Original Link | Government Accountability Office
United States Government Accountability Office
PASSENGERS WITH DISABILITIES
Airport Accessibility Barriers and Practices and DOT’s Oversight of Airlines’ Disability-Related Training
What GAO Found
Passengers with disabilities face infrastructure, information, and customer service barriers at U.S. airports, according to representatives of selected airports, disability advocacy organizations, as well as a review of relevant literature.
- Infrastructure barriers can include complex terminal layouts and long distances between gates and can be difficult for some to navigate.
- Essential travel information is not always available in a format accessible to all. For example, a person with hearing loss could miss crucial gate information that is solely provided over a loudspeaker.
- A passenger might not receive appropriately sensitive service, such as wheelchair assistance, at the airport, although the service provided is required by the Air Carrier Access Act of 1986 (ACAA) regulations.
- According to stakeholders, while no solution meets all needs, a number of
practices can help reduce or eliminate some of these barriers to equal access at
airports. For example, some selected airports use external disability community
and passenger groups to proactively engage in identifying barriers and develop
solutions. Other airports have implemented technology-based solutions, such as
mobile phone applications to make airport navigation easier.