Final ABA Guidelines For Outdoor Developed Areas and Trails on Federal Lands are available

Access   Board Issues ABA  

Final   Guidelines For

Outdoor Developed Areas, Including Accessible Trails

On September 26 the   U.S. Access Board issued new accessibility guidelines for outdoor areas on   federal lands. The guidelines provide detailed specifications for   accessible trails, picnic and camping areas, viewing areas, beach access   routes, and other components of outdoor developed areas when newly built or   altered. They also provide exceptions for situations where terrain and other   factors make compliance impracticable.

Requirements for trails and   pedestrian access routes address surface characteristics, width, grade, and   cross slope. Exceptions are included for these and other provisions under   certain conditions stipulated in the guidelines. Departures are allowed where   compliance is not practicable because of terrain or prevailing construction   practices. Exceptions are also recognized where compliance would conflict   with mandates such as the Endangered Species Act and other laws or where it   would fundamentally alter a site’s function or purpose.

Under this rulemaking, the   Access Board is first developing guidelines under the Architectural Barriers   Act (ABA) for outdoor developed areas managed by the federal government.   Guidelines for non-federal sites covered by the Americans with Disabilities   Act (ADA) will be developed separately at a later date. The federal   guidelines originate from recommendations that were prepared by the Outdoor   Developed Areas Regulatory Negotiation Committee, an advisory panel chartered   by the Access Board, of which American Trails was a member.

The rule applies to federal   agencies that develop outdoor areas for recreational purposes, including the   National Park Service, U.S. Forest Service, Fish and Wildlife Service, Army   Corps of Engineers, Bureau of Land Management, and Bureau of Reclamation. The   new requirements will become mandatory on November 25, 2013 as part of the Architectural Barriers Act Accessibility Standards,   which apply to facilities that are built, altered, or leased with federal   funds.

Learn more and hear   questions answered at the Access Board webinar on the Federal Accessibility Guidelines   scheduled for October 17 from 2:30 to 4:00 pm (EASTERN TIME). Sign-up at www.accessibilityonline.org/Schedule/.