Washington DC Area Resource Guide for Activists with Disabilities
This section is an effort to assist activists coming to Washington DC who have disabilities and need information accessibility and transportation issues here, by a woman with a disability and activist living in the DC metropolitan area.
This page deals with transportation in the DC area
For more information on other issues of interest to people with disabilities coming to DC, also see:
Other resources (outside this site):
Transportation for People with Disabilities
I do not personally endorse any company listed on this web page.
Wheelchair and Scooter Rentals:
A company called e-car rents electric scooters in Washington DC, which is rare to find since most companies that rent wheelchairs do not rent the electric kind. Their web site claims the cost includes free delivery and pick up. Cost $60 per day or $140 per weekend. This is their web site: http://www.scooterforrent.com/
Oher companies in the DC area rent wheelchairs. A few are listed on this web page, although there are many more, particularly if you can get into Virginia. Zask Medical in Annandale rents wheelchairs for $30 per week or $45 per month. Others are up to 90 - 100 per month.
Riding the Subway System
The Metropolitan Transit Authority operates the subway, commonly called the Metro, which runs throughout the District and in nearby parts of Virginia and Maryland.
Fares: Metro has reduced fares for people with disabilities, but you cannot purchase them at the station. You have to go to a place that sells reduced fare cards, such as the Metro Center station, present ID proving you are disabled (a Medicare card might work), fill out an application, and then get a reduced fare card. This process may be time and energy consuming for people here on short trips. as it is for some people who live here, too, but for information on the reduced fares, go to this web page
Broken Elevators and Escalators: A Common Problem
The "Metro", as it is commonly called, is one of the world's most expensive subway systems, yet remains sadly lacking in accessibility for people with disabilities much of the time. Though, unlike some systems, Metro stops are equipped with elevators and escalators, much of the time either or both of these at many stops are broken down.
The problem this affects people with disabilities who use wheelchairs as well as many who do not.
Escalators at many Metro stations are very high. If an escalator is not working, at the same time an elevators is broken, persons with mobility or dizziness difficulties may have trouble entering or leaving that Metro station. While shuttles are supposed to be available at Metro stations while escalators are not working, in reality, they are often not there, or, if they are coming, the wait can be a very long time.
Elevators, at at least one Metro stop,every day, are usually not working. This creates major problems for wheelchair (w/c) users. If you use a w/c or scooter and are going to be using the Metro system, I strongly advise checking the new web site which lists escalators and elevators that are currently out of order before going to the Metro station. Despite that Metro does make announcements about broken elevators, it is hard to hear these announcements sometimes, and also you might already be on the train when they make the announcement. If you arrive at a station and find the elevator that would take you to the "mezzanine" level (the level where you go to put your fare card through and get out of the station, is broken, your only option (unless you can get out of the chair and carry it up an escalator, which most people cannot do, obviously), is to get back on the train and go to another station.
To find out about elevators and escalators out of service:
call Metro Mobility Link 202-962-1212
which has 24-hour recorded information on route changes and out of service elevators
Metro stations do not have ramps for entering the underground areas.
Your Rights Under the ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act):
If you are at a Metro station where the elevator is not working, by law, the Metro system, which is funded by the federal government and therefore subject to the Americans with Disabilities Act, must provide you with an alternative means of transportation.
At Metro stations, you are arriving underground. Should you leave the train, not knowing you are in a station with a broken elevator (as recently happened to me at the Mcpherson Square station near the White House), the employees at the station may inform you that you must get back on the train. This is Metro's policy of "accomodation", which will often force you to go out of your way to another metro station, where, supposedly a shuttle will be available to take you back to where you just came from. In fact, these shuttles are often not there, and the wait for them can take a very long time. It will also take you out of the way from where you were going.
Maps of the Metro System Help
This may be helpul if, due to broken elevators (and possibly also escalators), you are forced to go to another metro station, which may not be on your iternary.
So, though they are ostensibly complying with the ADA, they are also causing you wasted time and energy, which may lead to you being late or entirely missing an appointment you were headed for.
You can also plan your trip for both the subway system and the Metro buses, using the Ride Guide on this Metro web site:
Metro employees, when the elevators are broken, are not supposed to, according to their own rules, help you carry a wheelchair up the escalator even if you are able to walk. Personally, I was lucky to recently have an experience where an employee did help me up the escalator, though this was when I was feeling very ill and in obvious need to get out of the station and not back on a train. Most of the time, the employees will not do this as they are essentially risking their jobs if they do. The people working at the stations are, of course, not the people responsibile for the fact that the Metro system does not provide enough funding to keep its elevators working. Those people are in government offices.
Each Metro station has an information desk where you can also ask for directions and assistance. Each Metro car usually has a Metro system map located near the doors.
Multiple Elevators
Some metro stations have multiple floors, in which case you will need to use the elevator to go down to the area where you buy your ticket (Fare Card), and another elevator to get down to the actual train. At such stations, the likelihood of a broken elevator is probably greater. The McPherson Square startion, and the Farragut North Station, and the Faragutt West Station, near the White House, are all such stations. These are also the stations that are closest to the White House.
