Improve Holiday Air Travel for People with Reduced Mobility

Dec. 19, 2019

Traveling during the holidays can often be stressful, even more so for people with reduced mobility. Last year, AAA projected that a record-breaking 112 million Americans would travel during the year-end holiday season. This year could see even more holiday travelers.

While the holidays are prime travel season, the nation’s airports accommodate 2.7 million airline passengers and 44,000 flights each day according the FAA – many of which are people with reduced mobility (PRM). In fact, the number of PRM airline passengers is growing 3 to 6 times faster than overall passengers, and of the 26% of adults in the United States who have some type of disability, 13.7% of them have mobility issues.

Air travel poses many challenges to people with limited mobility, including maneuvering through crowded airports, enduring long waits at security checkpoints and dealing with baggage restrictions.

However, one of the major challenges for air travelers with limited mobility occurs when their mobility device is damaged in transit. According to the U.S. Department of Transportation, “Between January and August— the latest month for which data is available — U.S. carriers reported having mishandled at least 6,915 chairs. That’s an average of 29 times a day.”

The IATA noted that “for passengers with disabilities who travel with their own mobility aids, damage when stowed is a major concern. Airlines are working with associations of passengers with disabilities, airports, ground handlers, and regulators, to look at ways to improve this. One option under consideration is to develop standard procedures related to the loading of passengers’ mobility aids.”

However, in the event a passenger’s device has been damaged, airports partnering with mobility device rental and repair companies can help save these travelers time and stress. One example of this in action can be seen at the Minneapolis-Saint Paul Airport (MSP). MSP features an on-site repair, replacement and rental office that acts as a central location for airlines to direct passengers whose assistive devices have been damaged in transit. This repair station helps get passengers on their way sooner, dispatching technicians within minutes for assessment and minor repairs, reducing time spent administering claims for damaged equipment.

Advancements in technology are also beginning to change the way airlines and airports assist travelers with reduced mobility. In the near future, travelers with limited mobility will be able to take advantage of new assistive technology in the form of autonomous wheelchairs. Trials of autonomous wheelchairs conducted by WHILL in airports located in Dallas, Winnipeg, Tokyo and Abu Dhabi are allowing passengers with restricted mobility to navigate more easily and independently through these airports, without the need of assistance from a family member, friend or staff. The trials, which involve intensive testing and mapping of airport environments, use autonomous Personal Electric Vehicles (EVs) equipped with sensors that identify and avoid obstructions. These autonomous mobility devices also include a collision avoidance function as well as an auto-return function that enables the Personal EV to return itself to the original docking station. Other features, such as real-time gate and boarding time updates, and remote assistance functions, which allow the passenger to communicate with an airport operator if they encounter a problem while using the device, are slated to be available in the near future.

Mobility as a Service (MaaS) is another innovation that can help airports make holiday travel more seamless for people with restricted mobility. MaaS is defined as the integration of various forms of transport services into a single mobility service accessible on demand. MaaS providers and platforms are on the rise in cities across the world and include platforms being created for people who require mobility assistance. Airports participating in MaaS programs aimed at travelers with restricted mobility can offer these passengers access to rental, repair and mobility management services as well as fleets of programmed power devices capable of navigating large and complex facilities – all of which can help these passengers travel seamlessly from their origin to final destination.

While travel, especially holiday travel, presents its own unique stresses and challenges to people with reduced mobility, airports can make it easier for these passengers through device rental and repair options as well as new technology and services aimed at making travel more inclusive.


Southwest Wyoming Regional Airport – a leading personal transportation solutions company. With a goal of providing seamless travel experiences for anyone with reduced mobility, Scootaround joined forces with WHILL – makers of the cutting-edge Model Ci and Model A Intelligent Personal Electric Vehicles (EVs) – to help improve the current mobility-as-a-service (MaaS) model and to evolve personal mobility and transportation.