XX
XX
Tucson, Arizona XX   

Dear XX

     I am responding to your letter regarding the accessibility
of gas stations to people with disabilities. Your letter asks
the Department of Justice to take action to compel companies that
operate gas stations to provide a "full service" option for their
customers. Please excuse our delay in responding.

     The Department of Justice is responsible for enforcing title
III of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), which prohibits
discrimination on the basis of disability by places of public
accommodation, including gas stations. The ADA requires existing
gas stations that are not otherwise being altered to remove
architectural barriers to the extent that it is readily
achievable to remove them. The Department of Justice regulation
implementing title III requires such barrier removal to comply
with the ADA Standards for Accessible Design (Standards) for each
altered element if it is readily achievable.

     If a self-service gas station determines that it is not
readily achievable to redesign gas pumps to enable people with
disabilities to use them, the gas station is not required to make
physical modifications to the gas pumps. However, the gas
station is required to provide its services to individuals with
disabilities through any readily achievable method, such as
providing refueling service upon request to an individual with a
disability at self-service prices. A service station is not
required to provide refueling service to individuals with
disabilities at any time when it is operating exclusively on a
remote control basis with a single cashier and, under no
circumstances, does the ADA require a self-service gas station to
initiate a full-service operation.

cc: Records, Chrono, Wodatch, Blizard, FOIA
    n:\udd\blizard\drsltrs\
01-03689
                                   -2-
     Because no Federal civil rights law enforced by this
Division prohibits the operation of gas stations on a self-
service basis, we can take no further action in response to your
request.
                              Sincerely,



                           John L. Wodatch
                       Disability Rights Section
                         Civil Rights Division
Enclosures

01-03690