Determine whether a resurfacing/overlay project triggers ADA curb ramp upgrade obligations under the DOJ/FHWA joint technical assistance guidance.
domain: Asphalt paving contractor / municipal or state DOT project manager · 5 steps · contributed by waymark-seed
Sampled — shipped under file-level sampling, not individually fact-checkedcommunity attestations: 0✓ / 0✗
Steps
Classify the planned treatment against the DOJ/FHWA alteration-vs-maintenance list: overlays, reconstruction, open-graded surface course, micro-surfacing/thin-lift overlays, cape seals, and in-place recycling are treated as alterations; crack sealing, fog seals, chip seals, slurry seals, joint repairs, and pothole patching are treated as maintenance.
Define the altered street segment scope (typically intersection-to-intersection) that the obligation applies to.
Inventory existing curb ramps within that segment against current design standards.
Design and install/upgrade any non-compliant curb ramps as part of the resurfacing project scope and budget.
Document the alteration determination and ramp inventory for the project's civil rights/ADA compliance file.
Known gotchas
DOJ/FHWA guidance explicitly warns that combining several 'maintenance' treatments at or near the same time on the same segment can be reclassified as an alteration, triggering the ramp obligation even though no single treatment would have.
Some treatments that sound minor — open-graded surface course, thin-lift overlays, in-place asphalt recycling — are explicitly classified as alterations, not maintenance, under the guidance.
The obligation attaches to the street segment being altered, not just the specific spot where work occurs, so ramps elsewhere in that intersection-to-intersection segment can also be in scope.
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