Summary Minutes – 2nd Meeting (approved April 10, 2014)

US Access Board

Rail Vehicles Access Advisory Committee

January 9 - 10, 2014

Washington, DC

Thursday, January 9, 2014

With a quorum present, on behalf of the Access Board, Mr. Christopher Hart opened the 

second meeting of the Rail Vehicles Access Advisory Committee at 10 a.m. in the 

Access Board’s conference room at 1331 F Street, N.W., room 800, Washington, DC. 

Mr. Hart welcomed the committee members, alternates, and members of the public. 

Committee members and others in attendance introduced themselves (see attachment 

A for attendance). The committee then approved (certified as accurate) the November 

2013 meeting summary minutes.

The committee then reviewed the issues list. New issue “all announcements in 

American Sign Language as well as text” was added, and the last issue on the list 

“standards for websites and smart phones” was removed (as the issue does not fall 

under the Access Board’s Americans with Disabilities Act jurisdiction). Throughout the 

remainder of the two-day meeting some other issues were added, edited, or moved to 

appear under different headings (see attachment B for changes made). 

Next, the five educational presentations listed below were made to the committee 

(copies of the presentation PowerPoints are available at the committee’s electronic 

docket: www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=ATBCB-2013-0006). A discussion time 

followed each presentation.

a) Federal Railroad Administration Presentation (Ms. Melissa Shurland) – Summary 

of PRIIA1 Next Generation Equipment Committee Accessibility Accommodations 

and Other Areas for Consideration

b) Bombardier Transportation Presentation (Mr. André Gagné) – Toilet Module 

Footprint

c) International Centre for Accessible Transportation Presentation (Mr. Uwe 

Rutenberg) – Integrated Solutions to Accessible Coach Car Elements

d) Talgo Presentation (Mr. Joshua Coran) – A Brief Description of the Three Distinct 

“Bi-Level” Passenger Car Designs Currently in Use on the US “General System”

e) Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority Presentation (Mr. Glenn Millis) –

7000 Series Rail Car Accessibility Features

 

1 Passenger Rail Investment and Improvement Act of 2008 (PRIIA)
Rail Vehicles Access Advisory Committee Summary Minutes, Contd.

January 2014 Page 2 of 11

A presentation from the Federal Railroad Administration, titled Rail 101, was 

rescheduled for the April 2014 meeting, to allow further preparation work. A lunch break 

occurred between the second and third presentations. 

After the last presentation, the committee began a discussion on how to resolve the rail 

access issues identified in attachment B. Mr. Paul Beatty presented an idea to the 

committee for consideration that involved setting up three subcommittees

(communications, circulation, and designated spaces). 

Toward the end of the day a time of public comment was allowed. Mr. Bob Reuter 

addressed the committee.

The committee then recessed for the day around 5:15 p.m.

Friday, January 10, 2014

The second day of the January meeting started around 9:15 a.m. After further 

discussion on the subcommittee idea (but no action taken), the committee decided to 

review the issues list. During the review, the committee classified the issues as to 

whether an issue was communication related or spatial in nature, and what vehicle 

mode (e.g., light rail) it applied to. These determinations were added to the issue 

headings in attachment B, and some issues were moved to fall under more appropriate 

headings. 

After lunch, around 1:30 p.m., the committee discussed whether conference calls could 

be scheduled before the April 2014 meeting on specific issues. The committee agreed 

to hold the following conference calls on fixed and variable signage and interior vertical 

circulation between car levels.

Signage - February 6, 13, and 27, 2014 (1 pm to 3 pm, eastern time). The 

February 6 call would provide callers with an understanding of what the 

Americans with Disabilities Act Accessibility Guidelines for Buildings and 

Facilities (ADAAG) would require, if ADAAG was applied to signs on rail vehicles. 

