Guidance Questions and Answers Concerning 49 CFR Part 39, ADA Rules Concerning Passenger Vessels
INFORMATION/COMMUNICATIONS ISSUES
QUESTION: HOW IS IT DETERMINED WHAT KIND OF AUXILIARY AID OR SERVICE A PVO WILL PROVIDE TO A PASSENGER WITH A DISABILITY?
ANSWER:
*Under Part 39, a PVO has the responsibility to ensure effective communication with persons with disabilities, by use of auxiliary aids or services where needed. The ultimate decision about what means of communication to use rests with the PVO, as long as the method chosen results in effective communication.
*The type of auxiliary aid or service needed to ensure effective communication will vary in accordance to with the method of communication used by the passenger; the nature, length, and complexity of the communication involved; and the context in which the communication is taking place.
*The PVO should consult with passengers with disabilities whenever possible to determine what type of auxiliary aid or service is needed to ensure effective communication.
*To facilitate arrangements, a passenger should notify the PVO as soon as possible if he or she seeks a particular auxiliary aid or service (e.g., a document in Braille or large print, use of a sign language interpreter or a TTY). The PVO and the passenger should consult about these matters so that a decision about what auxiliary aid or service to provide can be made in a timely manner.
*Because locating a sign language interpreter to provide services to a passenger on some types of voyages can be time-consuming and difficult for PVOs, it is particularly important for passengers to make requests for this service as soon as possible,
QUESTION: WHAT ADVANCE NOTICE CAN A PVO REQUIRE IN ORDER TO PROVIDE A PARTICULAR AUXILIARY AID OR SERVICE?
ANSWER:
*A PVO may request that a passenger provide reasonable advance notice to obtain a particular auxiliary aid or service that the passenger wants. The purpose of the advance notice is to allow the PVO adequate time to consult with the passenger concerning the request and to make arrangements for the particular aid or service.
*The amount of advance notice the PVO should request is not specifically stated in the rule. The 72-hour time period stated in section 39.37(b) with groups of 10 or more persons with disabilities traveling together does not apply to requests for particular auxiliary aids and services. A PVO should ask for a reasonable amount of advance notice, meaning enough to determine what aid or service is most appropriate and to make sure that the aid or service is provided in a timely fashion.
*Where the aid or service requested involves an additional person traveling on a cruise ship (e.g., a sign language interpreter), additional travel and security requirements (e.g., Transportation Security Administration rules) may need to be taken into account in determining the amount of advance notice that is needed in such a situation.
*The Department urges passengers who request specific auxiliary aids and services to contact the PVO with their requests as soon as possible (e.g., at the time of reservation for a cruise). This will help the PVO arrange for effective communication with the passenger.
*If sufficient advance notice is not provided, preventing a requested aid or service from being made available in a timely manner or at all, the PVO should still make its best effort to ensure that effective communication is provided.
QUESTION: WHAT INFORMATION ARE PVOs RESPONSIBLE FOR PROVIDING TO PASSENGERS WITH DISABILITIES CONCERNING ACCESSIBILITY MATTERS?
ANSWER:
*Before scheduling a trip or booking a cruise, passengers with disabilities should be able to know what barriers they may encounter. The accessibility of vessels and off-vessel activities are likely to be important factors in passengers’ decisions about whether to take a particular trip.
*PVOs are expected to know conditions on board their own vessels. For example, if a person with a disability asks about the dimensions or features of a cabin, whether there is accessible vertical access between the deck where his or her cabin would be located and a restaurant or theater, how assistance in boarding will be provided, or what portions or facilities of the vessel may not be accessible to a wheelchair user, the PVO should be able to provide this information readily.
*If a PVO itself provides a shore excursion or activity, it is expected to know and provide information about accessibility related to that excursion or activity.
*If, as more commonly is the case, the PVO advertises and/or sells a shore excursion or activity provided by a third party, the PVO is expected to know and make available, upon request, basic information about accessibility related to that excursion or activity. For example, if there is an excursion involving a tour bus, the PVO is expected to be able to inform a passenger using a wheelchair whether the bus is accessible (e.g., is equipped with a lift and a securement area).
*However, a PVO may well not know whether destinations on a shore excursion are accessible (e.g., whether a foreign tourist attraction or restaurant at which a tour bus is stopping makes adequate accommodations for passengers with disabilities). While it is not expected that PVOs have all this information readily available, PVOs should make their best efforts to inquire on behalf of passengers who ask about such accommodations.
*PVOs should inform passengers with disabilities, especially those with mobility impairments, about ports of call on a trip where ship-to-shore transfers are made via tenders (i.e., smaller boats that shuttle passengers between ship and shore). This is because a transfer between the vessel and the tender is likely to be problematic for wheelchair users and other persons with significant mobility impairments.
*Generally, PVOs should be a better position than individuals with disabilities to obtain information about such matters as the accessibility of ports and the applicability of quarantine regulations to service animals. While PVOs can recommend resources to passengers to learn information about these matters, this does not discharge PVOs’ duties to passengers with disabilities. Saying to a passenger “Go look it up yourself on the internet” is not an adequate response to a passenger’s accessibility question.
*For example, suppose a passenger asks about quarantine regulations at a foreign port. When the PVO knows this information (e.g., for a frequently-visited or major port at which the vessel will call), the PVO should provide the information to the passenger at the time of the passenger’s request. The PVO may not know up-to-date quarantine regulations at every port, but can make a good faith attempt to learn requested information in response to the passenger’s request, in addition to suggesting information sources that the passenger could attempt to access. In any event, the PVO would not be responsible for the application of quarantine requirements at a foreign port that limited the passenger’s ability to bring his or her service animal ashore.
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