Washington, D.C. - Following incidents at JFK and Austin airports where passengers were forced to remain on planes for as long as 11 hours, U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA) today announced that she is planning to introduce a "Passengers' Bill of Rights" in the Senate to ensure that air travelers are not unnecessarily held on planes or deprived access to basic food, water, and hygiene.

Boxer said, "I've been stuck on the tarmac many times in my travel back and forth to California. Sometimes with the weather and traffic, it's unavoidable. But to keep passengers -- which usually include infants and the elderly -- on a plane for eleven hours in the worst of conditions is absurd. If a plane is stuck on the tarmac or at the gate for hours, a passenger should have the right to deplane. No one should be held hostage on an aircraft when clearly they can find a way to get people off safely."

Boxer's legislation would require air carriers to ensure passengers access to necessary services such as food, water, and adequate restroom facilities. The legislation would also give passengers the right to safely deplane if the aircraft has remained on the ground for more than three hours after the aircraft doors have been closed.

The incidents mentioned in Boxer's press release are elaborated in press accounts.

The title of the linked article, "Govt.: Air Passengers Have No Recourse," is misleading. While the passengers have no basis for a legal suit against the thoughtless airlines, the passengers do have recourse to market mechanisms: don't fly on those airlines. If JetBlue is prone to caging passengers on the tarmac for 11 hours, that's a huge price to pay for a cheaper ticket.

[You are invited to visit www.cehwiedel.com, where I write about many topics other than the members of the California delegation to the United States Senate.]