Arlington, TX Sidewalk & Pedestrian Rules: Sidewalk Repair (2026)

Sidewalks are uncommon along rural county roads in unincorporated Tarrant County. The county Transportation Services Department does not generally build or maintain sidewalks along its road network, focusing instead on travel lanes, shoulders, and drainage. Where sidewalks do exist, they are usually in platted subdivisions, near schools, or along TxDOT routes where state or city annexation has added pedestrian infrastructure. Texas common law and most subdivision plat conditions place sidewalk maintenance on the adjoining property owner, similar to the rule in incorporated cities. Homeowners Associations often assume responsibility for common-area sidewalks and may assess owners for repairs. Texas Local Government Code Section 251.003 authorizes counties to require sidewalk construction as a condition of subdivision plat approval, and many newer Tarrant County subdivisions require sidewalks on both sides of interior streets. Once constructed, repair obligations attach to the lot owner unless the HOA declaration says otherwise. Trip and fall liability for defective sidewalks is shaped by Texas premises liability law, with the Texas Supreme Court recognizing that a property owner may be liable for known sidewalk hazards they fail to address. When a county road is widened or reconstructed, the county may repair or replace sidewalks within the project scope, but routine cracked or heaved sidewalks remain the owner problem.