As the Missouri Legislature debates whether or not to allow autonomous vehicles to have access to the state’s roads, some say the benefits for the disabled community would be immense. Things most Missourians take for granted, like easy access to transportation, are huge barriers for more than 900,000 Missourians with disabilities, according to Lori Becker, chief executive director of the Starkloff Disability Institute in St. Louis. House Bill 2069, sponsored by Rep. Brandon Phelps, R-Warrensburg, would provide a legal framework for companies — namely, the California-based self-driving taxi service Waymo — to come to Missouri. Waymo has announced it would like to bring its services to St. Louis, and eventually the whole state. Officials from the company told the House Emerging Issues Committee in January that they were already collecting street data in special cars to allow their artificial intelligence systems to adapt to the city. The House supported Phelp’s bill with bipartisan support (and over bipartisan reservations) and sent it to the Senate on March 12. The Senate Transportation, Infrastructure and Public Safety Committee scheduled a hearing on the bill for 11 a.m. Wednesday. For Becker, the new technology would present disabled Missourians with improved access to cheaper transportation that allows them to retain their dignity. Becker is blind and because of that, cannot drive or get a license. During the past 10 years, since ride sharing services like Uber and Lyft have become available, she said she has taken more than 19,000 trips easily costing her more than $75,000. “The first and last mile to public transport is often not safe or inaccessible,” Becker said. “Door-to-door transit is a much better fit for Missourians with disabilities.” In order to get to a bus stop to take public transit, it typically requires about a mile of walking, she said.