(The Associated Press circulated the following article by Beth DeFalco on November 30.)
TRENTON, N.J. — Three New Jersey residents with disabilities who claim they repeatedly have been discriminated against on New Jersey Transit buses and trains said Wednesday they are suing the agency.
Tyrone Lockett, Paulette Eberle and Shonda Lewis all said they’ve complained to NJ Transit about treatment that includes drivers refusing to allow guide dogs on board. They say most of their complaints were ignored.
“They are denying us our rightful place in society,” said Eberle, 57, who is blind. “We can’t be active members in our community if we can’t be sure we can get to events.”
During a news conference with their attorney and an advocacy group, the three detailed instances where they say they were harassed getting on and off trains and buses, and were sometimes passed by altogether.
In separate lawsuits, the three are suing the agency for an unspecified amount of money in the form of punitive and compensatory damages, and for reimbursement for court and attorney fees. NJ Transit spokeswoman Penny Bassett Hackett said the agency could not comment on the lawsuits because it had not seen them.
Eberle, of Jersey City, recalled a bus door once closing on her hand as she tried to board and being dragged a few steps until she could free it.
“I have consistently been told, ‘We’re very sorry and that’ll never happen again,’ ” she said. But still, Eberle said she routinely has problems, especially about her guide dog coming on the bus.
“Driver should be trained to accept the service animal,” she said.
Lewis, a 35-year-old Newark resident and college student, said she’s had trouble notifying conductors when she nears a stop. Paralyzed by meningitis since she was 21, Lewis uses as wheelchair.
Lockett, a 30-year-old from Newark who has cerebral palsy and uses arm crutches to walk, takes the train to get to work as an usher at a movie theater.
Both Lewis and Lockett said that getting a so-called “bridge plate” to fill the gap between a platform and train is routinely difficult.
Lockett recalled having trouble on his way to a community meeting with NJ Transit.
“They refused to give me a bridge plate,” Lockett said of train conductors. “They insisted on getting me on the train their way, basically covering me just in case I fall. And that made me uncomfortable.”
Robert Westreich, the attorney representing all three, called the conduct “outrageously unlawful.”
“It’s our hope with these cases to make it as difficult, expensive and embarrassing as possible for these companies to engage in the conduct at issue,” he said.
Westreich said he filed the cases by mail on Tuesday. A court clerk could not confirm whether the complaints had been filed Wednesday but said it can take up to a week for a case to enter the system after it’s received.
All three plaintiffs suing NJ Transit are affiliated with New Jersey Citizen Action, an advocacy group.
Phyllis Salowe-Kaye, executive director of NJ Citizen Action, said NJ Transit has the proper policies in place but doesn’t seem to be able to enforce them.
“The problem is they don’t take these incidents seriously enough,” Salowe-Kaye said.
Over the summer, she said Citizen Action conducted recorded at least 10 incidents in a single day during which people with disabilities were discriminated against on NJ Transit buses and trains.
NJ Transit provides approximately 232 million passenger trips each year on its buses and rail lines, according to the agency’s Web site.