fixed Route	16 or less	Acquire accessible or ensure equivalency
    Demand Responsive	Over 16	Acquire accessible or ensure equivalency
    Demand Responsive	16 or less	Ensure equivalency

    
    
11. Other Sources of Information
    1. Regional ADA Technical Assistance Centers: Toll-Free 1-800-949-4232 (V, TTY)
       
    2. Federal Transit Administration ADA Toll Free Technical Assistance Line: 1-888-446-4511 (Voice) or 1-800-877-8339 (TTY); http://www.fta.dot.gov/