# Plain Language Summary: Think Differently Transportation Act

This bill requires Amtrak to give Congress detailed information about whether its trains and stations are accessible to people with disabilities under the Americans with Disabilities Act. Right now, Amtrak reports some basic compliance information to Congress, but this bill expands what they have to report and adds specific requirements about their plans to fix accessibility problems.

The bill focuses on a 2020 settlement agreement between Amtrak and the Department of Justice that required Amtrak to make its trains and stations fully accessible to people with disabilities. Under this new bill, Amtrak would have to include an action plan showing how and when they'll bring any non-compliant rail cars and stations into compliance. This means Congress and the public would get a clear timeline for when accessibility improvements will actually happen, rather than just general statements about compliance.

The reporting requirements also ask Amtrak to break down which stations are their sole responsibility to fix, which stations they share responsibility for with other parties (like local governments or station owners), and which stations are entirely someone else's responsibility. For each category, Amtrak would need to explain who's responsible for what and provide timelines for getting everything up to code. This transparency helps identify where accessibility problems exist and who needs to fix them, making it easier to hold Amtrak and other responsible parties accountable for serving passengers with disabilities.

Think Differently Transportation Act

Molinaro, Marcus J.

Think Differently Transportation ActThis bill requires&nbsp;the National Railroad Passenger Corporation (Amtrak) to include information on&nbsp;compliance with the&nbsp;Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) in a required annual report to Congress.Specifically, Amtrak must incorporate into the annual report an action plan for bringing Amtrak rail cars and stations into compliance with the ADA as required by a 2020 settlement agreement entered into between Amtrak and the Department of Justice. (Under the agreement, Amtrak committed to complying with the ADA and making&nbsp;intercity rail stations accessible.)Amtrak must also include a status report on ADA compliance at Amtrak-served stations (based on an assessment by Amtrak). For those Amtrak-served stations where Amtrak is not responsible for ADA compliance, Amtrak must include in the report information on the responsible entity.&nbsp;