07-04-2025
Baltimore City reaches settlement to improve sidewalk, ramp accessibility for disabled pedestrians
Baltimore City reached a settlement that requires officials to increase the amount of accessible ramps and sidewalks.
The settlement comes after a group of pedestrians with mobility disabilities filed a claim alleging that many of the city's ramps and sidewalks are not accessible and violate the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
To resolve the lawsuit, the city entered into a
partial consent decree
in which officials agreed to devote a minimum of $44 million to build or fix thousands of ramps and sidewalks throughout Baltimore.
A consent decree is an agreement or settlement that resolves claims between two parties without either side having to admit liability or guilt.
They are often used to ensure businesses comply with certain laws.
A partial consent decree allows for specific issues to be resolved while other aspects are left unresolved.
Baltimore's partial consent decree requires compliance with the ADA and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. Under the agreement, the city will create new programs that will increase sidewalk accessibility for residents and visitors with mobility issues.
The city is also required to improve its 311 system that allows for requests and complaints related to accessibility at intersections and sidewalks.
In the third year of the partial consent decree, the city and the pedestrians who filed the claim will negotiate a long-term plan to make all of the city's ramps and sidewalks accessible.
"This partial consent decree puts in place the programs to ensure that Baltimore finally lives up to the promises of the Americans with Disabilities Act, so that people with mobility disabilities can navigate around the City of Baltimore just as safely and to the same extent as everyone else," said Madeleine Reichman, Senior Staff Attorney at Disability Rights Advocates.
Baltimore City officials said they
plan to invest $8 million in 2025
, and $12 million for each of the following three years to update their sidewalks and curbs.
The city will create a program with the Department of Transportation to manage the projects.
An ADA coordinator will also be appointed to focus on maintaining accessibility for pedestrians.
"The challenge posed by our city's sidewalks and curbs long predates the Americans with Disabilities Act and adequately changing our infrastructure poses a monumental task," Mayor Brandon Scott said. "However, under my administration, we are committed to taking every action necessary to set the City on track to come into compliance with the ADA, and ensure Baltimore is more accessible to our disabled community than ever before."
