Sidewalk & Pedestrian Rules in Tuscaloosa, AL (2026)
3 verified sidewalk & pedestrian rules for Tuscaloosa, Alabama, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.
Verified from official government sources
Sidewalk Repair
Tuscaloosa requires all sidewalks to be repaired once the city has actual or constructive notice of a defect, per City Code Sec. 21-19, tracking the state authorization in Code of Ala. 1975 § 11-49-2. The section stops short of creating a new duty of care or criminal liability; separately, Sec. 21-23 makes anyone who damages a curb or sidewalk personally responsible for repairing it.
Tuscaloosa Sidewalk Repair Responsibility Rules
Some RestrictionsTuscaloosa City Code Sec. 21-19 (Code 1962, § 29-18; Ord. No. 3552, § 1, 1-19-93)
In accordance with section 11-49-2, Code of Alabama, 1975, all sidewalks are hereby required to be repaired upon actual or constructive notice of a defect therein. This section is not intended to impose any standard of care or criminal responsibility upon any person or entity which does not exist independent of this section.
Obstruction Rules
Tuscaloosa bans obstructing or encumbering any street or sidewalk with goods, merchandise, lumber, fuel, or any other article, and bans any act that restricts free use of the public way anywhere in the city. City Code Sec. 21-9 carves out only supervised construction or renovation blocking and permitted signs or nonpermanent structures; holding a city business license never doubles as permission to block the walk.
Tuscaloosa Sidewalk and Street Obstruction Ban
Some RestrictionsTuscaloosa City Code Sec. 21-9 (Code 1962, § 29-3; Ord. No. 9627, § 1, 6-3-25)
(a)It shall be unlawful to obstruct or encumber a street or sidewalk with goods, merchandise, lumber, fuel or any other article or obstruction whatsoever or to do any act restricting the free use or access of the same anywhere in the city.(b)Provided, however, this section shall not apply to the temporary blocking of any street or sidewalk for safety purposes or construction or renovation purpo...
Encroachment Permits
Tuscaloosa requires a right-of-way permit before anyone installs a bollard, chain, fence or other barrier on city right-of-way, including areas bordering sidewalks. The permit comes from the city engineer's office, and unpermitted barriers can be removed by the city at the owner's expense.
Tuscaloosa Right-of-Way Encroachment Permits
Some RestrictionsTuscaloosa City Code Sec. 21-10.1 (Ord. No. 7436, 8-4-09)
(b)Permit required. It shall be unlawful for any person to install a bollard and chain, fence or other type of barrier on city right-of-way or to cause said work to be performed on any right-of-way within the corporate limits without first applying for and receiving a right-of-way permit for such work.(c)Application for permit to install a bollard and chain on right-of-way. The application for ...