88-663: The Chester Transportation Center is a SEPTA bus and train station in Chester, Pennsylvania . The outside portion of the ground level serves SEPTA City Transit Division Route 37, and Suburban Transit Division Routes 109, 113, 114, 117, 118, and 119. Above the building of the transportation center is the train station. The tracks run over the building. The station is served by the Wilmington/Newark Line . The line offers southbound service to Wilmington and Newark, Delaware and northbound service to Philadelphia . This station
176-510: A balancing test between the cost of the proposed alteration and the wherewithal of the business and/or owners of the business. Thus, what might be "readily achievable" for a sophisticated and financially capable corporation might not be readily achievable for a small or local business. There are exceptions to this title; many private clubs and religious organizations may not be bound by Title III. With regard to historic properties (those properties that are listed or that are eligible for listing in
264-464: A " covered entity " shall not discriminate against "a qualified individual with a disability". This applies to job application procedures, hiring, advancement and discharge of employees, job training, and other terms, conditions, and privileges of employment. "Covered entities" include employers with 15 or more employees, as well as employment agencies , labor organizations , and joint labor-management committees. There are strict limitations on when
352-736: A citywide system of bus , trolley , and trackless trolley routes, the Market–Frankford Line (subway-elevated rail), the Broad Street Line (subway), and the Delaware River Bridge Line (subway-elevated rail to City Hall, Camden, NJ) which became SEPTA's City Transit Division. The PTC had been created in 1940 with the merger of the Philadelphia Rapid Transit Company (formed in 1902), and a group of smaller, then-independent transit companies operating within
440-527: A covered entity can ask job applicants or employees disability-related questions or require them to undergo medical examination, and all medical information must be kept confidential. Prohibited discrimination may include, among other things, firing or refusing to hire someone based on a real or perceived disability, segregation, and harassment based on a disability. Covered entities are also required to provide reasonable accommodations to job applicants and employees with disabilities. A reasonable accommodation
528-553: A disability is excluded, denied services, segregated or otherwise treated differently than other individuals because of the absence of auxiliary aids and services, unless the public accommodation can demonstrate that taking those steps would fundamentally alter the nature of the goods, services, facilities, privileges, advantages, or accommodations being offered or would result in an undue burden, i.e., significant difficulty or expense." The term "auxiliary aids and services" includes: Captions are considered one type of auxiliary aid. Since
616-655: A disability. In 2008, the United States House Committee on Education and Labor stated that the amendment "makes it absolutely clear that the ADA is intended to provide broad coverage to protect anyone who faces discrimination on the basis of disability." Thus the ADAAA led to broader coverage of impaired employees. In October 2019, the Supreme Court declined to resolve a circuit split as to whether websites are covered by
704-482: A door-to-door ridesharing service through advance reservations for senior citizens age 65 or older in the city of Philadelphia for travel within the city and to points within 3 miles (4.8 km) of the city's borders. The ADA Paratransit Service provides door-to-door service through advance reservations for people with disabilities in accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), allowing for travel across
792-640: A future alternate to New York via the West Trenton Line and NJT. Another plan offers a connection for travel to Baltimore and Washington, D.C. via MARC, involving extensions of the SEPTA Wilmington/Newark Line from Newark, Delaware, an extension of MARC's Penn service from Perryville, Maryland , or both. CCT Connect is a paratransit service from SEPTA that offers a Shared-Ride Program for senior citizens and ADA Paratransit Service for people with disabilities. The Shared-Ride Program provides
880-537: A history of having such an impairment, or being regarded as having such an impairment. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) was charged with interpreting the 1990 law with regard to discrimination in employment. The EEOC developed regulations limiting an individual's impairment to one that "severely or significantly restricts" a major life activity. The ADAAA directed the EEOC to amend its regulations and replace "severely or significantly" with "substantially limits",
968-592: A list of conditions that should easily be concluded to be disabilities: amputation , attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), autism , bipolar disorder , blindness , cancer , cerebral palsy , deafness , diabetes , epilepsy , HIV/AIDS , intellectual disability , major depressive disorder , mobility impairments requiring a wheelchair, multiple sclerosis , muscular dystrophy , obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD), post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and schizophrenia . Other mental or physical health conditions also may be disabilities, depending on what
