Companion Guide to Video August 2012

www.fhwa.dot.gov/federal-aidessentials

In our daily lives we routinely encounter stairs, 

sidewalk curbs, and have the need to transport 

ourselves along and over uneven and cracked 

pavement. These routine activities of navigating 

through our communities can present significant 

challenges for people with disabilities that could 

mean the difference between being a spectator 

rather than a participant. Without the proper 

features and facilities that meet the needs of 

individuals with disabilities in our buildings, 

government offices, places of entertainment, 

and public rights-of-way environments, to name 

a few, individuals with disabilities are denied an 

equal opportunity to fully participate in today's 

complex society.

As far back as 1968, the U.S. Congress 

recognized and condemned the “invisibility of 

the disabled in America,” thereby passing 

legislation to “level the playing field” for all 

people in the United States. 

As local public agencies, or LPAs, 

you must be aware of the 

foundational laws enacted to 

promote accessibility and to make 

discrimination against individuals 

with disabilities a thing of the past.

The Civil Rights Act of 1964 addressed the 

discriminatory treatment of minorities and 

women based on their race, color, religion, sex 

and national origin. However, this act did not 

include individuals with disabilities as a 

protected class. In subsequent years, Congress 

passed four major pieces of civil rights 

legislation to correct this deficiency. They were: 

• The Architectural Barriers Act of 1968

• The Civil Rights Act of 1968

• Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 

1973 

• The Americans with Disabilities Act of 

1990

Let’s take a closer look at these four pieces of 

legislation.

Civil Rights

American with Disabilities Act

Foundations of the ADA/Section 504

Protecting the rights of persons with disabilities helps agencies 

accommodate all users
Federal-aid Essentials for Local Public Agencies

First, the Architectural Barriers Act of 1968 

required buildings and on-site facilities designed, 

constructed, altered or leased with Federal 

funds to comply with Accessible Design 

Standards, which were, at the time, the Uniform 

Federal Accessibility Standards. The Uniform 

Federal Accessibility Standards marks one of 

the first efforts to describe how to make facilities 

accessible and to ensure everyone has access 

to the built environment. The Uniform 

Accessibility Standards are no longer 

recommended for use on Federal-aid projects 

since the implementation of the Americans with 

Disabilities Act Accessibility Guidelines. 

The Civil Rights Act of 1968 prohibits 

discrimination on the basis of race, color, 

religion, sex, or national origin in the rental or 

sale of housing. However, this law did not 

protect people with disabilities. Not until 1988 

was this law amended to add two new classes: 

people with disabilities and families with 

children. 

Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, or 

Section 504, prohibits discrimination against 

people with disabilities in federally funded 

programs and activities. When your agency 

accepts Federal funds on a transportation 

project, your entire transportation program 

becomes subject to Section 504 requirements. 

Section 504 was the first law requiring curb 

ramps to be installed on Federal-aid projects to 

improve accessibility. When curb ramps are 

installed on today’s projects, Section 504 

requires you to incorporate detectable warnings 

to aid persons with visual impairments. The 

requirements of Section 504 apply to States and 

LPAs that use Federal funds. However it does 

not apply to private-sector employers providing 

public accommodations, Federal government 

agencies, and public entities that do not use 

federal funds. 

The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, or 

ADA, prohibits discrimination on the basis of 

disability in employment, access to public 

services, public accommodations, commercial 

facilities, and transportation. One goal of the 

Americans with Disabilities Act was to remedy 

gaps in previous legislation that, while providing 

civil rights protections, did not fully extend those 

protections to persons with disabilities. All State 

departments of transportation, or State DOTs,

and LPAs in the United States fall within the 

regulatory definition of “public entity” for Title II 

of the Americans with Disabilities Act. 

Accordingly, all regulatory requirements of Title 

II of the Americans with Disabilities Act apply to 

you as the LPA, as well as other public entities, 

even if you do not receive Federal financial 

assistance.

