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Sell v. New Jersey Transit Corp.3/19/1997
The opinion of the court was delivered by
KLEINER, J.A.D.
Petitioner Gerald J. Sell appeals from a final administrative decision of the New Jersey Transit Corporation (NJT) dated December 26, 1995, denying him eligibility for Access Link paratransit services.
Petitioner is a thirty-eight-year-old, mentally retarded man with a full scale I.Q. of 66. He lives in a trailer park in Williamstown and is a sheltered workshop employee at the Abilities Center in Westville, as he is incapable of "competitive employment." The Abilities Center's principal purpose is "to provide individuals with disabilities with vocational training in order that each individual may successfully develop and ultimately attain a realistic vocational goal in the community." NJT is a governmental agency, created by the New Jersey Public Transportation Act, N.J.S.A. 27:25-1 to -34.
Under the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) and regulations promulgated by the United States Department of Transportation (USDOT), each state must provide transportation to individuals with disabilities who would otherwise not be able to use public transportation. See 42 U.S.C.A. § 12143(a). NJT created "Access Link" paratransit bus service as a way of meeting the requirements of the ADA. Access Link is curb-to-curb bus service for qualifying disabled people. Following USDOT regulations, NJT created a formal process for determining an applicant's eligibility for Access Link service. See 49 C.F.R. § 37.125. NJT's application procedure also includes an appellate process for those applicants who seek to challenge the agency's determination of their status. See 49 C.F.R. § 37.125(g).
Petitioner applied for Access Link service in March of 1994. Three disabilities were listed on his application: colitis, learning disability, and allergies. According to the application, the colitis inhibited his ability to walk long distances; the learning disability made it difficult for him to identify consistently his place of destination, and the allergies made it difficult to be outdoors for extended periods of time in the spring. According to the application, all of these conditions were permanent.
Also, according to the application, which was apparently filled out by someone at the Abilities Center, petitioner was able to ride NJT's regular buses and did so regularly on excursions to the Deptford Mall, the Echelon Mall, the Moorestown Mall, the Cherry Hill Mall, a friend's house in Cherry Hill, and Pennsauken. Petitioner requested Access Link service only for transportation to the Abilities Center in Westville. Petitioner's application was supported by a "medical verification," signed by his gastroenterologist, verifying his colitis and a "medical verification" signed by his family physician without other medical diagnostic information. Petitioner's mental retardation was verified by his prior receipt of services provided by the New Jersey Division of Developmental Disabilities.
After receiving petitioner's application, NJT conducted a site inspection, examining the route that petitioner would need to use in order to reach the regular bus stop that would provide transportation to the sheltered workshop. The site inspector concluded that the walking distance was too far and the route too dangerous for petitioner to use on a daily basis. On April 28, 1994, NJT informed petitioner that he was "conditionally eligible" to use the Access Link. The notification letter provided in part:
You are eligible to use Access Link only for trips which involve a dangerous path of travel between the bus stop and your origin and our your destination. Such a path of travel might be walking along b
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