The Lawsuits Over NYC's Subway Inaccessibility Are Long Overdue

The subway is often cited as the most convenient way to get around New York City, but for Chris Pangilinan, riding the system is like playing a game of Russian roulette. “There are some 20 elevators out every day, and we don't know which stations they’re going to be at,” says Pangilinan, a transit planner who uses a wheelchair. “That's impossible to plan your life around.”

It was only a matter of time before the Metropolitan Transportation Authority would be hit with another accessibility complaint—this time, in both federal and state court. Earlier this week, the nonprofit Disability Rights Advocate (DRA) filed two lawsuits on behalf of a handful of individuals, including Pangilinan, and a coalition of disabilities-rights organizations that say the MTA is discriminating against people with disabilities by running the least-accessible subway among U.S. major cities.