New yellow cabs must be wheelchair accessible, city orders

All new yellow taxis in the five boroughs will need to be wheelchair accessible before they can legally pick up passengers, according to a new rule approved by the city’s Taxi and Limousine Commission.

Approved last week, the rule is the city's latest attempt to comply with a federal court order from a decade-old settlement of a lawsuit brought by disability advocates.

The rule says that in order for the TLC to approve vehicle licenses for yellow taxi medallion holders, they must install features that make their vehicles wheelchair accessible. Additionally, when a taxi owner completes a refitting of their vehicle, which they are required to do every seven years, they must make their vehicle wheelchair accessible.