A Department of Justice investigation found that many of Amtrak’s facilities across the country don’t comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act, including all 11 Indiana stations.
Indiana Protection and Advocacy Services, the state’s disability advocacy agency, is one of several organizations around the country that filed complaints against Amtrak with the Department of Justice.
The agency’s executive director Dawn Adams says the report it sent to the DOJ was based on extensive inspections of Amtrak stations after the state received numerous complaints.
Adams says the agency found violations that include inaccessible parking and inadequate counter height, and even refusal to sell tickets to customers with disabilities.
“If the station at the other end that the person wanted to go to was inaccessible, then rather than making that station accessible, they just refused to sell tickets to people with disabilities,” Adams says.
The Department of Justice says it will work with Amtrak to ensure the stations become compliant and notes that Amtrak has appeared willing to cooperate.
In a statement, Amtrak says it is committed to ensuring accessibility for all and will continue to work with the Department of Justice to "develop a plan that will address the proposed remedial measures."
