THE NATURE OF ADA'S SIDEWALK CROSS-SLOPES REQUIREMENTS: A REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE

It is the long-term intent of the ADA that publicly available services along a public street be accessible to people with disabilities via a continuous unobstructed pedestrian circulation network. Almost all streets, with the exception of rural roads and highways, will (when altered) need to provide an accessible sidewalk wherever feasible. This work describes existing research and science related to sidewalk cross-slope requirements in detail. It also summarizes the history and spirit of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), discusses relevant court decisions, and identifies key ADA cross-sloperelated requirements (and identifies any applicable caveats). Current practices rely on a combination of strict – but limited – physical solutions and some programmatic solutions that contain much uncertainty as to how and when they should be applied. Very little existing work considers the effort and other access differences that result from changes in cross slope. Thus, additional research is needed to ensure sound policy regarding user access to transportation facilities.