AUG 30 1994


J. Keith Ausbrook
Counsel to the Municipal Castings
Fair Trade Council
Collier, Shannon, Rill & Scott
3050 K. Street, N.W., Suite 400
Washington, D.C. 20007

Dear Mr. Ausbrook:

        I am writing in response to your letter and as a follow up
to our meeting in which you requested guidance on how the
Standards for Accessible Design (Standards) issued under the
Americans with Disabilities Act apply to various types of
gratings used on streets and sidewalks. I apologize for our
delay in responding.

        The ADA authorizes the Department of Justice to provide
technical assistance to individuals and entities that have rights
or responsibilities under the Act. Pursuant to that authority,
this letter provides informal guidance to assist you in
understanding the ADA. However, this technical assistance does
not constitute a legal interpretation of the statute, and it is
not binding on the Department.

        The Standards for Accessible Design contain specific
requirements that apply to gratings that are located in walking
surfaces that are part of an accessible route. These provisions
also apply to walking surfaces that are located in the accessible
route at cross walks or curb ramps. Section 4.5.4 of the
Standards requires that these gratings shall have spaces no
greater than 1/2 inch wide as measured in the direction that is
parallel to the dominant direction of travel. Grates may have
elongated openings as long as the longer dimension is
perpendicular to the dominant direction of travel. There is no
restriction on the length of elongated openings perpendicular to
the dominant direction of travel.

        Gratings that do not meet the requirements of the Standards
may be used in any areas that are not part of an accessible route
or in any area adjacent to an accessible route as long as the
accessible route is at least 36" wide and provides an accessible
path around the grate and meets all the requirements of an
accessible route including slope and cross slope.

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        Gratings that do not meet the requirements of the Standards
may not be used within the accessible route. This requirement
addresses the needs of wheelchair users as well as the needs of
persons who walk with crutches, canes, and other mobility
devices.

        The Department's Standards for Accessible Design are based
on the ADA Accessibility Guidelines (ADAAG) as adopted by the
U.S. Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board
(Access Board), 1331 F Street, N.W., Suite 1000, Washington, D.C.
20004-1111.

        Proposals for changes to the ADAAG should be forwarded to
Mr. David Capozzi, Director of the Office of Technical and
Information Services at the Access Board.

        The Access Board recently issued an interim final rule
containing new guidelines for public rights-of-way. The
Department of Justice issued a notice of proposed rulemaking
(NPRM) on June 20, 1994, seeking comments on the Board's
guidelines prior to adopting them as new Standards for State and
local governments under title II. These changes may result in
changes to the requirements that apply to gratings. We have
enclosed a copy of the NPRM and the Access Board's interim final
rule; additional copies are available to the public from the
Department through calling our toll free number, 1-800-514-0301.

        We hope this information is helpful to you and the Municipal
Castings Fair Trade Council. I look forward to working with you
in the future.
                                Sincerely,

                              John L. Wodatch
                                  Chief
                           Public Access Section

Enclosures

cc: Records Chrono Wodatch Breen Lusher
    N:\UDD\JOHNSONT\LUSHER

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