Justice Department Secures Agreement to Improve Web Accessibility for Public Transportation Users with Disabilities in Champaign-Urbana, Illinois

The Justice Department announced today that it has entered into a settlement agreement with the Champaign-Urbana Mass Transit District (MTD) to resolve alleged violations of Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

Under the agreement, the MTD must make its website and mobile applications accessible for users with visual and manual impairments. Public transportation users rely on the MTD’s website and mobile applications to plan trips, check arrival times, and find fare information. The agreement requires the MTD to conform its website – www.mtd.org – and mobile applications to the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG), Version 2.1, Level AA. WCAG is a set of voluntary industry guidelines for making information on a website accessible to users with disabilities, particularly those with visual and manual impairments. Additionally, the MTD will invest a minimum of $100,000 to improve its services for passengers with disabilities.  

“Equal access to public transit systems is critically important for the independence of people with disabilities and is required by law,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke for the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “This settlement brings us one step closer to realizing the ADA’s promise of equal opportunity for all people regardless of disability status. The Department of Justice will continue to vigorously enforce federal law to root out discrimination against people with disabilities.”

 “This agreement reflects the MTD’s longtime commitment to serving individuals with disabilities,” said U.S. Attorney Gregory K. Harris for the Central District of Illinois. “We appreciate the MTD’s cooperation throughout the investigation and its commitment to quickly make its website and related tools fully accessible. Roughly 30 years after being enacted, the ADA continues to be a very important law protecting the rights of all individuals living and working in our community and its provisions remain relevant as technology and the needs of individuals with disabilities evolve.”

This matter was handled jointly by the Disability Rights Section of the department’s Civil Rights Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Joshua I. Grant of the Central District of Illinois. Title II of the ADA requires state and local governmental entities like public transportation providers to provide individuals with disabilities an equal opportunity to benefit from their services, programs and activities.

For more information on the Civil Rights Division, please visit http://www.justice.gov/crt. For more information on the ADA, please call the department’s toll-free ADA Information Line at 800-514-0301 (TDD 800-514-0383) or visit www.ada.gov. ADA complaints may be filed online at http://www.ada.gov/complaint/. Individuals in the Central District of Illinois may also report civil rights violations to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of Illinois by calling 217-492-4450.