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#17328516405301056-644: A more lenient standard. On September 25, 2008, President George W. Bush signed the ADA Amendments Act of 2008 (ADAAA) into law. The amendment broadened the definition of "disability", thereby extending the ADA's protections to a greater number of people. The ADAAA also added to the ADA examples of "major life activities" including, but not limited to, "caring for oneself, performing manual tasks, seeing, hearing, eating, sleeping, walking, standing, lifting, bending, speaking, breathing, learning, reading, concentrating, thinking, communicating, and working" as well as
1144-594: A nearly five-year suspension. Until June 2002, five SEPTA routes were operated with trackless trolleys, using AM General vehicles built in 1978–79. Routes 29 , 59 , 66 , 75 and 79 used trackless trolleys, but were converted to diesel buses for an indefinite period starting in 2002 (routes 59, 66, 75) and 2003 (routes 29, 79). The aging AM General trackless trolleys were retired and in February 2006, SEPTA placed an order for 38 new low-floor trackless trolleys from New Flyer Industries , enough for routes 59, 66 and 75, and
1232-523: A report, Towards Independence, in which the Council examined incentives and disincentives in federal laws towards increasing the independence and full integration of people with disabilities into U.S. society. Among the disincentives to independence the Council identified was the existence of large remaining gaps in civil rights coverage for people with disabilities in the United States. A principal conclusion of
1320-422: A restaurant. People with disabilities cannot be treated as "less than" other customers. However, if a business normally charges for damages caused by the person to property, damage caused by a service animal can also require compensation. The ADA provides explicit coverage for auxiliary aids. ADA says that "a public accommodation shall take those steps that may be necessary to ensure that no individual with
1408-1126: A subsidiary of SEPTA) to Frontier Division in November 1983. Krapf Transit operates one bus line under contract to SEPTA in Chester County: Route 204 between Paoli Regional Rail Station and Eagleview. This route is operated from Krapf's own garage, located in West Chester, Pennsylvania . Krapf has operated three other bus routes for SEPTA in the past. Route 202 (West Chester to Wilmington), Route 207 (The Whiteland WHIRL) and Route 208 (Strafford Train Station to Chesterbrook) are no longer operating. SEPTA contracted bus operations before in Chester County. SEPTA and Reeder's Inc. joined forces in 1977 to operate three bus routes out of West Chester. These routes were Route 120 (West Chester to Coatesville), Route 121 (West Chester to Paoli), and Route 122 (West Chester to Oxford). Bus service between West Chester and Coatesville
1496-413: Is a change in the way things are typically done that the person needs because of a disability, and can include, among other things, special equipment that allows the person to perform the job, scheduling changes, and changes to the way work assignments are chosen or communicated. An employer is not required to provide an accommodation that would involve undue hardship (excessive difficulty or expense), and
1584-685: Is a member of the Northeast Corridor Commission , a federal commission on Northeast Corridor rail service. In 2020, annual ridership was 223.5 million individual rides. 17.1 million were rides on SEPTA's suburban network. 26.3 million were rides on SEPTA's "regional rail" network. 180.1 million were rides on SEPTA's "city transit" network. Ridership had decreased 13% from 2014 to 2019 due to many factors. Some explanations mentioned by SEPTA for this decrease are "increased competition, structural changes in ridership patterns, and moderate gas prices." The 24% decrease in ridership from 2019 to 2020
1672-402: Is a regional public transportation authority that operates bus , rapid transit , commuter rail , light rail , and electric trolleybus services for nearly four million people throughout five counties in and around Philadelphia , Pennsylvania . It also manages projects that maintain, replace, and expand its infrastructure, facilities, and vehicles. SEPTA is the major transit provider for
1760-564: Is charged with enforcing this provision. Under Title III, no individual may be discriminated against on the basis of disability with regards to the full and equal enjoyment of the goods, services, facilities, or accommodations of any place of public accommodation by any person who owns, leases, or operates a place of public accommodation. Public accommodations include most places of lodging (such as inns and hotels), recreation, transportation, education, and dining, along with stores, care providers, and places of public displays. Under Title III of
1848-744: Is located at 6th and Welsh Streets. Chester station was built by the Pennsylvania Railroad in 1903. While in the 1940s Chester was a common intermediate stop for services between New York and Washington, by the 1970s this was reduced to just one daily train; the station was also served by Amtrak's Chesapeake , which stopped both ways between Philadelphia and Washington during its existence from 1978 through 1983. All long-distance services have since stopped calling at Chester. PRR/PC/Conrail local trains to Marcus Hook/Wilmington/Newark continued until SEPTA took them over in 1983. Chester has two low-level side platforms with walkways connecting passengers to
