TravelAbility Insider

The Intersection of Travel and Disability

ADA//Law

Supreme Court Likely to Delay Ruling on ADA Requirements for Hotel Websites

by

But the Issue Isn’t Going Away So Be Prepared!

View of the Supreme Court building from the outside

In a surprising twist in a case we’ve been following closely, disability rights activist Deborah Laufer withdrew her complaint against a small hotel that she charged had failed to meet ADA disclosure standards on its website. Since she filed her lawsuit, the hotel has been sold and new owners have posted the required information. And Laufer has said she doesn’t plan to add to the 600+ lawsuits she has filed against hotels.

That led several justices to declare the case moot at oral arguments.

“The case before us is dead as a door nail,” Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. declared.

“This is like dead, dead, dead, in all the ways something can be dead,” Justice Elena Kagan followed.

Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Ketanji Brown Jackson joined the chorus with Jackson asking the lawyer for the hotel why he was “asking us to take on extra work to end a case when we’ve all agreed it has to be ended.”

The attorney argued that there is an important legal issue at the heart of the case: Do “testers” who are examining websites of hotels they have no intention of staying at have standing to file a lawsuit?

Chief Justice John Roberts was the lone voice from the bench urging his colleagues to decide the issue now rather than kicking the can down the road. Read more.

TravelAbility TakeAway: Destinations may want to share this with their hotel GM’s and get ahead of this issue before they are forced to. We agree with Justice Roberts that the issue isn’t going away. Better to have some of the required specifics up on your site and add to it over time than not to have anything up.

And it shouldn’t be that hard. All GM’s need to do is provide a separate landing page listing the same accessibility features they have on their room descriptions along with room and bathroom images in their photo galleries. It’s really about good customer service, so that guests with disabled family members don’t have to be detectives to see if it fits their needs. Here’s a best practice example from a hotel in San Francisco, who told us that the landing page saves an immeasurable amount of time and training of front desk staff. It’s much easier and quicker to have a reference page to point vs. fielding a lot of questions. 

Addendum: On December 5th, the Supreme Court announced that it will not decide who wins this case because it is moot due to the plaintiff’s withdrawal of the case.  The declaration may be a win for disability rights law, and for broader civil rights law, as a decision in the case could have put an end to “tester standing,” an important way civil rights laws are enforced in this country. But the issue will certainly loop back around the court system.

All nine justices agreed that the case was moot and should not be decided. Seven of the justices agreed that the lower court’s decision is also moot. One justice (Ketanji Brown Jackson) thought the lower court decision (in favor of the disabled plaintiff) should remain on the books.

More Celebrities Are Coming Out about Their Hidden Disabilities

by

Elon Musk turning to look at something off camera

Several celebrities are shining a light on hidden disabilities by sharing news of their diagnoses and experiences, particularly with autism. In a TED Talk, Tesla founder Elon Musk talked about being bullied as a child on the spectrum, but also about how the condition has helped him in his career.

“I found it rewarding to spend all night programming computers, just by myself,” he said. “Most people don’t enjoy typing strange symbols into a computer by themselves all night. They think that’s not fun. But I really liked it.”

Actor Wentworth Miller, star of the TV series Prison Break was diagnosed with autism during the pandemic. He has talked about the difficulties of getting diagnosed as an adult: “This fall marks 1 year since I received my informal autism diagnosis. Preceded by a self-diagnosis. Followed by a formal diagnosis,” he said. “It was a long, flawed process in need of updating. IMO. I’m a middle-aged man. Not a 5-year-old.” Read more.

Our TakeAway: When celebrities share their hidden disabilities, it can shine a spotlight on issues faced by millions of people. You may not like or admire Elon Musk but there’s no question he’s an influencer and sometimes a positive one.

DOT Launches Campaign to Raise Awareness of Rights of Airline Passengers Who Use Wheelchairs

by

A man in a wheelchair navigating a crowded airline terminal

The US Department of Transportation is marking the 37th anniversary of the Air Carrier Access Act (ACAA) by initiating the #AccessibleAirTravel campaign to underscore the right of air travelers with disabilities to safe, dignified, and accessible air travel.