Also, review the variable messaging signage requirements in International Code 

Council/American Standards Institute (ICC/ANSI) standard A117.1 , and review 

the signage requirements in the current rail guidelines. This call was not 

scheduled for discussing the problems in applying ADAAG or ICC/ANSI, but to 

acquaint callers with the provisions in these two documents as well as the current 

rail guideline signage provisions. The February 13 call was tasked with 

evaluating whether ADAAG and ICC/ANSI signage provisions could be applied to 

rail vehicles, and if any modifications are necessary. The February 27 call would 

be a continuation of the February 13 call, if needed.

Interior Vertical Circulation - March 5, 20, 26, 2014 (1 p.m. to 3 p.m., east 

coast time). The three calls seek to answer the question - when is an elevator/lift 
Rail Vehicles Access Advisory Committee Summary Minutes, Contd.

January 2014 Page 3 of 11

needed to connect levels in a rail vehicle? The agenda for the calls will be 

developed by the Access Board.

Note: Any recommendations developed from the six calls are not binding on the 

full committee and will be presented to the full committee for evaluation at the 

next committee meeting (April 10 and 11, 2014).

The call-in numbers and related material are to be posted on the Access Board’s rail 

advisory committee website (www.access-board.gov/rvaac) prior to the calls.

At 2:30 p.m. a time of public comment was allowed, with Mr. Michael Chisena, Mr. Gary 

Talbot, Mr. Paul Grether, and Mr. John Day addressing the committee.

The next meeting will be held April 10 and 11, 2014, in the Access Board’s conference 

room. The first day of the meeting will start at 10 a.m. and run to 5 p.m., and the 

second day will start at 9 a.m. and run to 3 p.m.

The committee adjourned at 3 p.m. 

Note: A Communication Access Realtime Translation (CART) system was used in the 

meeting to provide an accommodation to persons with hearing loss and persons who 

are deaf. The CART output was streamed in real-time and available to the public on the 

internet during the meeting. The unedited text of the CART output is available at 

http://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=ATBCB-2013-0006 in the section titled 

“Supporting Documents” (may have to click “view all”) in four documents starting with 

the words “2nd Meeting - Unedited CART Text“. These documents provide the details 

of the two-day meeting.
Attachment A

U.S. Access Board

Rail Vehicles Access Advisory Committee - Meeting Attendance 

January 9 and 10, 2014

Washington, DC

Members Present: 

1. Alstom Transportation - Jon Holbrook

2. American Council of the Blind - Terry Pacheco

3. (Amtrak) National Railroad Passenger Corporation - Joseph Slaughter

4. Association of Programs for Rural Independent Living - Billy Altom (Committee 

Chair)

5. Bombardier Transportation - André Gagné, ing.

6. California Department of Transportation, Division of Rail - Stanton Hunter (day 1) 

and James Lucas (day 1 and 2)

7. Center for Inclusive Design and Environmental Access - Edward Steinfeld

8. Community Transportation Association of America - Robert Carlson

9. Disability Rights Education & Defense Fund - Marilyn Golden

10.Federal Railroad Administration - Linda Martin and Calvin Gibson

11.Hearing Access Program - Janice Schacter Lintz (day 2)

12.Hearing Loss Association of America – David Gayle

13.International Centre for Accessible Transportation - Uwe Rutenberg

14.Metra & Northeast Illinois Regional Commuter Railroad Corporation - Justin R.

Vonashek

15.Metropolitan Transportation Authority of the State of New York – Michael Wetherell

(day 1) and Frank Maldari

16.National Association of the Deaf – Debra Patkin (day 1) and Andrew Phillips (day 2)

17.National Association of Railroad Passengers - Ross Capon

18.National Council on Independent Living - Cliff Perez (day 2)

19.National Disability Rights Network - Dennis Cannon (day 1) and Kenneth Shiotani

20.New Jersey Transit – Ed Hoff

21.Parsons Brinckerhoff - Jackson Xue

22.RailPlan International – Terry Soebee (day 1)

23.Ricon Corporation - Stanton D. Saucier 

24.South West Transit Association - Crystal Lyons

25.Talgo, Inc. - Joshua Coran

26.United Spinal Association - James Weisman

Members Absent: 