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#17328516405301936-784: Is prohibited if it is intended to interfere. The ADA has roots in Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 . The law began in the Virginia House of Delegates in 1985 as the Virginians with Disabilities Act—supported by Warren G. Stambaugh —which was passed by the state Virginia . It is the first iteration of the Americans with Disabilities Act. In 1986, the National Council on Disability (NCD), an independent federal agency, issued
2024-545: Is provided by other agencies: the PATCO Speedline from Camden County, New Jersey is run by the Delaware River Port Authority , a bi-state agency; NJ Transit operates many bus lines and a commuter rail line to Philadelphia's Center City ; and DART First State runs feeder bus lines to SEPTA stations in the state of Delaware . SEPTA has the seventh-largest U.S. rapid transit system by ridership, and
2112-404: Is reported to have "inconvenienced" several senators and to have pushed them to approve the act. While there are those who do not attribute much overall importance to this action, the "Capitol Crawl" of 1990 is seen by some present-day disability activists in the United States as a central act for encouraging the ADA into law. Senator Tom Harkin ( D - IA ) authored what became the final bill and
2200-760: Is sometimes referred to as the Red Arrow Division. On March 1, 1976, SEPTA acquired the transit operations of Schuylkill Valley Lines, known today as the Frontier Division . Meanwhile, SEPTA gradually began to take over the Pennsylvania Railroad and Reading Company commuter trains. SEPTA primarily sought to consolidate the formerly-competing services, leading to severe cutbacks in the mid-1980s. Subsequent proposals have since been made to restore service to Allentown , Bethlehem , West Chester , and Newtown , with support from commuters, local officials, and pro-train advocates. SEPTA's planning department focused on
2288-784: Is the descendant of the Philadelphia Transportation Company . Aside from the two heavy rail lines, the City Transit Division has eight operating depots in this division: five of these depots only operate buses, one is a mixed bus/trackless trolley depot, one is a mixed bus/streetcar depot and one is a streetcar-only facility. The Victory District operates suburban bus and trolley or light rail routes that are based at 69th Street Transportation Center in Upper Darby in Delaware County . Its light rail routes comprise
2376-615: Is the descendant of the six electrified commuter lines of the Reading Company (RDG), the six electrified commuter lines of the Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR, later Penn Central: PC), and the new airport line constructed by the City of Philadelphia between 1974 and 1984. With the construction and opening of the Center City Commuter Connection Tunnel in 1984, lines were paired such that a former Pennsylvania Railroad line
2464-499: Is the only U.S. transit authority that operates all five major types of terrestrial transit vehicles: regional commuter rail trains , rapid transit subway and elevated trains , light rail trolleys , trolleybuses , and motorbuses . This title was shared with Boston 's Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority , which also ran ferryboat service, until trolleybuses in Greater Boston were officially discontinued in 2023. SEPTA
2552-553: The Civil Rights Act of 1964 , which made discrimination based on race , religion , sex , national origin , and other characteristics illegal, and later sexual orientation and gender identity . In addition, unlike the Civil Rights Act, the ADA also requires covered employers to provide reasonable accommodations to employees with disabilities, and imposes accessibility requirements on public accommodations . In 1986,
2640-522: The Lansdale/Doylestown , Paoli/Thorndale , and Trenton lines each receiving over 7,000 riders per day. Most of the cars used on the lines were built between 1976 and 2013. After building delays, the first Silverliner V cars were introduced into service on October 29, 2010. These cars represent the first new electric multiple units purchased for the Regional Rail system since the completion of
2728-548: The Media–Sharon Hill Line ) as the "SEPTA Metro", in order to make the system easier to navigate. Under this proposal, new maps, station signage, and line designations would be created. Under the proposed nomenclature, trunk lines would receive a letter and a color, with services having a numeric suffix and service name to make wayfinding easier. Services on the current Market–Frankford Line, for instance, would be called "the L" and colored blue, with local service becoming
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2816-574: The National Council on Disability had recommended the enactment of an Americans with Disabilities Act and drafted the first version of the bill which was introduced in the House and Senate in 1988. A broad bipartisan coalition of legislators supported the ADA, while the bill was opposed by business interests (who argued the bill imposed costs on business) and conservative evangelicals (who opposed protection for individuals with HIV ). The final version of
