Can an accessible route be an indirect route?
Can it have locks or a call button for its use? HUD requires that an accessible route not be hidden, remote, circuitous or require people with disabilities to travel long distances. It also requires that use of an accessible route not place requirements, like a special key, an attendant, or additional waiting periods, on people with disabilities. Providing an accessible route that has different and less favorable conditions for people with disabilities than for people without disabilities may violate the Fair Housing Act because it amounts to a difference in terms and conditions of housing based on disability. However, imposing key requirements or other special access provisions, or providing an indirect route does not violate the law if those requirements apply to all people and not just people with disabilities.