Title of Regulation: 24VAC30-630. Rules Governing Person with Disability Traffic Signs (adding 24VAC30-630-10, 24VAC30-630-20).

Statutory Authority: § 46.2-830.2 of the Code of Virginia.

Effective Date: October 31, 2018.

Agency Contact: JoAnne P. Maxwell, Agency Regulatory Coordinator, Governance and Legislative Affairs Division, Department of Transportation, 1401 East Broad Street, Richmond, VA 23219, telephone (804) 786-1830, FAX (804) 225-4700, or email joanne.maxwell@vdot.virginia.gov.

Summary:

Pursuant to Chapter 432 of the 2018 Acts of Assembly, which requires the Department of Transportation to establish regulations governing the installation of signs informing drivers that a person with a disability may be present in or around the roadway, the new regulation establishes who qualifies for a sign, how an individual requests a sign, and the requirements to which signs shall conform, including those in the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices for Streets and Highways and the Virginia Supplement to the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices for Streets and Highways.

CHAPTER 630
RULES GOVERNING PERSON WITH DISABILITY TRAFFIC SIGNS

24VAC30-630-10. Requests for signs.

A. Any person who is deaf, blind, or deaf-blind; any person with autism or an intellectual or developmental disability as defined in § 37.2-100 of the Code of Virginia; or the agent of any such person may submit a request to the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) by filling out a Request for Person with Disability Sign Form and submitting the completed form to the local VDOT office in the area where the sign is requested. The submitted form must include (i) medical certification that such person meets the disability requirement and (ii) the location of the requested sign.

B. Signs shall conform to the edition of the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices for Streets and Highways (MUTCD) and the Virginia Supplement to the MUTCD in 24VAC30-315-10.

C. The requestor shall notify the VDOT office to which the original request was made of any change in circumstances such that the sign is no longer necessary (e.g., when the person with a disability relocates).

24VAC30-630-20. Signs; type, size, color, location, and installation.

A. Signs warning drivers to be aware of persons with disabilities must be posted on a non-limited access highway maintained by the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) and shall be installed in advance of the location where a person with a disability may be on or near the roadway, such that motorists may effectively perceive and respond to the signs.

B. The type, size, color, installation, and specific location of signs shall be determined at VDOT's discretion using engineering judgment in accordance with related VDOT procedures and regulations (including the MUTCD and the Virginia Supplement to the MUTCD as referenced in 24VAC30-630-10).

C. Signs warning drivers to be aware of persons with disabilities may not be posted:

1. Where any pedestrian activity is highly discouraged due to safety concerns.

2. Where they may conflict with, are redundant to, or in combination (e.g., on the same pole) with any other regulatory or warning signs.

3. Closer than 200 feet to any existing regulatory or warning signs.

4. At signalized locations such as crosswalks at intersections or pedestrian hybrid beacons. Requests concerning a person with a visual disability and the absence of accessible pedestrian signals at a particular traffic signal will be addressed separately.

5. At a crossing with an existing rectangular rapid flashing beacon. Requests concerning a person with a visual disability and the absence of audible information devices will be addressed separately.

6. At any location in which the presence of the sign would otherwise create a safety concern, in the discretion of VDOT.

FORMS (24VAC30-630)

Request for Person with Disability Sign Form (eff. 7/2018)