The public union “The League of the Strong” recommends adopting amendments to the Law of Ukraine “On Motor Vehicles”. A letter with proposals from the “League of the Strong” was sent to the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Social Policy and Veterans’ Rights. This was reported by Daria Sydorenko, executive director of “The League of the Strong” public union.
“The existing legislation on the transportation of passengers with disabilities does not guarantee them access to these services. Therefore, we recommend amending the law as soon as possible. After all, access to safe and comfortable transportation is not a privilege, but a right of people with disabilities,” said Daria Sydorenko, Executive Director of “The League of the Strong” NGO.
The lawyers of the ” The League of the Strong” analyzed the legislation that regulates the provision of transportation services to people with disabilities. As a result, they identified the problem of inconsistency between legal acts and contradictions in the wording regarding the number of buses adapted for people with disabilities on bus routes.
In particular, the Law of Ukraine “On Motor Vehicle Transport” does not stipulate that the availability of vehicles adapted for the transportation of persons with disabilities and other low-mobility groups on city, suburban and intercity routes is a mandatory condition for holding a tender for passenger transportation. This standard is reflected only in bylaws.
Thus, an analysis of the regulations governing the tender for carriers showed that it is necessary to bring the standards for the number of vehicles on city, suburban, and intercity routes accessible to people with disabilities and other low-mobility groups to a single standard. It is also necessary to regulate the routes that are subject to the above standards. Currently, they do not apply to long-distance routes.
Also, one of the problems with the legislation regulating bus transportation is the use of the phrase “in the amount of up to … percent”. This leads to abuse and the creation of a formal appearance of compliance with the standard even if 1% of the total amount of transportation is available. According to the lawyers of the “League of the Strong”, it would be more reasonable to use the words “not less than” instead of “up to”, which would mean the obligation to achieve the established specific standards.
If amendments to the Law of Ukraine “On Road Transport” are adopted, the bylaws should be brought into compliance with the law. This will partially resolve the above-mentioned gaps in the regulatory framework and strengthen the guarantees of the rights of persons with disabilities.
Earlier, the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Social Policy and Veterans’ Rights Protection sent a letter to the League of the Strong with a request to provide suggestions and comments on the implementation of the rights to transportation services for persons with disabilities regarding the draft law of Ukraine on amendments to the Law of Ukraine “On Motor Vehicles”.