The Traveling Wheelchair

Dear Readers,

As you all know I love to travel and am out & about in my van all the time. I never really gave much thought about how safe I was when traveling until I was seriously injured in an auto accident on May 18, 2008.

After my accident my State Representative Stephen Canessa and State Senator Marc Pacheco discovered there is NO specific law in the state of Massachusetts dealing with Wheelchair Transportation Safety. Wow - It must have been an oversight!

There is a state law for all citizens and even stricter laws for infants and children requiring them to be properly restrained in passenger vehicles but NONE for persons traveling in a wheelchair.  Lack of a law often leaves our most vulnerable citizens unprotected and at risk of injury or death if the motor vehicle they are traveling in is involved in a crash or stops short.

Representative Steve Canessa  filed  House 3785 and Senator Marc Pacheco filed  Senate 1948 : “An Act Relative to the Transportation of Individuals Seated in Wheelchairs”. You can read the language of the House and Senate Bills at:

House 3785 - http://www.mass.gov/legis/bills/house/186/ht03pdf/ht03785.pdf

Senate 1948 -  http://www.mass.gov/legis/bills/senate/186/st01/st01948.htm

• This Massachusetts Legislation requires wheelchair-seated passengers in any motor vehicle offering paratransit services transporting persons in wheelchairs to be forward-facing and secured with properly installed and maintained wheelchair tiedown and occupant restraint system (WTORS) that complies with Society of Automotive Engineers Recommended Practice – SAEJ2249
• It further requires any employee or volunteer who transports or aids in the transportation of a wheelchair-seated passenger will complete the training course offered by the Executive Office of Health and Human Services and/or the Executive Office of Transportation prior to operation of, or assisting in, a paratransit vehicle transporting persons in wheelchairs.

• Wheelchair tie downs secure the wheelchair in the vehicle which “achieve equivalency with people traveling seated in the vehicle seats that are fastened to the vehicle floor”; and the use of occupant restraint system (i.e. seat and shoulder safety belt) provide EQUAL protection for passengers traveling in wheelchairs.

You can read more about the importance of this legislation on the W/C Passenger Safety tab above on my website. I have 10 sections so just click on the section you wish to read.

is scheduled to be heard by

The Joint Committee on Transportation

 at the Massachusetts State House on

Tuesday, October 6 at 11 am

in Hearing Room B-1

I will be attending the hearing with family and friends. Dr. Lawrence W. Schneider, Director, University of Michigan’s RERC WTS (Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center on Wheelchair Transportation Safety)submitted written testimony regarding the importance of this legislation. The research data shows how serious the problem is and how much this legislation is needed. You can read Dr. Schneider’s expert testimony of strong support submitted October 5, 2009 by clicking on Dr. Lawrence W. Schneider written testimony of support for S.1948 ad H.3785.

Senators, Representatives and Advocates including The ARC of Massachusetts, Disability Policy Consortium and MANHR – Massachusetts Advocates for Nursing Home Reform  submitted written testimony in support of this needed legislation.

PLEASE support House 3785 and Senate 1948: “An Act relative to the transportation of individuals seated in wheelchairs”. You can write a letter of SUPPORT of this Legislation to the Chairs of the Joint Committee on Transportation: 

Sen. Steven Baddour, Chair
Joint Committee on Transportation
State House, Room 208
Boston, MA 02133
Email: Steven.Baddour@state.ma.us

Rep. Joseph Wagner, Chair
Joint Committee on Transportation
State House, Room 134
Boston, MA 02133
Email: Rep.JosephWagner@Hou.State.MA.US

Passage of this legislation in the state of Massachusetts is way overdue.

Thank You!

Kenny and Company