§ 59B-17 Operations – Service Requirements (Customers).
RCNY § 59
(a)Customer Complaints. A Base Owner will be responsible for handling customer complaints when directed by the Chairperson and will provide any information requested by the Chairperson regarding such complaints. 35 RCNY § 59B-17(a)Fine: $150Appearance NOT REQUIRED (b) No Required Ride-Sharing. A For-Hire Base Owner must not require that any prospective Passenger share a ride with another prospective Passenger. 35 RCNY § 59B-17(b)Base Fine: $50Appearance NOT REQUIRED (c) Provide Accessible Transportation. A Base Owner must provide transportation service to Persons with Disabilities.
(1)Requirements for Percentage of all Dispatched Trips Serviced by an Accessible Vehicle: (i) At least five (5) percent of a Base's total trips dispatched between July 1, 2018, and June 30, 2019 must be trips dispatched to and completed by an Accessible Vehicle.
(ii)At least ten (10) percent of a Base's total trips dispatched between July 1, 2019, and June 30, 2020 must be trips dispatched to and completed by an Accessible Vehicle.
(iii)At least fifteen (15) percent of a Base's total trips dispatched between July 1, 2020, and June 30, 2021 must be trips dispatched to and completed by an Accessible Vehicle.
(iv)At least twenty (20) percent of a Base's total trips dispatched between July 1, 2021, and June 30, 2022 must be trips dispatched to and completed by an Accessible Vehicle.
(v)Beginning July 1, 2022, and continuing each year thereafter, at least twenty-five (25) percent of a Base's total trips dispatched between the dates of July 1 and June 30 must be trips dispatched to and completed by an Accessible Vehicle.
(2)For purposes of paragraph (1) of this subdivision, Hail Trips performed by an Accessible Street Hail Livery affiliated with a Base will count toward the total number of trips dispatched by that Base. 35 RCNY § 59B-17(c)(1) Fine: $50 for each 100 trips by which the Base missed the percentage of trips it was required to dispatch to Accessible Vehicles in that calendar year.Example: If Base A dispatches 100,000 trips between July 1, 2018 and June 30, 2019, but only dispatches 2,500 trips to Accessible Vehicles, the base will have missed the 5% requirement by 2,500 trips and be subject to a $1,250 fine.If a Base fails to dispatch enough trips to Accessible Vehicles to meet at least half of its percentage requirement, the Commission may seek suspension of up to 30 days or revocation.Appearance REQUIRED (3) Evaluation by the Commission. Every year, beginning July 1, 2019, the Commission will review Base compliance levels, service levels, and any other information it deems relevant to determine if adjustments need to be made to the percentages set forth in paragraph (1) of this subdivision.
(4)Must Provide "Equivalent Service." (i) The Base Owner must provide "equivalent service" to persons with disabilities.
(i)A Street Hail Livery Base Owner must ensure that each affiliated Street Hail Livery is equipped to accept customer payment by credit and debit card.
(3)Response Time Requirement for Requests for Accessible Vehicles for Accessible Vehicle Dispatchers.
(5)Record Collection and Reporting Requirements for Accessible Vehicle Dispatcher. In addition to the trip records an Accessible Vehicle dispatcher must submit pursuant to its licensure as an FHV Base, an approved Accessible Vehicle dispatcher must collect and transmit to the Commission within one week of the end of each calendar month, in a format, layout, and procedure prescribed by the Commission, the following records for each request for an Accessible Vehicle the Accessible Vehicle dispatcher receives: (i) the Base License Number of the Base that sent the request to the Accessible Vehicle dispatcher, (ii) the date and time that the request was received by the Accessible Vehicle dispatcher, (iii) the manner in which the request was received (e.g., via phone call, smartphone app, website), (iv) an indicator as to whether each request resulted in a completed trip, (v) if the request was fulfilled, A. the TLC License number of the vehicle that fulfilled the request, the Base to which the vehicle is affiliated, and the driver who fulfilled the request B. the pickup and drop off locations of the trip C. the date and time the vehicle arrived at the pickup location, and D. the total passenger wait time, calculated pursuant to Paragraph (4) above, (vi) if the request was not fulfilled, A. the date, time, and location of the requested pickup B. the location of the requested drop off (if provided), and C. an indicator as to the reason the request was not fulfilled, such as passenger cancellation (including time of cancellation), passenger no-show, driver cancellation, or no vehicles available. Failure to timely provide trip records may result in termination of the Accessible Vehicle dispatcher's approval, immediately subjecting the Accessible Vehicle dispatcher to the requirements contained in 35 RCNY § 59B-17(c)(1), pro-rated for the duration of the compliance period.
