ADA Lawsuits Building Against ODOT
A group of eight Oregon citizens is filing a lawsuit against the ODOT for its alleged failure to meet standards of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
The latest man to join the lawsuit is 31-year-old Jordan Ohlde, who suffers from cerebral palsy and users a motorized wheelchair to get around. Ohlde says he has a significant amount of difficulty traveling on Greenwood Avenue, which is under Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) control.
The lawsuit asks ODOT to build curb ramps where they are not already in place and to fix the many existing ramps that are in deteriorating condition. According to the ODOT, 16.5 percent of all required curb ramps are missing in the state, and another 52 percent of ramps do not meet ADA compliance standards.
An organization called Disability Rights Oregon that champions the rights of people with disabilities across the state had attempted to negotiate a solution over the last year with the ODOT. However, those negotiations stalled and ultimately failed, and the organization believed legal action was the only course to get the state to take action and meet ADA standards to help people with disabilities to get around without additional (and unnecessary) difficulty.
A representative from DRO said the ramp issue is just one of many impacting people with disabilities all over the state, and that the issues are present in both large cities like Portland and smaller suburban and rural towns.
An ODOT representative said the agency has set aside $18 million to target missing and non-compliant curb ramps between 2018 and 2021. However, the complaints about accessibility have been coming in from residents for the last couple of decades, and many believe the state has gotten away with a lack of compliance for far too long already.
To learn more about the compliance standards businesses and organizations must meet under the Americans with Disabilities Act, contact the team at Erie Custom Signs today. We are pleased to work with you to outfit you with ADA-compliant signage.