2904-657: The National Register of Historic Places , or properties designated as historic under state or local law), those facilities must still comply with the provisions of Title III of the ADA to the "maximum extent feasible" but if following the usual standards would "threaten to destroy the historic significance of a feature of the building" then alternative standards may be used. Under 2010 revisions of Department of Justice regulations, newly constructed or altered swimming pools, wading pools, and spas must have an accessible means of entrance and exit to pools for disabled people. However,
2992-762: The Norristown High Speed Line (Route 100) that runs from 69th Street Transportation Center to Norristown Transportation Center and the Media–Sharon Hill Line (Routes 101 and 102). This district is the descendant of the Philadelphia Suburban Transportation Company, also known as the Red Arrow Lines. Some residents of the Victory District operating area still refer to this district as the "Red Arrow Division". The Frontier District operates suburban bus routes that are based at
3080-595: The Railroad Division . Like New York City 's Second Avenue Subway , the original proposal for the Roosevelt Boulevard Subway dates back to 1913, but construction has remained elusive. Instead, after completing the Market–Frankford Line in and around the city stagnated until the early 2000s. On September 30, 1968, SEPTA acquired the Philadelphia Transportation Company (PTC), which operated
3168-563: The Schuylkill Valley Metro , a "cross-county metro" that would re-establish service to Phoenixville , Pottstown , and Reading without requiring the rider to go into Philadelphia. However, ridership projections were dubious, and the Federal Railroad Administration refused to fund the project. Many derelict lines under SEPTA ownership have been converted to rail trails, postponing any restoration proposals for
3256-450: The "L1 Market–Frankford Local". SEPTA budgeted $ 40 million for the rebranding in June 2023. SEPTA upgraded its website in late 2023 in advance of the planned rollout of SEPTA Metro in 2024. In 2024, general manager Leslie Richards resigned. At its founding in 1968, the board had 11 members. In 1991 the state legislature added four additional members, giving themselves more influence on
3344-696: The 120 Silverliner V cars in the SEPTA regional rail fleet. SEPTA announced that it would take "the rest of the summer" to repair and would reduce the system's capacity by as much as 50%. In addition to regular commuter rail service, the loss of system capacity was also expected to cause transportation issues for the Democratic National Convention being held in Philadelphia on the week of July 25, 2016. SEPTA has three major operating divisions: City Transit, Suburban, and Regional Rail. These divisions reflect
3432-587: The ADA is a "failure to remove" architectural barriers in existing facilities. See 42 U.S.C. § 12182(b)(2)(A)(iv) . This means that even facilities that have not been modified or altered in any way after the ADA was passed still have obligations. The standard is whether "removing barriers" (typically defined as bringing a condition into compliance with the ADAAG) is "readily achievable", defined as "...easily accomplished without much difficulty or expense". The statutory definition of "readily achievable" calls for
3520-534: The ADA labeled religious institutions "public accommodations" and thus would have required churches to make costly structural changes to ensure access for all. The cost argument advanced by ACSI and others prevailed in keeping religious institutions from being labeled as "public accommodations". Church groups such as the National Association of Evangelicals testified against the ADA's Title I employment provisions on grounds of religious liberty. The NAE believed
3608-584: The ADA, all new construction (construction, modification or alterations) after the effective date of the ADA (approximately July 1992) must be fully compliant with the Americans With Disabilities Act Accessibility Guidelines (ADAAG) found in the Code of Federal Regulations at 28 C.F.R., Part 36, Appendix A . Title III also has applications to existing facilities. One of the definitions of "discrimination" under Title III of
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3696-502: The Americans with Disabilities Act was "an expensive headache to millions" that would not necessarily improve the lives of people with disabilities. Shortly before the act was passed, disability rights activists with physical disabilities coalesced in front of the Capitol Building , shed their crutches, wheelchairs , powerchairs and other assistive devices , and immediately proceeded to crawl and pull their bodies up all 100 of
3784-599: The Broad Street Line to the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard . As of December 2017 , SEPTA had completed an Environmental Impact Statement to extend the Norristown High Speed Line to the King of Prussia area. In September 2021, SEPTA proposed rebranding their rail transit services, the Market–Frankford Line , Broad Street Line, Subway–Surface trolley lines , Norristown High Speed Line , Route 15 trolley, and