27.Maryland Transit Administration
RVAAC Summary Minutes, Contd. Attachment A

January 2014 Page 5 of 11

Access Board Present: 

Christopher S. Hart, Board Member and liaison to the advisory committee

Melissa Anderson, Transportation Engineer

Rosemarie Bunales, Executive Secretary

Paul Beatty, Accessibility Specialist and Designated Federal Officer to the Advisory 

Committee

David M. Capozzi, Executive Director

Lisa Fairhall, Deputy General Counsel

Marsha K. Mazz, Director, Office of Technical and Information Services (day 2)

Aromie Noe, Regulatory Analysis (day 2)

Jim Pecht, Accessibility Specialist

Others Present: 

Pamela Boswell, American Public Transportation Association

Michael Chisena, MPC Visionary Concepts

John Day, Federal Transit Administration

Thomas Fodor, U.S. Department of Justice 

Sid Goldstein, Transit Access Report

Paul Grether, South West Ohio Regional Transit Authority

Harold Weisinger, Federal Railroad Administration

Pierre Holloman, City of Alexandria, VA (day 2)

Charles Joseph, American Public Transportation Association

Monica Lundon, Amtrak

Glenn Millis, Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority

Naomi Milton, U.S. Department of Justice

David Nelson, Amtrak

Bob Reuter, Access Systems

Melissa Shurland, Federal Railroad Administration

Gary Talbot, Amtrak

Louis Woolner, Virginia Railway Express
Attachment B

U.S. Access Board 

Rail Vehicles Access Advisory Committee Meeting - Issues List 

New Vehicles – For all Subparts (January 10, 2014)

January 9 and 10, 2014

Washington, DC

General Considerations Issues

1. Consider the designs and recommendations resulting from work done by FRA under 

the Passenger Rail Investment and Improvement Act of 2008 (PRIIA)

2. Identify best practices and alternative designs used in other countries 

3. Gain a better understanding of legal and structural constraints

a. How do FRA regulations impact rail vehicle design 

b. How do various types of vehicles differ in terms of structural constraints

4. Population to be served by accessibility features

a. Consider the needs of people using differing types of mobility device, seniors, 

and individuals who are obese

b. Consider adjusting current clearance and space requirements to 

accommodate contemporary wheeled mobility device sizes

5. Consider applying existing accessibility standards (e.g., ADAAG) to features not 

specifically addressed in the current standards

6. Avoid redundant regulatory requirements (e.g., FRA and FTA).

7. How to provide incentives for innovative universal design practices. (from Other)

Communications (Communications, applies to all modes)

1. Real-time messages (audible or visible) 

a. Dual mode (audible and visible) messaging

b. Examine what factors should be used to determine equivalency of audible 

and visible messages

c. Explore tri-mode communication

d. Announcements and screens over doors, typical in Europe and Asia

e. Variable message signs legibility (e.g., font, case, style, and location) 

2. Audible messages

a. Clarity of announcements

b. Assistive listening

i. Provide assistive listening (induction loops) throughout the train in 

bathrooms, meal cars, bedrooms and in bi-level rail cars

ii. Evaluate technical feasibility of induction loops on rail cars

c. all announcements in American Sign Language as well as text

3. Fixed Signage

a. Legibility of signs (e.g., font, case, style, and location)
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January 2014 Page 7 of 11

b. Scoping for certain types of signs (e.g., location, number, etc.)

i. Menu information accessible

c. When and how to provide non-visual formats (e.g., tactile) 

d. Visibility and frequency of station name signs by persons seated on-board in 

wheelchair space and those standing

4. New Technologies

a. Examine the potential for providing messages on hand-held devices such as 

smartphones – tri-mode communication

b. Examine how to address onboard route mapping, trainvision, and other realtime communication systems

5. Emergency Notification 

a. Use of bed shakers and visible door knocks for people who are deaf or hardof-hearing 

b. Notification of persons with vision impairments

c. Back-up power to service emergency notification devices 

d. Visual emergency alerts (flashing fire alarms and such) in all parts of the rail 

cars -- compartments, main area, restrooms, etc. 

