Companion Guide to Video May 2014

www.fhwa.dot.gov/federal-aidessentials

Roadway curbs can be an insurmountable 

barrier for people with physical impairments. 

Curbs make sidewalk travel difficult and 

dangerous for anyone using mobility aids, 

especially for a person in a wheelchair. 

Pedestrians need accessible routes in the 

public right-of-way, and laws require 

agencies to provide these routes. 

Federal laws requiring provisions for equal 

access for people with disabilities have 

been in effect for decades. The 1968 

Architectural Barriers Act, the 1973 

Rehabilitation Act, the 1988 amendment to 

the Civil Rights Act, and the 1990 

Americans with Disabilities Act, or ADA, 

have helped provide equal opportunity to 

safe and accessible transportation systems. 

The Americans with Disabilities Act prohibits 

discrimination on the basis of disability in

employment, government services, public 

accommodations, commercial facilities, and 

transportation. Title II of the ADA applies to 

all public entities, including all State 

departments of transportation and local 

public agencies within the United States and 

its territories. 

Despite laws to provide accessible routes, 

pedestrians still face physical barriers to 

safe travel. Old roadways have not been 

Project Development

ADA Field Implementation

Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Requirements 

for Resurfacing Projects

Pavement resurfacing projects must include curb ramps and other similar 

features to make pedestrian facilities accessible to everyone
Federal-aid Essentials for Local Public Agencies

improved, and even newer facilities may not 

include fully accessible routes. 

Accessibility laws and guidance require the 

installation of curb ramps or other 

modifications when a project alters a 

roadway. An alteration is a change that 

affects or could affect the usability of all or a 

part of a building or a facility. Alteration of 

roadways may include reconstruction, 

rehabilitation, and the widening of streets. 

The United States Court of Appeals ruled in 

Kinney v. Yerusalim in 1993 that roadway 

pavement resurfacing constituted an 

alteration and that the installation of curb 

ramps is within the scope of such a project. 

Resurfacing projects are not always simple 

asphalt overlays. Micro-surfacing, in-place 

asphalt recycling, and cape seals are 

resurfacing treatments that trigger the ADA 

requirements for curb ramp accessibility. 

Maintenance activities to keep facilities in 

good repair do not require accessibility 

modifications. Examples of pavement 

maintenance treatments are chip seals, 

crack filling, and pavement patching. 

The United States Access Board provides 

standards and guidelines with the technical 

requirements for accessible pedestrian 

facilities. Curb ramp location, size, shape 

and detectable warning surfaces are critical 

details. 

A curb ramp must be built in accordance 

with the standards to the maximum extent 

technically or physically feasible. 

Sometimes curb ramps cannot be fully 

compliant because of existing infrastructure, 

terrain characteristics, or environmentally 

sensitive areas. Agencies must document 

deviations from the standards, including the 

reasons why full compliance is not feasible. 

Another challenge is that constructing 

proper curb ramps may add time and 

increase the cost of a resurfacing project. 

Good planning can mitigate the additional 
Federal-aid Essentials for Local Public Agencies

time and resources required for ADA 

compliance. 

One example of a community actively 

managing projects to meet the ADA 

requirements is the City of Auburn Plains. 

Auburn Plains planned a series of contracts 

for asphalt resurfacing of several streets. 

To meet ADA requirements, Auburn Plains 

needed to install curb ramps. 

The city had two options: it could include the 

curb ramps in the resurfacing contracts or 

issue a separate contract just for the 

installation of curb ramps. The city decided 

to issue a separate contract to a company 

with curb ramp installation expertise. By 

issuing a separate contract before the 

resurfacing project, the city was able to 

design and install curb ramps without 

affecting the primary work of resurfacing. 

The city received a better price and a better 

product. 

The Americans with Disabilities Act and 

other nondiscrimination authorities require 

accessible routes for pedestrians in the 

public right-of-way. If your project alters a 

roadway, including the various forms of 

resurfacing, you are required to provide 

accessible curb ramps. 

For more information about resurfacing 

projects ADA compliance, contact your state 

DOT or the FHWA Division Office.
Federal-aid Essentials for Local Public Agencies

The content of this 

document is not a 

substitute for 

information obtained 

from State departments 

of transportation, 

appropriate FHWA 

Division Offices, and 

applicable laws. 

Scenarios have been 

simplified for emphasis 

and do not necessarily 

reflect the actual range of 

requirements applicable 

to the scenario or this 

topic. This document

was created under 

contract number 

DTFH61-11-D-00026 by 

the Federal Highway 

Administration, U.S. 

Department of 

Transportation, and is 

offered to the public to 

heighten and focus 

awareness of Federal-aid 

requirements within the 

local public agencies 

community and 

reinforces the 

importance of these 

necessary policies, 

procedures, and 

practices.

This Companion Resource 

is the script content for 

the video production of 

the same name. 

Additional Resources

• USDOJ and USDOT Joint Technical Assistance on when curb ramps are 

required with resurfacing

http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/civilrights/programs/doj_fhwa_ta.cfm

• Glossary of Terms for resurfacing

http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/civilrights/programs/doj_fhwa_ta_glossary.cf

m

• FHWA’s Accessibility Resource Library

http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/accessibility/index.cfm

• U.S. Access Board's Proposed Guidelines for Pedestrian Facilities in the 

Public Right-of-Way

Public Rights-of-Way Accessibility Guidelines (PROWAG) Notice of 

Proposed Rule Making, July 26, 2011

• Federal regulations containing ADA standards

http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/CFR-2012-title49-vol1/pdf/CFR-2012-

title49-vol1-part37.pdf

• U.S. Access Board's ADA standards

http://www.access-board.gov/guidelines-and-standards/buildings-andsites/about-the-ada-standards/ada-standards

• Questions and answers for ADA/Section 504

http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/civilrights/programs/ada_sect504qa.htm#q11