(6)Fares Charged to Passengers. An Accessible Vehicle dispatcher and an associated Base cannot charge a passenger more for a trip request received from an associated Base than that associated Base would charge a passenger requesting a non-Accessible Vehicle for the same trip. Overcharging a passenger may result in an Accessible Vehicle dispatcher or an associated Base being immediately subject to the requirements contained in 35 RCNY § 59B-17(c)(1), pro-rated for the duration of the compliance period.
(7)Passenger Feedback. Each Accessible Vehicle dispatcher and associated Base must collect and transmit to the Commission within one week of the end of each calendar month, in a format, layout, and procedure prescribed by the Commission, all complaints and compliments the Base and Accessible Vehicle dispatcher received from passengers in the preceding calendar month concerning its provision of wheelchair accessible service, including all driver ratings, where applicable.
(8)Bases opting to associate with an approved Accessible Vehicle dispatcher must be able to accept requests from passengers for Accessible Vehicles in the same manner(s) in which they accept requests from passengers for non-Accessible Vehicles. Failure to accept requests from passengers for Accessible Vehicles in the same manner(s) in which a base accepts requests from passengers for non-Accessible Vehicles may result in the associated Base being immediately subject to the requirements contained in 35 RCNY § 59B-17(c)(1), pro-rated for the duration of the compliance period.
(9)In addition to submitting trip records pursuant to 35 RCNY § 59B-19, a Base opting to associate with an approved Accessible Vehicle dispatcher, and Accessible Vehicle dispatchers in their capacity as a Base which accepts trip requests, must submit to the Commission within one week of the end of each calendar month, in a format, layout, and procedure approved by the Commission, records containing the following information: (i) For each request for an Accessible Vehicle received by the Base: A. the date and time the Base received the request B. the date and time the Base forwarded the request to its Accessible Vehicle dispatcher, and (ii) For each request for a non-Accessible Vehicle that results in a completed trip A. the date and time that the request was received by the Base, B. an indicator corresponding to the trip record for the completed trip provided pursuant to 35 RCNY § 59B-19, (iii) All complaints and compliments received from passengers concerning its provision of wheelchair accessible service, including all driver ratings, where applicable. Failure to timely provide trip records may result in termination of the Accessible Vehicle dispatcher's approval, immediately subjecting the base to the requirements contained in 35 RCNY § 59B-17(c)(1), pro-rated for the duration of the compliance period.
(10)Good Standing of Associated Bases. An associated Base must remain in good standing with its Accessible Vehicle dispatcher. To remain in good standing with its Accessible Vehicle dispatcher, an associated Base must adhere to the terms of the agreement it entered into with its Accessible Vehicle dispatcher. Failure to remain in good standing with its Accessible Vehicle dispatcher may result in the associated Base being immediately subject to the requirements contained in 35 RCNY § 59B-17(c)(1), pro-rated for the duration of the compliance period, subject to the conditions of Paragraph (12) below.
(11)Evaluation by the Commission. Every year, beginning July 1, 2019, the Commission will review Base compliance levels, service levels, feedback received pursuant to Paragraph (7) of this subdivision, and any other information it deems relevant to determine if adjustments need to be made to the response time requirements set forth in paragraph (3) of this subdivision or any other requirement contained in this Subdivision (f). Any changes made to the provisions of 35 RCNY § 59B-17(f), resulting from an annual review performed pursuant to this Paragraph (11), will be subject to the City Administrative Procedure Act, Sections 1041 - 1047 of the Charter.
(12)Consequences of Termination of Approval. If the Commission terminates a Base's associated Accessible Vehicle dispatcher's approval, or if an Accessible Vehicle dispatcher terminates a Base's association, a Base associated with the Accessible Vehicle dispatcher must: (i) Associate with a different Accessible Vehicle dispatcher within thirty (30) days following Commission provided notification of the Accessible Vehicle dispatcher's approval termination, or (ii) Submit an application to be approved as an Accessible Vehicle dispatcher within thirty (30) days following the Commission provided notification of the Accessible Vehicle dispatcher's termination. If a Base that is no longer associated with an Accessible Vehicle dispatcher does not associate with a different approved Accessible Vehicle dispatcher or submit an application to be approved as an Accessible Vehicle dispatcher within thirty (30) days following notification of the termination, the Base may be subject to the requirements contained in 35 RCNY § 59B-17(c)(1) on the thirty-first (31st) day following the notification.
(13)Base Accessible Service Selection Date.
