Opinion ID: 204900
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Readily accessible

Text: The parties also dispute the meaning of readily accessible. SEPTA argues that the 15th Street Courtyard is a part of Suburban Station, not of 15th Street Station, and thus, since the 15th Street Courtyard may be reached from street level by individuals in wheelchairs via one of the Suburban Station elevators, it is already readily accessible. [11] DIA argues that the 15th Street Courtyard is actually a part of 15th Street Station, and since the facility which it is a part of is not wheelchair-accessible, neither is the Courtyard. In addition, DIA argues that, even if the 15th Street Courtyard is part of Suburban Station, it is still not readily accessible via Suburban Station. The District Court did not make a finding as to which station the 15th Street Courtyard is a part of. [12] Like the District Court, we need not address the question of which facility the 15th Street Courtyard belongs to because, either way, SEPTA must make it accessible. If we consider the 15th Street Courtyard Entrance to be part of Suburban Station, as SEPTA contends, it is still not readily accessible. Pursuant to ADAAG § 10. 1, all transportation facilities must comply with the applicable provisions of §§ 4.1 through 4.35, §§ 5 through 9, and the applicable provisions of § 10 of the ADAAG. Through a circuitous regulatory route, [13] the new construction provisions for transportation facilities, found at ADAAG § 10.3.1, permit a public transportation provider to avoid making an altered entrance accessible if at least one entrance to the affected station is already accessible. ADAAG § 10.3.1(2). However, [i]f different entrances to a station serve different transportation fixed routes or groups of fixed routes, at least one entrance serving each group or route shall [be made accessible]. Id. Here, there is no accessible entrance that serves the 15th Street Station or the Market-Frankford subway linea different route than those serviced by Suburban Station, which serves commuter rail lines. Thus, even assuming that the 15th Street Courtyard Entrance is a part of Suburban Station, it nevertheless provides access to a different fixed route and therefore must be made accessible. If, on the other hand, the entrance at issue is a part of 15th Street Station, the alterations performed by SEPTA require that the entrance be made readily accessible since it is undisputed that 15th Street Station is not handicapped accessible. [14] Because neither the 15th Street Courtyard or the City Hall Courtyard is readily accessible, SEPTA violated Title II of the ADA and the RA by not making those portions of its facilities accessible when it undertook to make alterations at those locations.