Montana Locales Get ADA Upgrades for Walkers, Bikers

Sidewalks and other active transportation infrastructure are getting upgrades in three Montana communities from the Montana Department of Transportation.

[Above photo by the Montana DOT]

In the towns of Bridger and Lewiston, crews are nearing completion of new sidewalk corner ramps that are compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act or ADA, along with new sidewalks and driveway approaches, said Lisa Olmsted, a Montana DOT public information consultant.

Pedestrians and bicyclists along King Avenue in Billings will see new corner ramps and new pavement markers for walkers.

In Lewistown – home of the annual Montana Cowboy Poetry Gathering – the design-build contracting team is installing 17 ADA corner ramps, 29 sign replacements, 26 reconstructed approaches, and more than 11,000 square feet of new sidewalk, Olmsted said – adding that all of that work in the town of 6,200 residents began in the fall of 2024 and is nearly complete.

[Editor’s note: In July, the Montana DOT highlighted a variety of community outreach initiatives it regularly engages in to promote safe bicycling practices statewide.]

Crews also will install cast-iron detectable warning plates into the sidewalk at one intersection. The plates, which have raised bumps, allow visually impaired pedestrians to know when they are approaching an intersection, Montana DOT noted.

About three hours south in the town of Bridger, crews are installing 27 new corner ramps, 16 driveway approaches and 1,200 square feet of new sidewalk, Olmsted said. Construction is expected to be completed this fall.

Pedestrians in Billings will be getting some extra protection from vehicles with the installation of rapid flashing beacons to warn motorists that pedestrians are in the area. Olmsted said the beacons and other improvements are being installed at the end of the I-90 westbound exit at King Avenue, a heavily travelled commercial corridor.

Crews also will install 19 corner ramps and one new driveway approach in Billings, Olmsted said. That work is expected to continue through the fall.

All upgrades in the three cities are in line with Montana DOT’s ADA Transition Plan, which was first published in 2001 and updated in 2021. The plan guides the department’s efforts to establish “a consistent approach for accommodating disabled individuals by identifying methods to assist Montana DOT in complying with ADA regulations and removing accessibility barriers.”