“Airline passengers with disabilities deserve to travel safely and with dignity,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. “DOT is proud to partner with the aviation industry and members of the disability community to ensure that all travelers with disabilities know their rights.”

As part of the launch, the DOT emphasized some of the actions the Biden administration has taken or is taking to improve the air travel experience of individuals using wheelchairs, including:

  • To address many of the significant barriers facing passengers who use wheelchairs, the Department has initiated a rule proposing to make it an automatic violation of ACAA regulations for airlines to mishandle a passenger’s wheelchair.
  • In July 2023, DOT finalized a rule which requires airlines to make lavatories on new, single-aisle aircraft more accessible.Under this final rule, airlines are required to take various steps to improve the accessibility of these lavatories short of increasing their size in the short term.
  • DOT has begun laying the groundwork for a potential rule that would allow passengers to stay in their own wheelchairs when they fly. Read more.

Our TakeAway: We applaud the DOT’s new campaign and the actions it is taking to improve the air travel experience for passengers who use wheelchairs. But we have to wonder how much can be done to improve the accessibility of lavatories without increasing their size?

Visit Lauderdale Expands Its Embrace of the Hidden Disabilities Sunflower; Its Convention Center is First in North America to Adopt the Program

by

Logo for US chapter of Hidden Disabilities Sunflower includes a close up of a sunflower and an American flag

Arriving at an unfamiliar convention center can be a confusing experience for anyone but particularly for travelers with disabilities, hidden or visible. The Greater Fort Lauderdale/Broward County Convention Center is employing a range of tools to make sure all travelers feel welcome from the moment they pass through the door. The new approach represents a first-of-its-kind partnership with the Hidden Disabilities Sunflower.

The convention center is adding a variety of cues to indicate when someone needs special assistance at the facility. A permanent space will be dedicated to providing a person with a hidden disability or a traveling companion various Sunflower products, such as a lanyard, badge, wristband or pin.  And all convention center employees will be trained on how to spot and help someone with a hidden disability.

The initiative is just the latest chapter in Visit Lauderdale’s proactive moves to create a warm and inclusive welcome for every traveler.  The Sunflower, for example, has been incorporated into Visit Lauderdale’s accessible tourism marketing for the past two years and was subsequently adopted by Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport. 

“Visit Lauderdale is committed to providing everyone a safe and supportive environment and has long championed inclusion and accessibility tourism by removing all barriers to a quality experience for everyone,” said Richard Gray, senior vice president of Inclusion and Accessibility at Visit Lauderdale. “We embraced the Hidden Disabilities Sunflower program as soon as we learned of it and couldn’t be prouder that our newly renovated and expanded convention center is the very first on the continent to implement the program.” Read more.

 Our TakeAway: Credit Visit Lauderdale for the foresight to realize that their convention center will now not only be accessible for meetings and conventions, but also for the numerous local events and festivals that use the convention center.   Credit Sunflower creators for coming up with an image that is simultaneously subtle and powerful. The growth of the Sunflower is one of the accessible travel industry’s most promising trends.

Wheel the World Partners with Visit Florida to Scale Accessibility Audits

by

Woman using a wheelchair beside a pool and a fountain along with logos of Visit Florida and Wheel the World

Visit Florida announced at the Florida Governors meeting in October that it is launching an ad co-op program to finance Wheel the World site assessments at 30 hotels, attractions, POI’s or dining locations in each region. Watch a video of the announcement.  

Wheel the World’s deliverables include not only assessments, but also training through their online academy and online marketing through their highly targeted database as well as their social media channels.

Our TakeAway: This initiative was originally one of the four pilot programs that were featured at this year’s Summit in which three Florida DMO’s (Fort Lauderdale, Tampa, and The Palm Beaches) participated.  Following the expansion announcement, seven other destinations signed up.  This is another unique example of Visit Florida’s role as an industry thought leader—along with WtW’s growing reputation for excellence in accessibility site assessments. We hope to see other states follow Florida’s lead. Hey, New York and California, are you listening?