Civil Rights Complaint Filed Against Riverside County Over Failure to Protect Public Right-of-Way

GOOD HOPE, Calif. — A formal civil rights complaint has been filed against the County of Riverside alleging violations of Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act and California Government Code section 11135. The complaint focuses on the County’s failure to prevent commercial vendors from obstructing the public right-of-way at Ellis Avenue and Marshall Street in unincorporated Good Hope, creating significant barriers to pedestrian access and accessibility.

For approximately nine months, mobile food vendors have occupied the dirt shoulder along the public right-of-way, leaving little to no clear path for pedestrians. As a result, people walking in the area — including individuals with disabilities — are forced to move into the active vehicle travel lane to get past the obstruction. The complainant, a person with a disability, states that this condition has denied safe and equal access to the public right-of-way.

County officials have acknowledged that the Transportation Department maintains the full public right-of-way, including the unimproved dirt shoulder. However, they have taken the position that because no concrete sidewalk or “improved walkway” exists at the location, Title II accessibility requirements do not apply.

Critics argue this interpretation is overly narrow. The County still controls and manages the right-of-way, and allowing private vendors to completely obstruct it in a manner that forces people into the active travel lane creates a public safety hazard and raises serious questions about equal access, regardless of whether the surface is paved.

“The County has had actual notice of this barrier for months and has chosen not to act,” the complainant said. “Public rights-of-way must remain accessible to everyone, including people with disabilities. Waiting for a serious injury before enforcing the rules is unacceptable.”

The complaint calls on the County to clear the obstruction, restore accessible pedestrian passage along the public right-of-way, and ensure that similar barriers are not permitted in other unincorporated areas.