3872-498: The Capitol's front steps, without warning. As the activists did so, many of them chanted "ADA now", and "Vote, Now". Some activists who remained at the bottom of the steps held signs and yelled words of encouragement at the "Capitol Crawlers". Jennifer Keelan, a second grader with cerebral palsy , was videotaped as she pulled herself up the steps, using mostly her hands and arms, saying "I'll take all night if I have to." This direct action
3960-725: The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to adopt rules requiring closed captioning of most television programming. The FCC's rules on closed captioning became effective January 1, 1998. Title IV of the ADA amended the Communications Act of 1934 primarily by adding section 47 U.S.C. § 225 . This section requires that all telecommunications companies in the U.S. take steps to ensure functionally equivalent services for consumers with disabilities, notably those who are deaf or hard of hearing and those with speech impairments. When Title IV took effect in
4048-579: The Internet by consumers who use broadband connections. Some are Video Relay Service (VRS) calls, while others are text calls. In either variation, communication assistants translate between the signed or typed words of a consumer and the spoken words of others. In 2006, according to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), VRS calls averaged two million minutes a month. Title V includes technical provisions. It discusses, for example,
4136-801: The Norristown Transportation Center in Montgomery County and bus lines that serve eastern Bucks County. This district is the descendant of the Schuylkill Valley Lines in the Norristown area and the Trenton-Philadelphia Coach Lines in eastern Bucks County. SEPTA took over Schuylkill Valley Lines operations on March 1, 1976. SEPTA turned over the Bucks County routes (formerly Trenton-Philadelphia Coach Line Routes,
4224-676: The Pennsylvania Railroad merged with the New York Central railroad to become Penn Central , only to file for bankruptcy on June 21, 1970. Penn Central continued to operate in bankruptcy until 1976, when Conrail took over its assets along with those of several other bankrupt railroads, including the Reading Company. Conrail operated commuter services under contract to SEPTA until January 1, 1983, when SEPTA took over operations and acquired track, rolling stock, and other assets to form
4312-814: The Route 120 was strong it continued to operate under the operations of Reeder's Inc. even after SEPTA pulled the funding source. Krapf purchased the Reeder's operation in 1992 and designated the remaining (West Chester to Coatesville) bus route as Krapf Transit "Route A". Route 205 (Paoli Station to Chesterbrook) was formerly operated by Krapf until late 2019, when it was merged into SEPTA's own Route 206 (Paoli Station to Great Valley). The Railroad Division operates 13 commuter railroad routes that begin in Center City Philadelphia and radiate outwards, terminating in intra-city, suburban and out-of-state locations. This division
4400-501: The SEPTA service area within 3 ⁄ 4 mile (1.2 km) of fixed-route transit service when such service operates. CCT Connect is operated by third-party contractors for SEPTA. Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 or ADA ( 42 U.S.C. § 12101 ) is a civil rights law that prohibits discrimination based on disability . It affords similar protections against discrimination to Americans with disabilities as
4488-509: The Silverliner IV order in 1976 and the first such purchase to be made by SEPTA. As of March 19, 2013, all Silverliner V cars are in service and make up almost one-third of the current 400 car Regional Rail fleet, which are replacing the older, aging fleet. In July 2016, a serious structural flaw, including cracks in a weight-bearing beam on a train car's undercarriage, was discovered during an emergency inspection to exist in more than 95% of
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#17328516405304576-517: The United States Congress have carefully crafted this Act. We've all been determined to ensure that it gives flexibility, particularly in terms of the timetable of implementation; and we've been committed to containing the costs that may be incurred.... Let the shameful wall of exclusion finally come tumbling down. The ADA defines a covered disability as a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities,
4664-528: The animal is a direct threat to someone's health and safety. Allergies and fear of animals are not considered to be such a threat. Businesses that prepare or serve food must allow service animals and their owners on the premises even if state or local health laws otherwise prohibit animals. Businesses that prepare or serve food are not required to provide care, food, a relief area for service animals. Extra fees for service animals are forbidden. They cannot be discriminated against, such as by isolation from people at
4752-417: The animal is a service animal and ask what tasks it is trained to perform, but are not allowed to ask the service animal to perform the task nor ask for an animal ID. They cannot ask what the person's disabilities are. A person with a disability cannot be removed from the premises unless one of two things happen: the animal is out of control and its owner cannot control it (e.g., a dog barking uncontrollably), or
4840-432: The bill was signed into law on July 26, 1990, by President George H. W. Bush . It was later amended in 2008 and signed by President George W. Bush with changes effective as of January 1, 2009. Conditions classed as disabilities under the ADA include both mental and physical conditions. A condition does not need to be severe or permanent to be a disability. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission regulations provide
