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New Building Design

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The American's with Disabilities Act requires that buildings constructed or substantially  renovated after March 1993 must be accessible to the disabled. Some of the principle construction requirements include the following:

  • Parking spaces. There must be approximately one accessible space per 25 parking spaces. Handicapped accessible parking spaces must be at least 96 inches wide.  At least one, or one out of every eight of the spaces,  must be adequate for a specially equipped van.   State and local governments may require additional handicapped spaces.
  • Elevators. Elevators are required in  most new multi-story buildings. All shopping malls and doctor's offices, regardless of size, must have elevators.
  • Entrances. At least one half of the public entrances (and at least one entrance per tenant in a commercial space) must be handicapped accessible. There must be at least as many accessible entrances as the number of exits required by the local fire code. If pedestrians have direct access to the property from a parking garage, disabled patrons must also have access.
  • Corridors. A  corridor must be 36 inches or wider in order to accommodate one wheelchair. Two wheelchairs, or a wheelchair making a U-turn, require a corridor at least 60 inches wide. Carpeting must not have pile that is more than one half inch thick, so that wheelchairs and the canes of the vision impaired are not impeded.
  • Protruding objects. Objects that protrude from walls, like mail boxes,   drinking fountains and pay phones, and that are raised from 28 to 80 inches off the floor, cannot protrude more than 4 inches. The purpose of this rule is to prevent blind persons from being injured by protrusions they cannot detect by cane.
  • Ramps. Ramps must be at least 36 inches wide, with a maximum slope of 1:12. Handrails must be provided if the ramp's rise is more than 72 inches. Curb ramps and ramps near seating areas in theaters and the like do not require ramps.

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