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. 2024;13(1):10.3390/laws13010005.
doi: 10.3390/laws13010005.

The Americans with Disabilities Act and Equal Access to Public Spaces

Barry A Whaley  1 , Jonathan G Martinis  1 , Giuseppe F Pagano  1 , Sara Barthol  1 , Jessica Senzer  1 , Pamela R Williamson  1 , Peter D Blanck  1
Affiliations

The Americans with Disabilities Act and Equal Access to Public Spaces

Barry A Whaley et al. Laws. 2024.

Abstract

Since the passage of the landmark Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, the United States federal government, states, and localities have passed laws and created policies intended to ensure that people with disabilities had full and equal access to public spaces. Nevertheless, more than three decades after the ADA, people with disabilities continue to face architectural and other barriers to community inclusion and participation. This article describes laws, policies, and initiatives that are implemented in the United States at the federal, state, and local levels to address these barriers, examines their effectiveness, and describes the views of advocates working in furtherance of the rights of people with disabilities and the inclusiveness of public spaces. We conclude by providing brief recommendations for ways federal, state, and local governments may ensure people with disabilities have full and equal access to public spaces.

Keywords: accessibility; disability law; disability rights; discrimination; public spaces.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflicts of Interest: The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

References

Primary Sources

    1. 28 CFR 26 Americans with Disabilities Act Title III Regulations, U.S. Department of Justice sec. Part 36 Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Disability in Public Accommodations and Commercial Facilities (15 September 2010). See sec. 36.304(a).
    1. (Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990) Americans with Disabilities Act. U.S Code, vol. 42, secs 35.151(i)(1),. 12101(a)!1), (a)(3), b(1), 12117 (1990).
    1. Cohen v. City of Culver City, 754 F.3d 690 (9th Cir. 2014).
    1. Culvahouse v. City of Laporte, 679 F. Supp. 2d 931.
    1. (Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act of 2015) Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act. sec. 1201. (2015).

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    1. American Association of People with Disabilities. 2020b. Transportation. Available online: www.aapd.com/advocacy/transportation (accessed on 13 February 2020).
    1. Blanck Peter David. 2020. Essay. In Disability Law and Policy (Concepts and Insights). St. Paul: Foundation Press.
    1. Blanck Peter, Baker Angel, Barrett Cory, Battisto Joseph, Gallerstein Jake, Irogue Eromwon, Martinis Jonathan, Nanni Anthony, Rees Mercedees, Torres Crystal, and et al. 2021. Inclusive Public Space: Law, Universality and Difference in the Accessibility of Streets. Legal Report on file with authors and University of Leeds. Leeds: University of Leeds.

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