Capitol South, near the Capitol, is another such station, as are many others.
Inside the Metro Station:
As I recently learned, when beginning to use a wheelchair on a regular basis in DC, the situation for taking a wheelchair on the train is a bit complicated. Metro trains, particularly during rush hour on weekdays, are often packed full of people. Sadly, many people are not polite enough to follow the rules posted in the Metro stations and give people with disabilities and senior citizens first access onto the train. You may want to look at the digital signs inside the stations (if they are working that day), which tell you when the next train is going to arrive.
Boarding the Train:
Shortly before the train arrives, round lights on the floor of the station, near the boarding area, will begin to flash. That is a good time to get near to the edge of the boarding area, so you can be sure to get onto the train, as entering the train with a wheelchair takes much longer than simply walking onto it, and also, seats on Metro trains during certain times of day are full, and many people are left standing. For those of us with disabilities that make standing for long impossible, this is a problem. However, there are seats with signs right near the doors on each train that ask people to give priority to people with disabilities for those seats. Many people do not actually do this, and they cannot be forced to do so, but you can ask them to, and if they are decent human beings, hopefully they will give you a seat.
For the Deaf and Hard of Hearing
As mentioned above, there are lights on the floor of the platform that start to flash when the train is about to arrive. There are also signs in some metro stations (digital signs hanging from overhead) that will tell you the approximate wait time for the next train or will let you know the train is arriving now.
Bad Times to Ride Metro:
It is best to avoid the Metro, in my opinion, during early morning and late afternoon, and early evening hours, during weekdays in particular, and sometimes on the weekends at night, when they are often packed full of people, if you need to sit down. I have been on trains before, where despite my swaying from dizziness and crouching on the ground, nobody yielded their seat, and sometimes it can be difficult to ask a person to give you their seat if you do not feel like having to explain why you need it to them and your disability is not visually apparent at the time
But if you do need to ride the Metro when it is crowded, feel no remorse for asking for a seat as a disabled person. You have a right to what you need, and if people do not understand this fact, their ignorance is definitely their own problem.
Wheelchairs on the Trains:
When taking a wheelchair onto the Metro trains, you will find that there are specific areas in the front and back of most cars where extra space is available near a couple of seats. This is the place to take a wheelchair and if those seats are taken by people who do not have wheelchairs you can certainly ask them to move. Many of the trains have locks, on the floor of the train near these seats, where you can lock in your w/c, so it does not start to move while the train is moving. Sometimes the wheelchairs breaks, itself are not enough to prevent the chair from moving during the train ride.
If you are able to leave your wheelchair and sit in a seat on the train, this may be safer for you than sitting in the chair while the train is moving, depending on the nature of your disability. In this case, it is still the best to sit in the front or back of the train, as you can have room there for your wheelchair, whereas, on the rest of the train, there is really no space for a chair to go.
Metro also has guidelines on how people are supposed to use wheelchairs on the trains, which you can find here (edit)
Using the Metro Bus System: Getting Lift-Equipped Buses
The Metro Bus system goes throughout Washington DC and into some parts of Maryland and Virginia.
Metro Buses are often not equpped with wheelchair lifts (like most buses in this country, sadly).
However, you can order a bus with a wheelchair lift by calling this number, 202/962-1825
On-Call Service is available seven days a week on a first-come, first-served basis.
Registration is not required. Advanced scheduling is recommended.
Paratransit Service:
There is a program called Metro Access which provides door to door service for those who are not able to ride the buses at all. The application process for this program is lengthy, time consuming, and not really feasible for people who are only going to be in town for a brief period of time. But if you are interested, the information is here:
Alexandria, VA City Transportation:
Alexandria is just outside of D.C., and many people visiting DC for activist events may find housingin Alexandria. This section is to help with transportation inside Alexandria and from Alexandria into D.C.
In Alexandria, VA, a service called DOT provides para transit transportation. The application process for this is shorter than that of the Metro Access program. The DOT program is available to residents of Alexandria , VA only (officially), however, if you are in dire need of such a program during a visit to this area, you may wish to contact the DOT office for more information at 703-836-5222. Requires medical
form filled out by a doctor, and waiting period.
Alexandria's city bus program, DASH, has few lift-equipped buses, but to schedule a lift-equipped bus on a particular route, call l between 9:00 AM and 3:00 PM the day before travelling to schedule a lift-equipped bus on the route at the time requested. (703)370-7637
1-800-828-1120 TTY (Virginia Relay)
Alexandria has several taxi cab companies. . This company is easier to use than some because they ask for your phone number, of your location, but not the address. You will need to have the phone number for where you are when you call.
Yellow Cab of Alexandria: 703-549-2500
The Diamond Cab Company also runs through Alexandria, they usually ask for the address of your location and your destination: They do not have lift equipped cabs available immediately, but if you call they will refer you to a number where you can request one 703-549-6200
For more information on taxi companies, buses, and access issues for the entire DC Metropolitan area, see this web site of Potomac Knowledgeway:
