Companion Guide to Video August 2012

www.fhwa.dot.gov/federal-aidessentials

Civil Rights

Americans with Disabilities Act

Disability Protections

The ability to fully participate in all civic, social, 

and personal aspects of our lives is a fundamental 

right for all individuals in the United States 

traversing our public rights-of-way. 

However, careful attention and consideration is 

often necessary to ensure that these rights apply 

equally to individuals with disabilities. For more 

than 38 years, the Federal government has sought 

to ensure nondiscrimination, participation and 

accessibility for everyone.

As a remedy, Congress passed two significant 

pieces of civil rights legislation:

• Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 

1973, commonly referred to as 504, and 

• The Americans with Disabilities Act of 

1990, also known as ADA. 

Both of these laws help to provide 

disability protections.

Their purpose is to guarantee that all people with 

disabilities can take part in, and benefit from, the 

programs, services and activities offered in your 

community. In other words, as the local public 

agency (LPA), it is your responsibility to make sure 

that individuals with disabilities have equivalent 

access to participate.

Before we go any further, let’s make sure you 

understand why there are two laws. While the 

purpose of both ADA and 504 provide similar 

protections, they differ in that Section 504 applies 

only to those public entities that receive Federal 

financial assistance. On the other hand, the ADA 

applies to all entities, both public and private, 

regardless of funding source. 

Please remember, your most important 

responsibility, under either of these two laws, is to 

eliminate discrimination and ensure accessibility to 

programs, services and activities in your 

community for persons with disabilities.

Compliance with certain Federal regulations ensures your 

Federal-aid projects accommodate people with disabilities
Federal-aid Essentials for Local Public Agencies

As an LPA, the ADA Title II specifically requires 

confirmation that all programs, services and 

activities, when viewed in their entirety, are 

accessible to people with disabilities. 

The term “disability” includes: 

• Mobility-related physical disabilities

• Hearing or vision disabilities

• Cognitive disabilities

• Any other disability recognized by the 

ADA

Providing accessible programs and services 

means the removal of all barriers that hamper 

the ability of persons with disabilities to fully 

participate in the civic, social or personal 

aspects of their lives within your community. 

This means not only access to public buildings, 

but also access to public rights-of-way. Your 

public right-of-way system is an example of a 

program that must be accessible for individuals 

with disabilities. The public right-of-way system 

is the network of streets and sidewalks that 

create public pedestrian access within your 

jurisdictional boundaries.

This system includes, but is not limited to:

• Sidewalks

• Entrance and curb ramps

• Designated parking spaces

Also, you are required to confirm that your 

policies and procedures are not discriminatory 

for individuals with disabilities.

Simply stated, confirm that all barriers that limit 

participation by individuals with disabilities are 

removed -- to level the playing field. 

To do this, the laws outline specific implementation 

requirements and actions you are to take within your 

community to ensure that individuals with disabilities 

are able to fully participate. One specific requirement 

of these laws is to execute the following series of steps 

to eliminate disability discrimination and achieve 

compliance with these laws: 

1. Designate an ADA coordinator 

2. Develop and post an ADA policy statement 

3. Develop and post grievance-complaint 

procedures 

4. Complete a self-evaluation of policies, 

services, communications, programs, and 

activities and their effects on persons with 

disabilities

5. When structural changes to existing facilities 

are necessary, develop and carry out a 

transition plan in order to make a program, 

service or activity accessible to persons with 

disabilities.

In summary, compliance with the requirements of ADA 

and 504 to ensure accessibility for individuals with 

disabilities saves you the time, effort, and money 

associated with complaints, grievances and even 

litigation. Ultimately, compliance will create a 

community where all people, including individuals with 

disabilities, are able to exercise their right to full 

participation. 
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

DTFH63-11-F-00066 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. 

Web Resources

• FHWA position on ADA implementation and Section 504

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

• Discussion of major changes in ADA standards for accessible design

http://www.ada.gov/regs2010/ADAregs2010.htm

• Access Board ADA standards for accessible design for transportation 

facilities

http://access-board.gov/ada-aba/ada-standards-dot.cfm

• Dept of Justice ADA standards for accessible design

http://www.ada.gov/regs2010/2010ADAStandards/2010ADAstandards.ht

m#titleII

• Current text of the ADA of 1990, including changes from ADA Amendments 

Act of 2008

http://www.ada.gov/pubs/ada.htm

• Text of Rehabilitation Act as amended

http://www.access-board.gov/enforcement/Rehab-Act-text/intro.htm