Tag Archive

Transportation and Travel

LightHouse News

BART Weekend Travel Delays

There will be minor delays on the Pittsburg/Bay Point line due to track maintenance on the following weekends:

August 19 to 22 and August 26 to 29
Start: 9:00 p.m. Friday
End: 4:00 a.m. Monday

Passengers traveling northbound will experience an estimated 15- to 20-minute delay during the hours work is being performed. Passengers traveling southbound may experience a 5-minute delay due to single-tracking.

There will also be estimated delays of 10 to 15 minutes on the Fremont line on the following Sundays due to track maintenance:

August 21 & 28
September 4, 11, 18 & 25

Please adjust your travel plans accordingly.

LightHouse News

Attention, All BART Riders Who Use Red Tickets

2 Commentson Attention, All BART Riders Who Use Red Tickets

By the end of December 2011, red BART tickets for disabled travelers will be discontinued and replaced by the Regional Transit Connection (RTC) ID/Clipper card created for passengers with qualifying disabilities. This card is specially encoded to automatically calculate discounted cash fare or monthly pass fare each time you use it.

How do you get a Clipper card?
You must apply for an RTC ID/Clipper card in person. You may apply for the card at SF Muni and may submit either a “Basic Eligibility” or “Medical” application.

The following forms of identification are accepted as proof of “Basic Eligibility”: Medicare card, California DMV placard, other transit card issued to you by another California transit agency or proof of veteran’s disability.

To qualify under “Medical Eligibility,” you must be medically certified by one of the licensed professionals recognized by the RTC ID/Clipper card program that your disability meets the program’s criteria.

What is Clipper?
Clipper is an all-in-one transit card that keeps track of any passes, discount tickets, ride books and cash value that you load onto it, while applying all applicable fares, discounts and transfer rules. This lets you customize your card for your own transit needs.

The Clipper card can hold multiple passes, ride books or tickets (which are specific to the transit system being used), as well as up to $300 in cash value at one time. Cash value on your Clipper card can be used to ride any participating transit system.

You can add cash value to your Clipper card at all 44 BART stations in the region. BART ticket vending machines now accept cash, credit cards and debit cards as payment for cash value that you add to your Clipper card.

LightHouse News

Courts Rule in Favor of JetBlue

In a closely watched case against JetBlue Airways, United States federal judge Joseph Spero ruled on August 3, 2011, that state anti-discrimination laws do not apply to airline websites and kiosks

Brought by the California Council of the Blind and three blind JetBlue customers, the case pertained to access barriers on JetBlue’s website and the inaccessibility of the airline’s airport check-in kiosks to people with visual impairments.

Read additional details about the ruling here.

LightHouse News

Service Animal Teleseminar

The National Association of Guide Dog Users, a division of the National Federation of the Blind, will host a teleseminar designed to teach service animal users how to best protect their rights and be effective self-advocates. It is also meant to help owners and operators of public accommodations understand their rights and responsibilities under the law.

“Service Animals in Places of Public Accommodation” will be held on Sunday, August 21, 2011, at 8:00 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time (5:00 p.m. Pacific). Reservations are required. Participation is limited and is on a first-come, first-served basis. While the seminar itself does not have a fee, the call-in telephone number is not toll-free.

The session will answer questions that include the following:

  • What are the rights and responsibilities of service animal users in places of public accommodation?
  • Are there circumstances under which a business is allowed to refuse access to an individual accompanied by a service animal?
  • What is the best way to resolve issues that arise because of the choice to use a service animal?
  • What remedies are available to those who feel their civil rights have been violated?

To reserve your space in this teleseminar, please send your name, city and state, and your email address by Thursday, August18, 2011, to Info@NAGDU.ORG. If you are a service animal user or represent a public accommodation, include this information in your message. An email confirmation with the call-in number and access codes will be sent to you. Those without email access or who would like more information may call 813-626-2789.

Please note: This conference will be recorded. Participation implies an agreement to and authorization for such recording in compliance with state and federal laws. The information provided during this teleseminar is intended as informal guidance only and should not be construed as legal advice.

For more information about the National Association of Guide Dog Users, the National Federation of the Blind, or to locate a chapter in your area, visit the following websites:

National Association of Guide Dog Users
HTTP://NAGDU.ORG

National Federation of the Blind
HTTP://NFB.ORG

LightHouse News

Public Encouraged to Attend JetBlue Accessibility Hearing

1 Commenton Public Encouraged to Attend JetBlue Accessibility Hearing

On Friday, July 22, there will be a hearing on the disability access case against JetBlue Airways at the federal courthouse in San Francisco. The hearing is open to the public and will be held at 9:30 a.m. at 450 Golden Gate Avenue in courtroom A on the 15th floor.

Brought by the California Council of the Blind and three blind JetBlue customers, the case is about access barriers on JetBlue’s website and the inaccessibility of JetBlue’s airport check-in kiosks to people with visual impairments.

JetBlue has designed its website in a way that prevents blind customers from independently and privately accessing information and using the site’s features. JetBlue’s airport kiosks cannot be used by blind customers because the machines do not have audio output or an accessible means to input information.

