ADA drop-off zones set for completion this year at the Capitol

WASHINGTON — Two new drop-off and pick-up zones intended for visitors to the Capitol with disabilities are nearing completion and could be ready by the time lawmakers return after the November election, Architect of the Capitol staff said.

Members of the House Administration Committee and disability advocates got a briefing on the project Thursday, gathering near a trapezoidal cutout of concrete and gravel on First Street SE, across from the Library of Congress. The other zone, servicing the Senate side, will be located just north on First Street NE, across from the Supreme Court at the intersection of Maryland Avenue NE.

“I envision this being done by the 12th of November,” said Jacob Edwards, a civil engineer in the AOC’s Office of the Chief Engineer.

That’s when lawmakers are set to come back for a busy postelection session, bringing a renewed stream of advocates, lobbyists and visitors to the campus in the waning days of the 118th Congress.

Disability advocates, who identified the lack of suitable drop-off areas years ago, said it was a promising sign. The ADA drop-off and pick-up zones were one of more than 200 recommendations made at the end of the 117th Congress by the House Select Committee on Modernization.

“I think it really shows that the campus and Capitol Hill is for everyone,” said Heather Ansley, associate executive director at Paralyzed Veterans of America. “Whether you have a disability, have a wheelchair, it doesn’t matter. You are welcome and your voice is needed.”

Barriers to access persist at the Capitol, despite work in recent years to make it more accessible. In a 2023 report, the Office of Congressional Workplace Rights found 567 barriers across various parts of the campus, including many that would pose a problem for mobility device users, such as inadequate curb ramps or changes in level on exterior routes.

When it comes to unloading passengers, there are few existing places where vans with lifts or other vehicles can safely pull over and let out visitors with disabilities. A roundabout near the Garfield Monument is available, but it’s at the bottom of a hill and in an area often used by tour buses. A cab stand outside the Rayburn House Office Building is another option, but it is heavily trafficked and the lines of cars that often form make it less than ideal.

The new ADA drop-off zones will be more visible and more convenient, Ansley said.

“Now we have a place all to ourselves,” said Carl Blake, CEO of Paralyzed Veterans of America.

Work began on the project in early August, and initial estimates put the completion date at the end of summer recess. Edwards said that date has slipped because granite pavers that will be used to finish the project take between six and 12 weeks to be cut and delivered.

“We did not realize that the foundry was going to take such a long time to prepare that,” Edwards said. The granite pavers are expected to be delivered in mid-October, he said.

Deputy AOC Joe Campbell said the total cost of the House-side drop-off zone was around $255,000, which does not include the work happening simultaneously on the Senate side. Legislative Branch appropriators allocated $450,000 in the fiscal 2024 funding bill for the project.

Oklahoma Republican Rep. Stephanie Bice, who chairs the House Administration Modernization Subcommittee, took up the issue this Congress and helped coordinate with the AOC and other support agencies.

“I’m just thrilled that we’ve been able to see progress,” Bice said. “I thought this shouldn’t be all that difficult, but I think the coordination piece was challenging. … It’s really exciting to be able to finally move this forward.”

The area is currently blocked off by orange safety fencing and cones and features a prominent pile of dirt and gravel. But the zones should start to take form in the coming weeks, Campbell said, as the granite pavers are installed to conceal the concrete and aggregate sidewalk is built over the gravel.

“This is exciting,” said Wisconsin Republican Rep. Bryan Steil, chairman of the House Administration panel. “This is stuff that should’ve been done a long time ago. But nothing’s easy, so it’s exciting to actually get it done. It’ll be great when we’re back and have this open and operational.”