© 2024 Hawaiʻi Public Radio
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Honolulu Completes ADA Requirements from Federal Consent Decree

Mayor Caldwell's Office

The City and County of Honolulu has reached an agreement in completing a street improvement project that was ordered under a 1997 federal consent decree.

The city recently reached an agreement with plaintiffs Jim McConnell and Mark Edwards. The parties agreed to close out the decree addressing street and sidewalk accessibility under the Americans with Disabilities Act, or ADA, which was passed by Congress in 1990.

Under the consent decree the following projects and initiatives were completed by the city:

  • Adoption and implementation of a Self-Evaluation and Transition Plan pursuant to Title II of the ADA.
  • Developments and implementations of a comprehensive program and guidelines to address ongoing and future curb ramp installations.
  • Identification of 6,342 intersections in need of ADA improvements, of which only 238 unconstructed curb ramps remain.

Mayor Kirk Caldwell provided the following statement on the agreement, "As we become a more sustainable and resilient community through the creation of protected bike lanes, bike sharing and the implementation of our Complete Streets program, the improvements that resulted from the federal oversight will have a positive and lasting impact on our current and future residents."

Casey Harlow was an HPR reporter and occasionally filled in as local host of Morning Edition and All Things Considered.
Related Stories