The U.S. Architectural and Barriers Compliance 

Board, or Access Board, is a coordinating body 

among Federal agencies that directly represents 

the public, particularly people with disabilities. 

Created in 1973 to ensure access to federally 

funded facilities, it is comprised of officials from 

most of the Federal departments, and members 

of the public appointed by the President, the 

majority of whom must have a disability. 

Today, the Access Board carries several 

responsibilities in addition to being a leading 

source of information on accessible design. The 

Access Board is responsible for enforcing the 

Architectural Barriers Act of 1968, and providing 

initial versions and updates for the Americans 

with Disabilities Act Accessibility Guidelines, or 

ADAAG.

The Americans with Disabilities Act Accessibility 

Guidelines are, amongst other things, the 

standard for access relating to the built 

environment. When the Americans with 

Disabilities Act Accessibility Guidelines for 

buildings were originally published, accessible 

pedestrian facilities within the public right-of-way 

were not fully addressed. 

In response, the Access Board created the 

Public Rights of Way Access Advisory 
Federal-aid Essentials for Local Public Agencies

Committee to specifically address the subject of 

pedestrian accessibility in public rights-of-way. 

One of this committee’s key accomplishments 

was the development of the draft Public Rightsof-Way Accessibility Guidelines, also known as 

PROWAG. The PROWAG is being created 

specifically to address pedestrian accessibility in 

the public right-of-way environment and to fill the 

void left by the Americans with Disabilities Act 

Accessibility Guidelines, which currently applies 

primarily as a building standard. 

The Public Rights-of-Way Access Advisory 

Committee and the Access Board are currently 

finalizing the PROWAG. The PROWAG is not 

required to be used on Federal-aid projects until 

fully adopted by the Federal government. 

However, your agency can use it as a best 

practice or model for developing policies on 

accessible design. The Federal Highway 

Administration, or FHWA, also recommends 

applying the draft PROWAG to projects when 

the Americans with Disabilities Act Accessibility 

Guidelines or Section 504 requirements do not 

fully address a design or construction situation. 

If you receive Federal financial assistance from 

FHWA, you have a responsibility to ensure your 

programs, services, activities and construction 

projects comply fully with the provisions of Title 

II of the American with Disabilities Act and 

Section 504. 

There are four major goals of the Americans 

with Disabilities Act: equal opportunity, full 

participation, independent living, and economic 

self-sufficiency. In support of the Americans with 

Disabilities Act’s goals, as the LPA, you must 

ensure that all programs, services and facilities 

are accessible for persons with disabilities. 

Increasing your knowledge of the rights of 

persons with disabilities will ensure that you do 

not unknowingly deny them their right to 

exercise their freedom of choice. As an LPA in a 

position to provide or influence the delivery of 

services to persons with disabilities, you should 

assess your decisions against these questions: 

• Will my decision or actions help or 

hinder persons with disabilities from 

exercising their rights?

• Do my programs or services meet any 

or all of the Americans with Disabilities 

Act’s goals and Section 504 

requirements?

• Do my programs or services remove 

any barriers that prevent persons with 

disabilities from exercising their rights?

Increasing your knowledge of the legislation that 

protects the rights of persons with disabilities will 

help you, as an LPA, accommodate all users 

and allow everyone the freedom of choice, and 

opportunity to fully participate in society. 
Federal-aid Essentials for Local Public Agencies

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• U.S Department of Health & Human Services Office of Civil Rights fact 

sheet on Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act 

http://www.hhs.gov/ocr/civilrights/resources/factsheets/504.pdf

• U.S. Department of Justice’s American with Disabilities Act Web site

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

• 2005 U.S. Access Board’s proposed accessibility guidelines for 

pedestrian facilities in the public right-of-way

http://access-board.gov/prowac/draft.htm 

• 2011 U.S. Access Board’s proposed accessibility guidelines for 

pedestrian facilities in the public right-o- way

http://access-board.gov/prowac/nprm.htm

• 2010 U.S. Department of Justice ADA standards for accessible design

http://www.ada.gov/2010ADAstandards_index.htm