control of the television is provided. All other aspects of the fully accessible guest room are identical to a standard room, with the exception of certain furniture selection and placement to allow a greater turning radius

for wheelchairs and the use of wheelchairs as desk chairs. Also, closet doors are eliminated in fully accessible rooms to provide easy access to poles and hangers, and the closet rack is at a lower height.

Standard guest rooms. In the fall of 1983, Marriott reviewed its design specifications for standard guest rooms, and made two changes which enhance the use of these rooms by guests with certain handicaps. The width of the bathroom door was enlarged to 30 inches to accommodate the average wheelchair. A grab bar was added to the standard features of the bath area, to be installed vertically within the tub area on the shower head wall. This bar will be located between the shower head and outside edge of the tub to assist the user in movement, and to support both seated and standing positions.

These changes are being made in all hotels now in design stages which are scheduled for completion in late 1985 and beyond. The changes provide a large number of rooms at each new hotel which, as normally equipped, will be relatively accessible for handicapped guests, and could be temporarily

equipped for even greater accessibility.

Employee training.

Providing accessible facilities for handicapped

travelers obviously is more than a matter of design specifications or bricks and mortar. It is important that hotel employees be trained in how to best serve the handicapped traveler, including thorough familiarization with what services and facilities are available, and sensitivity to the traveler's

needs.

Each Marriott-operated hotel has written procedures outlining the

services and facilities available to the handicapped. These are discussed in the training of hotel employees, and adherence to these procedures is audited periodically by operations management. If there are any problems, guests may provide feedback to management on consumer survey forms located in each room, which are sent to our corporate headquarters and given quick response.

We believe that providing and maintaining accessible public facilities is a process of constant improvement. There is a much larger body of technical knowledge about accessibility than there was even five years ago, due to the efforts of organizations such as the National Center for a Barrier Free Environment. New equipment and methods continually are being developed and brought to the marketplace.

Recently, Marriott has worked with the AHMA and the National Center for a Barrier Free Environment to initiate a program for AHMA members in cooperation with AHMA's technical committee of executive engineers. This program will develop training materials for both engineering and operating management of the 8,500 hotels and motels across the nation, to better equip them to deal with accessibility problems and to encourage them to voluntarily adopt ANSI

standard A117.1.

We are well aware of the dimensions of the challenge to make travel easier for handicapped people. Accessibility is not just a problem for people with permanent disabilities. Those with temporary disabilities caused by illness or injury, and those who face diminishment of physical capabilities due to old age, also are affected by this issue. Together, these three segments involve nearly one-third of America's total population.

While there certainly are marketing aspects to the solution of this problem, we regard the question as one of accommodation rather than marketing. We believe significant progress has been made by the lodging industry toward providing greater accessibility for all people. This has been accomplished in good faith on a reasonable, voluntary basis.

With continued voluntary cooperation between the public and private sector, we believe these efforts to improve accessibility in the lodging industry will continue to be fruitful. Therefore, we see no need for related

regulation at the Federal level which could prove cumbersome and counter

productive.

TESTIMONY OF

DICK KNODT

PRESIDENT

AMERICAN SOCIETY OF TRAVEL AGENTS, INC.

(ASTA)

I am Dick Knodt, president of the American Society of Travel Agents, Inc. (ASTA). I am proud to have the opportunity to present this testimony before the House Subcommittee on Transportation, Commerce and Tourism on behalf of nearly 20,000 members of ASTA. In over 50 years of service to the consumer, ASTA has grown into the largest travel and tourism organization in the world. Since 1931, ASTA has been dedicated to safeguarding the rights of the travelling public and promoting strict standards of professional behavior for the travel industry.

We are testifying on behalf of the handicapped traveller as ASTA recognizes that for persons who have any type of serious physical or sensory handicap, travel can be a difficult and sometimes impossible experience. The lack of appropriate facilities and trained personnel can create hardships for the most determined person with a disability.

ASTA is aware, however, of the remarkable progress made by the travel and tourism industry to facilitate the needs of the handicapped traveller. In the quest for an evironment that is free from physical barriers, Congress has been instrumental in easing the mobility of the handicapped. Since 1968, a series of laws have been passed to assist the handicapped community which is now estimated to be over 35 million in the United States. These laws have not only promoted hiring and participation of the handicapped but made it mandatory that aircrafts, facilities and vehicles be accessible to the handicapped individual. Quite naturally, these strides would encourage travelling for this group of people, which has an estimated market potential of over $30 million annually.

Despite the advancement in the tourism and travel industry for the handicapped, ASTA recognizes the need to improve the quality and accessibility of travel for those with mobility problems.

Most

There is much needed to progress to the point of comfort for many handicapped travelers. Routine availability of wheelchairs, accessible restrooms on buses and trains and menus in braille are but a few of the issues ASTA encourages more progress in. definitely, consulting with a handicapped person in the primary stages of design in all aspects of the travel industry should be considered a matter of course for a more integrated perspective on the special needs of this group. The Society has called upon all components of the travel and tourism industry to be informed and trained to assist the handicapped traveller.

ASTA has pledged to assist travel agents and industry suppliers in the efforts to improve travel for the handicapped. Contributions to "ASTA Notes", with a circulation of 22,000, will be made to publicize promotional activities and issues for the handicapped. ASTA has adopted a pamphlet that addresses the concerns for a handicapped traveller and gives constructive hints for easing this pursuit.

As reciprocal members of the Society for the Advancement of Travel for the Handicapped (SATH), we support the objectives of that organization. In conjunction with SATH and the many other interested parties, ASTA requests that opportunities for the handicapped be a basic part of national tourism policy.

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