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1. Capacity. Mini vans carry as many passengers as full

2. Accessibility. Minivans are wheelchair accessible. Houston Yellow Cab presently operates ten minivans with lifts for wheelchairs. However, the expense of installing a wheelchair lift, nearly $6,000 per van, makes it prohibitive to do so in every case. Lifts are also unnecessary in many cases, for the taxi drivers operating minivans are capable of lifting wheelchair users into the van in the same manner as they now lift wheelchair users into taxicab sedans. Thus, we do not expect any loss of quality of service for the disabled,

3.

Increased passenger space. Minivans provide more leg and head room for the passengers, thus increasing the comfort of disabled passengers,

4. Increase luggage space. Minivans provide more luggage space than taxicab sedans, enabling disabled travelers to travel with more luggage and still accomodate their wheelchairs.

5. Safety. In operation, minivans appear to have 30 percent fewer accidents than taxicab sedans. We believe this is due to better visibility for the driver and the increased vehicle stability resulting from the front wheel drive configuration.

6. Fuel economy. Minivans used by Houston Yellow Cab currently average 19 miles per gallon, compared to 15 miles per gallon for Gran Fury sedans. Assuming the average fleet mileage of Yellow Cab Service Corporation's four fleets, which is 100

million miles per year, this four mile per gallon difference would save approximately 1.4 million gallons of gasoline each year.

Houston

Mr. Chairman and members of the subcommitte, for these reasons we ask that you amend the bill before you today to ensure that minivans are treated as automobiles, and are not subject to the requirement that they be equipped with wheelchair lifts. Yellow Cab and the Yellow Cab Corporation are committed to providing accessible transportation for every disabled person that needs it. We believe that with a mix of standard and wheelchair accessible minivans, we can do this conveniently, safely, and efficiently. We would ask your help to make it possible.

Thank you for the opportunity to testify today, and I would be happy to answer any questions you may have.

TESTIMONY OF

ROBERT M. WERTH

PRESIDENT

DIAMOND TRANSPORTATION SERVICES, INC.

3025 MT. VERNON AVE. ALEXANDRIA, VA 22305

BEFORE THE

COMMITTEE

ON

PUBLIC WORKS AND TRANSPORTATION SUBCOMMITTEE ON SURFACE TRANSPORTATION

U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

concerning the

AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT OF 1989 H.R. 2273

SEPTEMBER 26, 1989

Good monring, Mr. Chairman and members of the committee.

My name is Robert M. Werth. I appear before you today as President

of Diamond Transportation Services, Inc. (DTS) located in Alexandria, Virginia. My comments today reflect the experiences of a private paratransit operator. A large majority of my firms business is contracting with local government for the provision of public and human service transportation for the disabled communities of Alexandria and Arlington, Virginia. I am currently the contract provider for DOT specialized

public transportation service that operates within the city of Alexandria. This service is for persons who cannot use regular transit buses because of disabilities. Taxicabs and wheelchair accessible vans serve the patron. The mission of our company is consitent with the goals and oujectives

of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1989 (ADA) -- to provide a transportation system that allows for full participation and indeperident living for the nations disabled persons. It is my hope that by giving detailed testimony concerning the DOT service, the committee can

develop a full understanding of the role paratransit can play in acheiving

the goals of ADA and how a private taxicab/paratransit company has been able to provide such a service.

page 2.

DOT: SPECIALIZED PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION SERVICE

Historically, the DOT service began following Alexandria's decession

to provide their own bus service called DASH. DASH is not lift-equipped. The City worked with a special task force formed by the Alexandria Commission on Disabled to develop a specialized public transportation service. This system is a demand responsive door to door service.

Both taxicab and accessible van service are offered for trips wholly within the City of Alexandria. This service runs seven days a week during the same hours that the DASH bus service operates.

Any person living in or visiting Alexandria who has a certified

disability which prevents him or her from using the regular transit bus may use the service. A physician's statement is required for certification.

If the rider is using another specialized transportation service, then the rider is encouraged to continue using that service. DOT is not available for group transportation requests or charter service.

DOT began with a two tier level of service. The first level was for

a bus stop to bus stop, or bus stop to Metro service. The price for this

service is the same price as the bus service, currently $.65. The second

level of service is the door to door service for $1.25 per trip.