4928-685: The board. SEPTA is governed by a 15-member board of directors: The members of the SEPTA Board as of March 2023 are: The day-to-day operations of SEPTA are handled by the general manager , who is appointed and hired by the board of directors. The general manager is assisted by nine department heads called assistant general managers. The present general manager is Leslie Richards . Past general managers include Jeffrey Knueppel, Joseph Casey, Faye L. M. Moore, Joseph T. Mack, John "Jack" Leary, Louis Gambaccini , and David L. Gunn . Past acting general managers include James Kilcur and Bill Stead. SEPTA
5016-857: The case of Board of Trustees of the University of Alabama v. Garrett as violating the sovereign immunity rights of the several states as specified by the Eleventh Amendment to the United States Constitution . The Court determined that state employees cannot sue their employer for violating ADA rules. State employees can, however, file complaints at the Department of Justice or the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission , who can sue on their behalf. Title II prohibits disability discrimination by all public entities at
5104-596: The city and its environs. On January 30, 1970, SEPTA acquired the Philadelphia Suburban Transportation Company, also known as the Red Arrow Lines, which included the Philadelphia and Western Railroad (P&W) route now called the Norristown High Speed Line , the Media–Sharon Hill Line (Routes 101 and 102), and several suburban bus routes in Delaware County. Today, this is known as the Victory Division , though it
5192-410: The city of Philadelphia and four surrounding counties within the Philadelphia metropolitan area: Delaware , Montgomery , Bucks , and Chester . It is a state-created authority, with the majority of its board appointed by the five counties it serves. While several SEPTA commuter rail lines terminate in the nearby states of Delaware and New Jersey , additional service to Philadelphia from those states
5280-427: The commuter rail services formerly operated by Conrail under contract and reorganized them as Regional Rail. This division operates 13 lines serving more than 150 stations covering most of the five-county southeastern Pennsylvania region. It also runs trains to Wilmington and Newark in Delaware and Trenton and West Trenton in New Jersey . Daily ridership on the regional rail network averaged 58,713 in 2023, with
5368-479: The definition of "disability" in order to prevent abuse of the statute's purpose. Additionally, sexual orientation is no longer considered a disorder and is also excluded from the definition of "disability". However, in 2022, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit stated that the ADA covers individuals with gender dysphoria , which may aid transgender people in accessing legal protections they otherwise may be unable to. The ADA states that
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#17328516405305456-508: The different transit and railroad operations that SEPTA has assumed. SEPTA also offers CCT Connect paratransit service. The City Transit Division operates routes mostly within Philadelphia , including buses , subway–surface trolleys , one surface trolley line , the Market–Frankford Line , and the Broad Street Line . SEPTA City Transit Division surface routes include bus and trackless trolley lines. Some city division routes extend into Delaware, Montgomery, and Bucks counties. This division
5544-406: The early 1990s, it led to the installation of public teletypewriter (TTY) machines and other TDD ( telecommunications devices for the deaf ). Title IV also led to the creation, in all 50 states and the District of Columbia, of what was then called dual-party relay services and now are known as Telecommunications Relay Services (TRS), such as STS relay . Today, many TRS-mediated calls are made over
5632-649: The entity. Title II applies to public transportation provided by public entities through regulations by the U.S. Department of Transportation . It includes the National Railroad Passenger Corporation (Amtrak), along with all other commuter authorities. This section requires the provision of paratransit services by public entities that provide fixed-route services. ADA also sets minimum requirements for space layout in order to facilitate wheelchair securement on public transport. Title II also applies to all state and local public housing, housing assistance, and housing referrals. The Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity
5720-724: The fact that nothing in the ADA amends, overrides or cancels anything in Section 504 . Additionally, Title V includes an anti-retaliation or coercion provision. The Technical Assistance Manual for the ADA explains this provision: III-3.6000 Retaliation or coercion. Individuals who exercise their rights under the ADA, or assist others in exercising their rights, are protected from retaliation. The prohibition against retaliation or coercion applies broadly to any individual or entity that seeks to prevent an individual from exercising his or her rights or to retaliate against him or her for having exercised those rights ... Any form of retaliation or coercion, including threats, intimidation, or interference,
