Metro

TLC approves first taxi built for wheelchairs

It might soon be a little bit easier for wheelchair-bound New Yorkers to ride a cab in the city — but advocates for the disabled say its still not easy enough.

The Taxi and Limousine Commission today approved the first-ever taxi vehicle built specifically for wheelchair riders, complete with a special ramp for easy access and an extra spacious interior room.

Taxis owners now have the option of buying the American-made MV-1 for service, although they are not required to have a wheel-chair accessible car.

Ronnie Ellen Raymond, who uses a wheelchair and was given a ride in the just-approved vehicle, said that it was the “most comfortable” experience she’s ever had in a car.

“The spaciousness on the inside was unparalleled,” said the Upper East side woman.

While praising the TLC for introducing the MV-1 into the fleet, the advocates for the disabled expressed disappointment that the city wasn’t mandating all taxis to become wheel-chair accessible.

Jean Ryan, a Brooklyn woman who has used a wheelchair since 1995, said she has never once been able to hail a cab in the city.

“You see hundreds [of cabs] going by,” she said. “Once I needed to go to the doctor so bad and I just couldn’t find one.”

Finding a wheelchair accessible cab is akin to “an Elvis sighting,” she said.

About 2 percent of the city’s over 13,000 yellow taxis are handicap accessible. Those are retrofitted versions of cars approved for service, not ones that were built to handle wheelchairs.

“The Americans with Disabilities Act is not an option,” said Assemblyman Micah Kellner, who has cerebral palsy.

“It’s a civil right to be able to hail a cab.”

TLC Commissioner David Yassky acknowledged that more needs to be done.

“We need to figure out a better solution that we have today,” he said.

“There are active conversations within the administration as to what the next step should be,” he said.