6. Lighting

a. Lighting in circulation areas, restrooms, sleeping compartments, step wells, 

and in any other areas 

b. Task lighting and on-demand passenger controls 

7. Other communications issue

a. How to address the information needs of riders with cognitive disabilities

b. How to make messages accessible when they are exterior to the vehicle and 

are not station-based 

c. How to provide access to information where tour-type (docent) service is 

provided in inaccessible locations, e.g., on the upper level of a car without 

vertical access

d. How to make stop request device in vestibules accessible 

e. Examine potential overlaps with FTA and FRA requirements, e.g., conductor

and crew call button 

f. Use of detectable warnings at exit stairs 

i. Characteristics of detectable warnings in these locations

g. How to identify which doors open on interior & exterior of cars when not all 

doors may open (from Boarding/Alighting)

h. Audible and visible alerts prior to door closing (from Boarding/Alighting)

i. Scoping for sleeping rooms for persons with communications needs (from 

Other)
RVAAC Summary Minutes, Contd. Attachment B

January 2014 Page 8 of 11

Lighting (moved to Communications, since committee considered lighting a 

communication issue for all modes)

1. Lighting in circulation areas, restrooms, sleeping compartments, and in any other 

areas 

2. Task lighting and on-demand passenger controls 

Boarding/Alighting (Spatial, applies to all modes)

1. Use of devices on-vehicle versus platform-based boarding devices

a. When is permanent versus temporary installation appropriate

b. Back-up methods for mechanical lifts

c. Impact on dwell time / service levels

2. Platforms

a. How best to address the use of bus and light rail boarding devices on shared 

platforms

b. Definition of level boarding (+/- 5/8”) for light/heavy & intercity long trains at 

level platforms

c. Evaluate different car types and implications for level boarding 

d. Commuter railroad shares ROW with freight 

3. Wheelchair lifts

a. Possibly increase lifting capacity– 800 lbs. minimum

b. How best to address extreme super-elevations

c. Lift platform barrier height

d. Self-operable lifts 

4. Ramps

a. Rethink the ramp slope and railing requirements

b. On-board storage of ramps

5. Bridgeplates 

a. Barriers and crowding conditions

i. Is space requirement similar to bus ramps/lifts?

b. Examine how bridgeplates interact with detectable warnings on the platform 

c. Consider alternatives for near level boarding , e.g., low floor vehicles and 

bridge plates

6. Light rail 

a. Examine implications of 60-70% low floor vs 100% low floor vehicles

7. Gaps 

a. Examine the potential for gap filler devices on vehicles or platforms

b. Examine European pop-out steps

8. Doors and doorways

a. Minimum width of doorway and each leaf

b. Handrails to assist with boarding and alighting 

c. How to provide accessible entry to each boarding and alighting area

i. Examine the potential for bi-level access from the station
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January 2014 Page 9 of 11

d. How to identify which doors open on interior & exterior of cars when not all 

doors may open (moved to communications)

e. Audible and visible alerts prior to door closing (moved to communications)

9. Other

a. Full high-platform level boarding should be the highest priority and most 

preferred method of boarding on all rail modes, whether light rail, rapid rail, 

intercity rail, and/or commuter rail. When level boarding is not required or 

possible, boarding should be, as often as possible, by ramp or bridge-plate as 

the primary 100% reliable and quick means for boarding, and clearly making 

mechanical lifts a back-up alternative when possible. Where mechanical lifts 

are needed, they should be car-borne, not station-based.

b. Full level boarding, all doors and all cars should be provided. When full level 

boarding is not required, add ramps, bridgeplates, etc.

Onboard Circulation (Spatial, applies to all modes)

1. Features of the circulation path

a. Characteristics of circulation paths, including walking surfaces, protruding 

objects, maneuvering clearances within vestibules, changes in level, 

thresholds, and other onboard circulation features 

b. Doors 

i. How best to make doors and flexible connections between cars 

accessible

ii. Address operation of sliding doors, consider power doors and locks

c. Aisle width in each type of car

d. Stanchion and handhold criteria 

e. Consideration of an on-board lift to access bi-level cars, especially dome or 

viewing cars 

2. Spaces within the train

a. Consider hardware solutions to ensure the availability of accessible features 

when they are used to store luggage; as additional standing space, etc.

b. Access to and within special cars, e.g., observation cars, dining cars, lounge 

cars

c. Determine how best to address accessibility in various types of bi-level cars. 