JetBlue is asking United States District Court Magistrate Judge Joseph Spero to dismiss the case, arguing that California’s disability civil rights laws do not apply to JetBlue’s website or kiosks. According to JetBlue, only the United States Department of Transportation has jurisdiction to consider the access needs of blind JetBlue customers.

During the hearing, lawyers for CCB and the blind JetBlue customers will explain why California’s civil rights laws protect the state’s citizens with visual impairments from discrimination, including inaccessible airline websites and kiosks.

CCB and the individual JetBlue customers are being represented by Linda Dardarian of the Oakland civil rights firm Goldstein, Demchak, Baller, Borgen and Dardarian and the Law Office of Lainey Feingold. Linda will be presenting the argument to the court on July 22.

Those interested in attending the hearing can either go directly to the courthouse or meet at the Civic Center BART station at 8:30 a.m. Anyone who wants to meet at the BART station should send an email to LF@LFLegal.com. People can also contact Rachel Brill in Linda Dardarian’s office at 510-763-9800 for more information.

Additional details are available at http://lflegal.com/2011/06/jetblue-hearing.

LightHouse News

BART Rider Alert: Delays on Upcoming Weekends in May, June

There will be major delays on May 28, 29 and 30 and June 4 and 5 for some BART customers traveling through the Transbay Tube. The delays are necessary to accommodate work on the cables that provide power to the track.

Delays for trains in both directions are estimated to be approximately 20 to 40 minutes on lines requiring transfers (trains coming from or going toward Dublin or Fremont) and 5 to 10 minutes on other lines (trains coming from or going toward Richmond or Pittsburg/Bay Point).

For full details, go to http://www.bart.gov/news/articles/2011/news20110524.aspx.

LightHouse News

Disability Community Forum on Service & Support Animals

The San Francisco Mayor’s Office on Disability is hosting a public meeting to discuss the issue of service and emotional support animals, clarify the various disability rights laws that apply on this issue and educate the disability community about rights and responsibilities.

They want to hear from the community about the benefits of service or support animals and what, if anything you would like to see changed in the City of San Francisco. They want to hear YOUR story!

Date:                May 23, 2:00 – 4:00 p.m.
Location:         San Francisco City Hall, Room 400
See below if you wish to participate remotely.

The meeting will begin with a brief overview of current federal and state law regarding service and support animal definitions, policies, and enforcement and will move into a public hearing format where service and support animal users will be asked to comment on the following three areas:

·        What are the disability community’s needs around this issue?

·        What types of difficulties do people with disabilities encounter most frequently in public with service / support animals?

·        What, if any, types of changes would the community like to see in local implementation of rules regarding service and support animals?

YOU CAN ALSO PARTICIPATE REMOTELY!

Members of the public, who wish to participate in this meeting but are unable to physically attend, may call the Telephone Bridge Line at (415) 554-9632.  Up to thirty persons may listen on this conference line, and will be instructed to speak at appropriate times.  Call 554-9632 after 2:00 p.m. and a staff person will handle your requests to speak.

To RSVP or to request disability accommodations for the meeting, please call Joanna at 415-554-6789 voice, 415-554-6799 TTY or e-mail joanna.fraguli@sfgov.org.

LightHouse News

Attention: BART Passengers Who Use the Civic Center BART Station

As of April 21, 2011

The LightHouse would like to inform you of important stair and escalator closures happening at the Civic Center BART station. The stairwell at 8th and Market (near the Hotel Whitcomb and Starbucks) will be closed for repair with an expected finish date of May 13, 2011.

Additionally, the escalators at the Burger King at Hyde, Market and Grove have limited functionality due to a needed repair.

The LightHouse is advising its community members to use the stairwell that exits in front of the Orpheum Theater. That stairwell is the FIRST stairwell on your right after exiting the BART fare gates that are located between the transit store and station agent. At the top of the stairs, continue straight to cross Hyde to the corner with Burger King. Veer right to walk along Grove towards LightHouse.

Note that changes in this situation occur frequently. If you want to be sure that you know all options for coming to the LightHouse from Civic Center BART, please contact Donna Kazanjian, who coordinates the LightHouse Orientation and Mobility services at the LightHouse. One of our instructors will make sure you are familiar with your options. Donna can be reached at 415-694-7308 or dkazanjian@old.lighthouse-sf.org.

LightHouse News

Seats Available – Charter Bus to American Council of the Blind’s Annual Conference and Convention

The LightHouse will charter a bus to American Council of the Blind’s 50th annual conference and convention this July. Presently, plans are in the making for pick-up and drop-off at the LightHouse in San Francisco, the Ed Roberts Campus (Ashby BART) in Berkeley and in downtown Sacramento.

The bus will travel leaving the Bay Area at 9:00 a.m. Saturday, July 9 and make two additional stops before arriving mid-afternoon at the John Ascuaga Nugget Hotel Resort Casino in Sparks, Nevada. The bus will depart at noon on Wednesday, July 13, reversing the drop-offs and returning to the LightHouse by 6:00 p.m.

There are a limited number of seats available for purchase. One-way seats are $100.00; round-trip seats are only $150.00. Deposits are due mid-May. For more information or to reserve your seat, contact Rich Russo, Community Services Program Assistant at 415-694-7352 or rrusso@old.lighthouse-sf.org.