5808-406: The fifth-largest overall transit system in the U.S. with about 302 million annual unlinked trips as of fiscal year 2018. It controls 290 active stations, over 450 miles (720 km) of track, 2,350 revenue vehicles, and 196 routes. It also oversees shared-ride services in Philadelphia and ADA services across the region, which are operated by third-party contractors, Amtrak, and NJ Transit. SEPTA
5896-523: The foreseeable future. Proposals have also been made for increased service on existing lines, including later evenings and Sundays to Wilmington , Delaware , and Newark . Maryland's MARC commuter rail system is considering extending its service as far as Newark , which would allow passengers to connect directly between SEPTA and MARC. Other recent proposals have also focused on extending and enhancing SEPTA's other transit services. Senator of Pennsylvania, Bob Casey , has supported recent proposals expanding
5984-421: The individual who receives the accommodation must still perform the essential functions of the job and meet the normal performance requirements. An employee or applicant who currently engages in the illegal use of drugs is not considered qualified when a covered entity takes adverse action based on such use. Part of Title I was found unconstitutional by the United States Supreme Court as it pertains to states in
6072-440: The individual's symptoms would be in the absence of "mitigating measures" such as medication, therapy, assistive devices, or other means of restoring function, during an "active episode" of the condition (if the condition is episodic). Certain specific conditions that are widely considered anti-social , or tend to result in illegal activity, such as kleptomania , pedophilia , exhibitionism , voyeurism , etc. are excluded under
6160-535: The inner tracks. Amtrak 's Northeast Corridor lines bypass the station via the inner tracks. [REDACTED] Media related to Chester Transportation Center at Wikimedia Commons SEPTA [REDACTED] Geographically-accurate map of SEPTA and connecting rail transit services as of 2005. Includes Regional Rail , rapid transit, and selected interurban and suburban trolley lines. Does not include SEPTA's subway-surface lines or Girard streetcar. The Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority ( SEPTA )
6248-756: The largest trolley system in the United States. NRG (limited) Darby Transit Center (limited) SEPTA lists 115 bus routes, not including about two dozen school trips, with most routes in the City of Philadelphia proper. SEPTA generally employs lettered, one-digit, and two-digit route numbering for its City Division routes; 90-series and 100-series routes for its Suburban Division routes; 200-series routes for its Regional Rail connector routes; 300-series routes for other specialized or third-party contract routes; and 400-series routes for limited-service buses to schools within Philadelphia. Trolleybuses , or trackless trolleys as they are called by SEPTA, operate on routes 59 , 66 , and 75 . Service resumed in spring 2008 after
6336-495: The local level, e.g., school district, municipal, city, or county, and at state level. Public entities must comply with Title II regulations by the U.S. Department of Justice . These regulations cover access to all programs and services offered by the entity. Access includes physical access described in the ADA Standards for Accessible Design and programmatic access that might be obstructed by discriminatory policies or procedures of
6424-475: The operation of several specified "major bodily functions". The act overturned a 1999 US Supreme Court case that held that an employee was not disabled if the impairment could be corrected by mitigating measures; it specifically provides that such impairment must be determined without considering such ameliorative measures. It also overturned the court's finding that an impairment that substantially limits one major life activity must also limit others to be considered
6512-406: The outside world." The US Chamber of Commerce argued that the costs of the ADA would be "enormous" and have "a disastrous impact on many small businesses struggling to survive." The National Federation of Independent Business , an organization that lobbies for small businesses, called the ADA "a disaster for small business". Pro-business conservative commentators joined in opposition, writing that
6600-501: The passage of the ADA, the use of captioning has expanded. Entertainment, educational, informational, and training materials are captioned for deaf and hard-of-hearing audiences at the time they are produced and distributed. The Television Decoder Circuitry Act of 1990 requires that all televisions larger than 13 inches sold in the United States after July 1993 have a special built-in decoder that enables viewers to watch closed-captioned programming. The Telecommunications Act of 1996 directs
6688-643: The pilot trackless trolley arrived for testing in June 2007. The vehicles were delivered between February and August 2008. Trackless trolley service resumed on Routes 66 and 75 on April 14, 2008, and on Route 59 the following day, but was initially limited to just one or two vehicles on each route, as new trolley buses gradually replaced the motorbuses serving the routes over a period of several weeks. The SEPTA board voted in October 2006 not to order additional vehicles for Routes 29 and 79, and those routes permanently became non-electric. On January 1, 1983, SEPTA took over
