California’s Access for All program: Expanding on-demand services for people with disabilities

People with disabilities are heavily burdened by our current transportation systems. Fixed route transit is not accessible for everyone and although services like ADA Paratransit provide transportation services specifically designed for people with disabilities, these services can be difficult to use, requiring trips to be scheduled 24+ hours in advance, long trip times, and limited travel areas. This system hampers the ability for people with disabilities to successfully live, work, and participate in their communities. According to MTC’s recent research people with disabilities will often forgo leaving their homes, leading to growing social isolation and lack of essential services.

The State of California has made an effort to remedy this issue through the Transportation Network Companies (TNC) Access for All Program. Established by SB 1376 (Hill, 2018), this program has made progress in enabling on-demand transportation services, such as Lyft and Uber, to be more accessible for wheelchair users. While the program has aided transportation network companies in implementing wheelchair accessible vehicles, it struggles to meet its goal of providing reliable service.

The TNC Access for All Program seeks to improve wheelchair access to on demand transportation. TNCs collect an access fee of 10 cents per ride, which is then used to increase availability to meet demands, improve response time, and communicate the availability of the service. Funding is collected and administered by the California Public Utility Commission (CPUC).

TNCs can then request to use these Access Fees to invest in wheelchair accessible vehicles (WAVs). It's important to note that emerging autonomous vehicle services like Waymo are not included in this program. Autonomous taxi service was not commercially available in 2018 when the legislation was passed. Leftover funds not claimed by TNCs go to Local Access Fund Administrators (LAFA) – other providers who can provide WAV services similar to that of TNCs – who invest the money into areas with equity gaps.

The diagram above shows how funds are collected in the Access For All Fund. 10 cents is collected from each ride which is collected in the Access Fund. These funds are used by either TNCs or Local Access Fund Administrators to provide WAVs for wheelchair users (Source: 2024 TNC Access for All: Annual Benchmark Report).

So far TNCs have invested $79.3 million into wheelchair accessible vehicles utilizing the program, of which $48 million was provided by the Access Fund. 15% of the Access Fund is put towards administrative costs, while the remaining 85% is used to fund the WAV services. 

As of 2025, TNCs are on track to provide over 100,000 WAV trips annually. This is a notable but relatively small share of accessible transportation use. By comparison, SF Paratransit is projected to serve over 500,000 trips annually according to SFMTA.

Data suggests the increase in WAV services offered has started to catch up with demand. When the program first started, the percentage of completed trips was 19%. As of 2024 the share of completed trips has grown to 60% according to the TNC Access for All 2024 Annual Benchmark Report. 

In 2024, $7 million in leftover funding was distributed to Local Access Fund Administrators (LAFA), including SFMTA (57%), LA Metro (26%), and SANDAG (13%). The average on-demand completion rate for LAFA funded trips was 62% of on-demand requests and 88% for pre-scheduled requests.

The CPUC requires that TNCs submit an annual outreach plan and progress reports to ensure that community engagement efforts are being made. The CPUC TNC Access for All Program website page includes videos of past workshops and information sessions.

The diagram above compares the percentage of completed trips to not completed trips from Q3 in 2019 to Q2 in 2024 (Source: 2024 TNC Access for All: Annual Benchmark Report).

Although the program has achieved a lot, there are still improvements that can be made. Riders report that the level of service provided can vary significantly from county to county. For example service in Alameda County isn’t nearly as fast or reliable as in San Francisco.

The diagram above shows the response time of trips in each Geographic Area included in the TNC Access For All Program (Source: 2024 TNC Access for All: Annual Benchmark Report).

TNC ride requests are also sometimes denied or delayed. In 2024, 14% of requested trips were not accepted. This is a significant drop from the 63% of trip requests not accepted in 2019, but is still inadequate. In terms of outreach, the program requires that TNCs and the respective counties work to establish partnerships and promote the WAVs, however there are still large awareness gaps and the program relies heavily on word of mouth.

Service complaints remain low relative to the amount of trips requested. The TNC Access for All 2024 Annual Benchmark Report found that “over the last year, Uber and Lyft averaged 4.6 complaints per 1,000 trips (<1%)”.  Wheelchair users report that access to these services allows them to live a more enriching life outside of the house, and they can avoid costly fees of purchasing or renting a WAV for themselves as seen in comments from Appendix F of the CPUC 2023 Access for All report.

Next steps to improve access 

Supporting accessible transportation for people with disabilities and seniors is extremely important to provide people with access to basic needs, family, medical care, employment, education. While the TNC Access for All program has made important changes to accommodate wheelchair users, riders with disabilities say another issue is TNCs willingness to adopt and honor ADA standards for accessibility for other disabilities. 

This includes the use of ASL and 711 relay services for the hearing/deaf and speech impaired or the use of Braille, large print, phone in options, or electronic text to speech technologies for people who are blind or visually impaired. 

Proper training in disability etiquette and history to understand what is and is not acceptable interactions with people who have autism, down syndrome, and other cognitive or learning disabilities would be valuable. And there is a need for agreed standard practices and expectations of conduct for both riders and drivers when it comes to a person with a service animal. 

As autonomous vehicles become commercially available for use, it would be helpful to consider new legislation to incentivize or mandate making autonomous vehicles more accessible. Without a driver being available to help with door-to-door service or helping secure people in their wheelchairs in the vehicle, there are several hurdles to implementing autonomous vehicles that can accommodate these specific needs. 

TNCs don’t serve all mobility needs. Other methods and their current shortfalls. 

On-demand WAVs can provide a practical alternative for wheelchair users, however it is significantly more expensive than paratransit. Uber WAVs use the same pricing as regular Uber trips, on average $10-$25).  

TNCs also differ from paratransit in that their drivers are independent contractors who may be making very low wages. The California legislature just passed AB1340, which if signed by the governor, allows TNC workers to join unions, to negotiate better pay and working conditions. Paratransit and other public transportation networks offer more stable jobs and uniform training, but have trouble scaling quickly. 

While paratransit services are lower cost, they often need to be booked 1-3 days in advance. This severely limits wheelchair users and TNCs can address this by providing an on-demand door-to-door experience. 

In an effort to expand existing systems, ADA paratransit programs are now also testing same-day ride options. For example, the San Mateo County Transit District (SamTrans) has a same-day paratransit pilot program serving the Redi-Wheels area. However, these are considered premium services and cost $8-10.

City sponsored microtransit programs like Metro Micro have wheelchair accessibility features built into all their vehicles, offering flexible rides to areas with service gaps. 

For alternatives to paratransit and TNCs there are services specifically for medical appointments, where wheelchair users can request a non-emergency medical transportation (NEMT), but the scope of these vehicles is limited to use in medical situations.

Next Steps

The TNC access for all program is helping many people with disabilities. If you know of any organizations or communities that would like to form partnerships to spread the word about the program, reach out to your Local Access Fund Administrator.

The TNC Access for All Program offers another option for accessible transportation services. Although the program is still unevenly distributed and service can be unreliable, it serves as a model for accessibility policy nationwide. Similar programs have been implemented in other states, such as New York City’s Accessible Dispatch Service, and Chicago’s Wheelchair Accessible Taxicabs, with more to come.

Chloe Dahl is interning for Seamless Bay. She serves as a transportation advocate in various youth groups including Safe Routes To School.

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