By Heather Haddon

In a victory for cab drivers and disabled New Yorkers, the mayor’s office agreed late Thursday to change the way garages dispatch handicap-accessible taxis. Last year, the city implemented a system where the disabled could call 311 and handicapped-accessible taxis tracked through BlackBerries would be dispatched to them based on location. Cabbies protested that it was dangerous to fumble with their BlackBerries while driving, and many refused to participate. “We had tons of complaints,” said Michael Harris, executive director of the Disabled Riders Coalition. “Every single time I called, there were no drivers available.” After pressure from the taxi union, the city agreed to rout cars based on GPS during a meeting brokered by the New York Taxi Workers Alliance. Under the city program, 311 calls for wheelchair-accessible taxis were dispatched by zones. Van drivers had to constantly report their zone location to dispatchers through BlackBerries. But many drivers considered it an inconvenience.

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