What is a transition plan?

The Access to Service crew has partnered with the Forest Service to develop transition plans for trails, campgrounds and public facilities. Since the 1968 passage of the Architectural Barriers Act (ABA), facilities designed, built, bought, rented, altered, or leased by, for, or on behalf of a federal agency are required to be accessible. Unfortunately, many federal facilities are still not accessible.

To correct this problem, in the early 1990s the Forest Service called for all units to complete transition plans identifying the changes needed to make each facility accessible and the timeline for completing the changes.

In 1998, Congress mandated an evaluation of accessibility to outdoor recreation on federally managed lands for both the United States Department of Agriculture and Department of the Interior agencies. The results of the independent study that was published in June 2000 highlighted to Congress that many Forest Service and other federal agency units still had not completed their transition plans. The attention resulting from the report increased the pressure on federal agencies to get the plans completed. To keep units focused on completing this work, the Forest Service national budget direction each year since 2001 has included direction to the field to complete the transition plans.

An accessibility evaluation survey is the first step in developing a transition plan. During the survey, each portion of a structure is compared to the accessibility standards, and compliance and deficiencies are recorded. For example, doorways and paths of travel are measured to see whether they have at least 32 inches of clear width.

"The UCC's Access to Service inclusive crew has partnered with the U.S. Forest Service in response to this unmet need. They developed a user-friendly accessibility survey form that has become the standard for the region. In 2007, they completed accessibility surveys for 8 campgrounds and 2 trails and developed 10 transition plans. The crew has been able to immediately address the accessibility issues identified in transition plans though the construction of a fully accessible fishing pier at Second Dam picnic area in Logan Canyon. They partnered with Common Ground Outdoor Adventures, Logan City, local boy scouts, and the Forest Service to make this happen.

In 2008, the UCC Access to Service crew developed transition plans for campgrounds and trails on the Ogden Ranger District and worked to implement many of the suggested changes on the Logan District. In addition, the crew will survey some areas within Yellowstone National Park.

Every Forest Service unit in the nation is required by law to have transition plans in place; however, many do not. The Access to Service inclusive crew has demonstrated itself to be an effective partnership in addressing this federal mandate and making developed areas on federal lands accessible to users of all abilities.