Restriping After Sealcoat: Getting ADA Layout Right

A Blank Slate Is an Opportunity

When a sealcoat goes down, every old line disappears under a fresh black surface. For a few days, the lot is a clean sheet of pavement with no layout at all. That blank slate is the single best moment to fix accessible-parking problems, because adding a space, widening an aisle, or relocating a stall is just a layout decision now, not a demolition project.

Most lots get restriped right back into the same layout they had, compliant or not, because the crew simply reproduces the old pattern. That is a missed opportunity. The restripe after a sealcoat is your low-cost chance to bring the accessible spaces up to standard. Our ADA parking compliance guide for Oregon covers the full requirements; this page is about using the restripe to meet them.

Sealcoat Is Maintenance, but the Layout Still Matters

A sealcoat itself is maintenance. It does not trigger the ADA alteration obligation, and you are not legally required to upgrade accessibility just because you sealed the lot. But there is a floor: you cannot restripe in a way that makes the lot less accessible than it was. If the old lot had four accessible spaces, the new layout cannot have three.

So the restripe is voluntary on the upside and mandatory on the downside. You do not have to improve, but you cannot regress. Given that the cost of getting the layout right is mostly the same as getting it wrong, since you are paying to stripe either way, the smart move is to improve while the slate is blank.

What to Verify Before the Paint Goes Down

Before a single line is painted, walk the lot against this checklist. Each item is far cheaper to fix now than after the lines are down.

• Accessible space count. Does the number of accessible spaces match the lot's total capacity? Use the count table in our accessible parking count requirements page. A growing lot may have outgrown its old count.
• Van ratio. At least one in six accessible spaces must be van-accessible, rounded up. Older lots often have too few van spaces.
• Stall and aisle dimensions. Standard spaces need 8 feet plus a 5-foot aisle. Van spaces need the 8-foot aisle or the 11-foot space. Confirm the new layout has room for the correct widths.
• Aisle markings. Plan for full diagonal hatching and NO PARKING text, detailed in our ADA access aisle striping spec.
• Placement and route. Are the accessible spaces on the shortest route to the entrance, with a clear path of travel?
• Slope. A sealcoat follows the existing grade. If the accessible area was over 2 percent slope before, it still is. A bad slope is not a restripe fix, but it is the moment to flag it for separate correction.

The One Problem a Restripe Cannot Fix

Restriping fixes almost everything about layout: counts, dimensions, aisles, placement, markings. The one thing it cannot fix is slope. Because a sealcoat is a thin coating that follows the existing grade, a slope that exceeded 2 percent before the sealcoat exceeds it after.

That does not make the restripe pointless, but it does mean slope needs to be handled separately, through grading or surface correction, not paint. If a survey shows the accessible area is out of tolerance on slope, plan that work as its own scope rather than assuming the restripe will resolve it. The rest of the layout can still be brought to standard during the restripe.

Why Fresh Sealcoat Makes Better ADA Striping

Beyond the layout opportunity, a fresh sealcoat is genuinely the best surface to stripe on. The smooth, dark, clean surface lets traffic paint bond well and last longer, and it gives the blue and white accessible markings strong contrast against the black background. The International Symbol of Accessibility painted on a fresh sealcoat reads sharply; the same symbol painted on faded, gray, oil-stained asphalt is muddy and fades faster.

In Oregon, where the rainy season and UV exposure shorten paint life, that better bond translates to markings that stay visible and compliant longer between repaints. Faded accessible markings can themselves be considered a compliance gap, so durability matters. The paint and color specs are covered in our Oregon ADA striping requirements for 2026 page.

Sequencing the Work

Timing matters for a clean result. The general sequence:

1. Survey first. Evaluate the accessible-area compliance before sealing, so the new layout is planned, not improvised.
2. Sealcoat and cure. Let the sealcoat cure fully before striping so the paint bonds properly.
3. Lay out the new pattern. Chalk-line the accessible spaces, aisles, and stalls to the corrected layout, measured against the lot's actual capacity.
4. Stripe. Apply the lines, hatching, symbols, and text.

Planning the layout before the sealcoat, rather than after, is what turns a routine maintenance job into a compliance win. This is general guidance, and your lot's specific count, dimensions, and slope should be confirmed on a site survey.