#563: 10-10-03 JUSTICE DEPARTMENT ANNOUNCES SETTLEMENT WITH CAR RENTAL COMPANIES TO ASSURE ACCESSIBLE TRANSPORTATION AT AIRPORTS

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 10, 2003
WWW.USDOJ.GOV

CRT
(202) 514-2008
TDD (202) 514-1888

JUSTICE DEPARTMENT ANNOUNCES SETTLEMENT WITH CAR RENTAL COMPANIES TO ASSURE ACCESSIBLE TRANSPORTATION AT AIRPORTS

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Justice Department today announced a settlement with ANC Rental Corporation regarding alleged disability rights violations. ANC Rental Corporation and its subsidiaries - Alamo Rent-A-Car LLC and National Car Rental System, Inc. - have agreed to provide accessible shuttle buses at airports across the country where the companies own the Alamo and National businesses.

The settlement agreement resolves several complaints filed by disabled travelers who use a wheelchair or scooter alleging that the companies did not provide accessible shuttle buses between the airport terminal and the rental lots.

“Today’s settlement will ensure that Alamo and National comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act,” said R. Alexander Acosta, Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights. “We are pleased that Alamo and National have agreed to provide accessible airport shuttle buses on a nationwide basis.”

According to the agreement, Alamo and National have agreed, among other things:

that every business owned by two companies at airport locations (excluding six locations owned by licensees) will have at least one accessible shuttle bus within sixty days;
that all larger shuttle bus vehicles (seating seventeen passengers or more) that Alamo and National purchase or lease will be accessible to individuals with disabilities;
to adopt policies that clarify the procedures that individuals who use wheelchairs should take to ensure that they receive accessible transportation between the airport terminals and the car rental lots. This will include a policy to provide equivalent service to individuals with disabilities, by providing curbside pickup and drop-off services, when an accessible shuttle bus vehicle is not available.

People interested in finding out more about the ADA or the agreement can call the Justice Department's toll-free ADA Information Line at (800) 514-0301 or (800) 514-0383 (TDD), or access its ADA website at www.ada.gov.

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