As part of continuous efforts to support transportation accessibility, the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) published a final rule that will increase accessibility for transit users by providing local governments and other owner-operators of the public right-of-way clear, uniform, and technically defined standards of accessibility to guide their design decisions for new construction and alterations of transit stops in public right-of-way.

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) directs USDOT to adopt standards for accessible public transportation facilities that are consistent with final minimum accessibility guidelines issued by the Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board (U.S. Access Board.) The final rule adopts the U.S. Access Board’s accessibility guidelines for pedestrian facilities in the public right-of-way as the Department’s regulatory standards for new construction and alterations of transit stops in the public right-of-way.

USDOT’s adoption of the guidelines means that there will no longer be a need for each state or local agency to evaluate sources of guidance and make independent determination on how to design transit stops and other facilities to achieve accessibility for different people. Users of the transportation system will also benefit from uniformity in accessibility-related design standards.

The final rule becomes effective on January 17, 2025.

In addition to this final rule, the USDOT has taken several steps to improve the safety and accessibility of America’s multi-modal transportation system for people with disabilities and all members of the traveling public.

These include several improvements to air travel, such as ensuring safe and dignified accommodations for wheelchair users, issuing the Airline Passengers with Disabilities Bill of Rights, new lavatory specifications, funding accessibility improvements at airports, and laying the groundwork for future actions in regards to wheelchair accessibility.

The USDOT also targeted multimodal transportation by funding over $1 billion in projects through the All Stations Accessibility Program, helping state DOTs to implement their ADA transition plans, and enforcing ADA compliance in existing and new investments in Amtrak stations and vehicles.