Blind Towamencin Teen Claims Discrimination By Lansdale Taxi Company

Michael Coughlin's blindness hasn't stopped him from living life independently—but it has stopped him from getting a cab ride from a Lansdale taxi company.
The 19-year-old Towamencin Township man recently moved back to Pennsylvania from Utah, where he attended University of Utah for his first year. Now, he is a computer science major at Montgomery County Community College.
Michael has already traveled the world, playing sports for the visually impaired like Beep Baseball and Goalball.
He uses a cane to get around and does not require aid of another person or a guide dog.
Up until June, the Coughlins lived in Philadelphia, where Michael had SEPTA for public transit. 
Yet, since moving to the North Penn area, Michael has faced a new problem in transportation.
At 1 p.m. on Friday, Michael was denied a ride by Homestead Taxi in Lansdale, from a stop at Green and Main streets to his home because, he claims, he was blind.
He was told that Homestead Taxi has a policy not to transport blind people without an extra helper.
Michael called Homestead Taxi and told the dispatcher to have the driver call him so he knows the taxi is here and the driver can look for him. 
"She said, 'How come?' and I said, 'I'm blind.' She said, 'We can't drive you anywhere,' and that's where the whole thing went down," Michael said.
He said that's when the dispatcher told him of Homestead Taxi's policy not to transport blind persons without a helper. 
"At first, I was shocked, like, 'Really? This is happening now?' I had a 10 minute conversation with the dispatcher to figure out why this actually is," he said. "They don't cover blind people because of insurance. They were saying I need extra help getting into the car, getting out of the car, getting the seatbelt on—it's not true. I never did need that." 
Coughlin and his mother, Christy Coughlin, claim Homestead Taxi's policy violates the Americans with Disabilities Act. The act states those with disabilities can legally get into a taxi, he said.
Title III of the act prohibits discrimination to individuals with disabilities by private entities. Public accommodations such as transportation services and transit operated by private companies are required to comply with the ADA law.
"Their insurance claim is not true," Michael said. "They probably figured the driver doesn't have the experience dealing with people with disabilities. I understand if a person is in a wheelchair or walker, or has mental disabilities, but something as simple as being blind doesn't require any extra insurance or help. There is training out there for those who are visually impaired to be independent."
Christy Coughlin said the ADA law is the same one that everybody else has to follow, public or private. She said Homestead Taxi cannot pick and choose who it wants in its cab.
"It's totally illegal," she said. "I asked for a copy of the insurance and she said it's not her job to give it to me."
Christy said Monday night she had not received a callback from Homestead Taxi owner Nick Chermela.
Patch contacted Homestead Taxi on Monday to Chermela. The gentleman that answered the phone rudely told Patch the owner was "not available" and immediately hung up the phone.
Fox 29's Bruce Gordon spoke to Chermela Monday, who told him that he will not be changing his company's policy.
Gordon reported at the 6 p.m. Monday newscast that Chermela said they would not pick up Michael without an extra helper. Chermela told Fox 29 that his drivers are not qualified to deal with a blind passenger.
"We're not a para-transit company," Chermela told Gordon.
Funny thing is, last Wednesday, Michael was given a ride by Homestead Taxi and he did not divulge his disability to the dispatcher. 
"On Wednesday, I got a taxi from them. They picked me up from school and I was driven home without problems," he said. "The dispatcher didn't know I was blind. The driver did and didn't say anything."
Christy said the dispatcher told Michael that the cab driver should not have put Michael in the car on Wednesday.
Michael said he's been out there on his own for years and traveled all over places by himself.
"I've never had this happen," he said. "I've never had an instance where a taxi wouldn't help me. I've taken city cabs and Yellow Cabs, and never had a problem before." 
Michael said a lawsuit could be on the horizon against Homestead Taxi.
"If it comes to that," he said. "However, I want to be able to take the taxi, and take it without any problems."
Michael said he wants to prevent other blind people in the area from encountering the same problem.
"The dispatcher did mention that they have the same problem with a lady in Quakertown, but she didn't do anything about it," he said. "I'm hoping to do something about it."
He hopes one day Homestead Taxi will change its policy, so whomever else wants to take a taxi can without restriction. 
Christy said she has filed complaints with the Montgomery County Association for the Blind, the American Civil Liberties Union and the Public Utilities Commission.
"It sounds ridiculous, but nobody can go and say you can't ride in a taxi because you are blind. Think about it. That's like a cab not picking you up because you're black," she said. "You can't pick and choose."