Notice of Proposed Rulemaking - Ensuring Safe Accommodations for Air Travelers with Disabilities Using Wheelchairs (PDF Version)

This is the PDF version of the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking.

The U.S. Department of Transportation is proposing to strengthen its rule implementing the Air Carrier Access Act (ACAA) to ensure passengers who use wheelchairs can travel safely and with dignity. The proposed rule would require that airlines do better in accommodating passengers with disabilities by setting new standards for prompt, safe, and dignified assistance, mandating enhanced training for airline employees and contractors who physically assist passengers with disabilities and handle passengers’ wheelchairs, and outlining actions that airlines must take to protect passengers when a wheelchair is damaged during transport. The proposed rule also clarifies that damaging or delaying the return of a wheelchair is an automatic violation of the ACAA. Comments on the NPRM must be received within 60 days of the date it is published in the Federal Register. Comments can be filed on www.regulations.gov, docket number DOT-OST-2022-0144.