6776-498: The regulation of the internal employment of churches was "... an improper intrusion [of] the federal government." Many companies, corporations, and business groups opposed the Americans with Disabilities Act, arguing that the legislation would impose costs on businesses. Testifying before Congress, Greyhound Bus Lines stated that the act had the potential to "deprive millions of people of affordable intercity public transportation and thousands of rural communities of their only link to
6864-552: The report was to recommend the adoption of comprehensive civil rights legislation, which became the ADA. The idea of federal legislation enhancing and extending civil rights legislation to millions of Americans with disabilities gained bipartisan support in late 1988 and early 1989. In early 1989 both Congress and the newly inaugurated Bush White House worked separately, then jointly, to write legislation capable of expanding civil rights without imposing undue harm or costs on those already in compliance with existing rules and laws. Over
6952-475: The requirement is conditioned on whether providing access through a fixed lift is "readily achievable". Other requirements exist, based on pool size, include providing a certain number of accessible means of entry and exit, which are outlined in Section 242 of the standards. However, businesses are free to consider the differences in the application of the rules depending on whether the pool is new or altered, or whether
7040-636: The route. Since ridership patterns have changed since the implementation of this plan, SEPTA removed the R-numbers from the lines in July 2010 and instead refers to the lines by the names of their termini. The out-of-state terminals offer connections with other transit agencies. The Trenton Line offers connections in Trenton, New Jersey to NJ Transit (NJT) or Amtrak for travel to New York City . Plans exist to restore NJT service to West Trenton, New Jersey , thus offering
7128-428: The swimming pool was in existence before the effective date of the new rule. Full compliance may not be required for existing facilities; Section 242 and 1009 of the 2010 Standards outline such exceptions. ADA provides explicit coverage for service animals . Guidelines protect persons with disabilities and indemnify businesses from damages related to granting access to service animals. Businesses are allowed to ask if
7216-510: The years, key activists and advocates played an important role in lobbying members of the U.S. Congress to develop and pass the ADA, including Justin Whitlock Dart Jr. , Patrisha Wright and others. Wright is known as "the General" for her work in coordinating the campaign to enact the ADA. She is widely considered the main force behind the campaign lobbying for the ADA. Senator Bob Dole
7304-415: Was a replacement for the previous trolley service operated by West Chester Traction. SEPTA replaced two of the routes with their own bus service. Route 122 service was replaced by SEPTA's Route 91 in July 1982, after only one year of service. Route 91 was eliminated due to lack of ridership. Route 121 was replaced by SEPTA's Route 92 in October 1982. This service continues to operate today. Since ridership on
7392-405: Was a supporter and advocate for the bill. Conservative evangelicals opposed the ADA because the legislation protected individuals with HIV, which they associated with homosexuality. The debate over the Americans with Disabilities Act led some religious groups to take opposite positions. The Association of Christian Schools International opposed the ADA in its original form, primarily because
7480-426: Was coupled with a former Reading line. Seven such pairings were created and given route designations numbered R1 through R8 (with R4 not used). As a result, the routes were originally designed so that trains would proceed from one outlying terminal to Center City, stopping at 30th Street Station , Suburban Station and Jefferson , formerly Market East Station, then proceed out to the other outlying terminal assigned to
7568-465: Was created by the Pennsylvania legislature on August 17, 1963, to coordinate government funding to various transit and railroad companies in southeastern Pennsylvania. It commenced on February 18, 1964. On November 1, 1965, SEPTA absorbed two predecessor agencies: By 1966, the Reading Company and Pennsylvania Railroad commuter railroad lines were operated under contract to SEPTA. On February 1, 1968,
7656-470: Was its chief sponsor in the Senate. Harkin delivered part of his introduction speech in sign language, saying it was so his deaf brother could understand. President George H. W. Bush , on signing the measure on July 26, 1990, said: I know there may have been concerns that the ADA may be too vague or too costly, or may lead endlessly to litigation. But I want to reassure you right now that my administration and
7744-500: Was mostly attributable to the impact of government-implemented lock-downs in response to the COVID-19 pandemic that began in mid-March 2020. SEPTA's public services consist of three main networks: SEPTA Metro, bus operations, and regional rail. As of 2024 , SEPTA is in the process of rolling out SEPTA Metro, a unified brand for its urban rail transit services, including rapid transit , trolley , and interurban services. SEPTA has
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