Since the “2010 ADA Standards for Accessible Design” was published, numerous building codes have been released, based in part or in whole on those standards. But there still is confusion as to what exactly is legally required. The standards themselves have been grouped into nine categories of information, roughly following the path used to gain access to and use facilities. This second portion of the course focuses on simplifying the central third of the standards, which address accessible routes and pathways through facilities, definitive requirements for specific spaces typically found inside facilities and equipment and hardware especially designed for, or easier to use by the handicapped. In short, in this portion we address making it possible for the disabled to move through a building and use the equipment and hardware found inside.

Learning Objectives

• Turning spaces required for easy passage of those occupying mobility aids
• Requirements needed to prevent obstructions on, beside and above paths of travel, from preventing passage wheelchair users.
• Signage, signal and call devices needed to facilitate use of elevators and lifts by handicapped occupants of all descriptions
• Requirements for accessibility, maneuvering and clear spaces that are particular to the use of specific spaces normally found in our buildings
• How intermediate height surfaces and fixtures, like counters, benches, lockers, mailboxes, fuel dispensers, etc., should be designed to facilitate use by the disabled
• Height limits and other dimensional data needed to ensure that, plumbing equipment normally used in toilets and bathing facilities remain usable to the handicapped