As part of an effort to educate the public about priority seating and wheelchair priority seating, the Transit Authority has plastered posters on subway cars and buses, reminding riders that it is against the law to deny their priority seat to a disabled person when asked. The campaign, which had been tried previously, also cautions riders that not all disabilities are visible.
   The Americans with Disabilities Act defines a disability as one that affects major life functions, a description that can be applied to people whose illnesses or conditions range from cerebral palsy, epilepsy, lupus and blindness to someone who is undergoing chemotherapy treatments, using a wheelchair or has suffered congestive heart failure.
   As far as pregnancy is concerned, Paul Fleuranges, vice president of communications at the NYC Transit, said that, although it may not be a disability, chivalry is always preferable.
   “Pregnancy in and of itself would not be classified as a disability, but pregnancy with complications would be,” Fleuranges said. “I think the issue of whether someone offers a seat to a pregnant woman is really an issue of common sense courtesy.”
   The rule will be enforced by the New York City Police Department, Fleuranges said. He stressed the fact that the initiative is a public information campaign and is not intended to foreshadow an NYPD crackdown of any sort.
   Jean Ryan, a spokesperson for the advocacy group Disabled in Action, said she has mixed feelings about the campaign.
   “I think it is a good idea to raise awareness that the seats are there and the need is there,” Ryan said. “So many people just head to the seat on the bus or subway and don’t think about it. But what about the people with invisible disabilities? Will the enforcers make them prove it?”
   Ryan said she has firsthand experience with the unfamiliarity many riders have with priority seating rules.
   “When I used a cane, it was rare that anyone gave up their seat for me on the subway,” she said. “I would head for the pole and hang on for dear life, hoping I would not fall down.”
   Jenn SanAngelo, from Astoria, said that lately she has become jaded by all the extra fees the MTA and its subagency NYC Transit have imposed upon their customers. She said the new fine, though great in theory, is flawed.
   “As a law, I feel it’s unenforceable and you’ll have the inevitable ‘what defines disabled’ question,” SanAngelo said. “We can’t rely on the MTA to teach common courtesy that is clearly lacking in today’s society. So often I see pregnant women, the elderly and people on crutches holding on while young professionals sit and pretend not to notice. It’s sad that we live in a world where this topic is even debated.”