3. Escape and Egress

a. Operation of emergency egress devices window controls 

b. Features to support use of emergency evacuation devices and storage for 

such devices Onboard evacuation chairs, etc.

4. Other

a. Connections to service animal relief areas (from Other)
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January 2014 Page 10 of 11

Wheelchair Space and Other Seating (Spatial, applies to all modes, except 

baggage area for intercity)

1. Scoping

a. Number of wheelchair spaces according to vehicle type

b. Examine the possibility of requiring readily removable seats to provide 

additional spaces for people using mobility devices

c. Number and location of priority seating

2. Wheelchair Space Design

a. Maneuvering space to access wheelchair spaces

b. Minimum size of wheelchair space 

i. Consider sizes in PRIIA, i.e., 32” X 59”

ii. Consider whether minimum spaces should vary according to vehicle 

type

c. Amenities and controls within wheelchair spaces equivalent to those provided 

people in inaccessible seating, e.g., tray tables, cell charging outlets, lighting, 

operable windows, movies, etc.

d. Availability of windows adjacent to wheelchair spaces

e. Space for baggage on inter-city 

3. Specific features associated with wheelchair seating

a. Knee and toe clearance under tables

b. Define minimum table size 

4. Consider the need for and characteristics of wheelchair securement devices

5. Other types of accessible seating

a. Transfer seats 

i. Need tray tables and ability to seat in the direction of travel

b. Seating to accommodate service animals

i. Minimum space needed, number, and location 

c. Larger and stronger seats for passengers who are larger and heavier

Rest Rooms (Spatial, applies to all modes with rest rooms)

1. Consider alternate designs in existing accessibility standards and in use in other 

countries 

2. Accommodate dependent and independent transfers 

3. Examine PRIIA, CAL train, and Acela restroom designs vs. existing standards

4. Turning radius in toilet rooms (some think California does this well)

5. Consider sidewall alongside toilet

Sleeping Compartments (Spatial, applies to Intercity)

1. Scoping for sleeping rooms for persons with communications needs (moved to 

Communications)

2. Ensure that controls and amenities are accessible

a. Controls within reach
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January 2014 Page 11 of 11

i. Light controls reachable from the bed and seating

ii. Outlet locations

iii. Redundant accessible controls where controls are inaccessible

b. Accessible solid surface tables with knee and toe space beneath 

c. Define minimum table size

d. Visual doorbells/knockers so that people who are deaf or hard of hearing can 

lock their doors and be alerted when someone needs to enter

3. Bed heights that permit transfer from a wheelchair

4. Minimum space requirements 

a. With and without bed deployed

b. Turning space 

c. Egress and emergency operation of doors

d. Space to access features, clear space, location, etc.

5. Evaluate bathroom design, including showers, when located within the compartment 

6. Space for service animals

7. Access to other sleeping car amenities outside of the sleeping compartment

8. Power doors and locks on sliding doors

Dining (Spatial, applies to all modes with dining)

1. Accessible tables with knee and toe space

2. Accessible service counters

3. Accessible self-service, e.g., vending machines, condiments, coffee, etc.

4. Consider recommendations for access to bi-level dining

Other

1. Connections to service animal relief areas (moved to Onboard Circulation)

2. How best to address (crewless) automated rail systems 

3. How to provide incentives for innovative universal design practices (moved to 

General)

4. Recognize that not all access concerns have an architectural solution

5. Need car design information, such as drawings, to assess feasibility of ideas

6. Consider operational equivalencies 

7. Standards for websites and smart phones (deleted)

8. Consideration of accessibility on bi-level cars where level change is not possible

9. Consideration of international solutions