What to do if…
a wheelchair lift or boarding ramp fails and leaves you stranded

What to do now

1. Move to a stable, visible position if you can do so safely. Apply your wheelchair brakes and switch off its power where appropriate, while staying clear of roads, tracks, platform edges, vehicle doors, and the failed equipment. Call 911 if you need immediate police, fire, or ambulance assistance.

2. Report the failure to the driver, vehicle operator, station agent, gate employee, dispatcher, or transport provider. Give your exact location, say whether you cannot board or cannot get off, and describe the mobility device and assistance you need.

3. Ask for a specific accessible alternative. This may be another vehicle with a working lift, a properly deployed boarding ramp, an accessible route to another boarding point, or trained boarding or deplaning assistance. Ask who is arranging it and how you will receive an update.

4. If you are already on a vehicle and cannot get off, tell the operator where you intended to disembark. Ask the operator to contact dispatch or control and arrange a safe accessible stopping point or suitable assistance rather than attempting stairs or an unsafe transfer.

5. If a lift fails on a fixed-route transit vehicle and the next accessible vehicle on the route is more than 30 minutes away, ask the transit provider for prompt alternative accessible transportation. Federal transit rules require alternative accessible service within a short response time, described by the Federal Transit Administration as less than 30 minutes, in this situation.

6. At an airport, ask airline staff for prompt, safe, and dignified boarding or deplaning assistance. If the problem is not resolved, ask to speak with the airline’s Complaint Resolution Official, who must be available in person or by telephone while the airline is operating at that airport.

7. If heat, cold, rain, traffic, or another hazard is affecting you, ask staff or dispatch for an accessible sheltered waiting place or another safe arrangement. Tell them about urgent needs involving medication, breathing equipment, wheelchair power, positioning, personal care, or a service animal.

8. Contact a trusted person if the delay may leave you without support. Share your location, transport provider, route or flight details, and the alternative arrangement you have been offered.

9. When it is safe, note the time, location, route or flight number, vehicle number, staff details, and what happened. A photograph of the equipment or boarding area may be useful later, but do not place yourself at risk to take one.