ADA and Accessibility
Accessible means people with disabilities can approach, enter, take part in and use a place safely and with dignity.
How people move
Many rules come from how people move.
A wheelchair caster (a small front wheel) gets wedged in wide gaps. Loose gravel or sand takes tremendous effort to push through.
A sweeping cane finds what is low enough to touch, before the body hits it.
A crutch tip or caster slides off a ramp edge with nothing to stop it.
One route ties it together
In a park that means one continuous route from the street to every accessible feature.
Sections
The accessible route
Everything on the park map hangs off one path. Here is what that path is made of.
An accessible route is one continuous path from every arrival point (parking, bus stop, public sidewalk) to every accessible feature.
Route parts
Slope: walk or ramp
The first thing to know about the route is how steep it may be. A path can tilt two ways.
Running slope runs along the direction of travel. Cross slope runs across it.
1:20 means 1 in. of rise for every 20 in. of run. That is 5%.
A walk is 1:20 or flatter along its length and 1:48 or flatter across. A walk steeper than 1:20 is a ramp.
Walk or ramp
Wide, firm and level
Slope is one of four things the ground under the route has to get right. The other three: room, surface and bumps.
Wide enough
36 in. clear is the base width. Level 2 covers narrow spots, passing and turning.
Firm and stable
Route surfaces are stable, firm and slip resistant.
No dents, no loose bits rolling under a wheel.
Back to the same condition once a load or spill is gone.
Concrete, asphalt and wood are firm and stable. Most loose gravel is not, unless it is treated.
Level: changes in level
A lip or bump in the path is a change in level. Only a small one may stay.
Which law, and when
The widths and slopes so far come from law. Here is which law, and when it applies.
The ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) is a federal law against discrimination on the basis of disability, carried out by the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division.
Its Title II covers state and local governments, NYC Parks included. People with disabilities get an equal chance at every program, service and activity.
Disability here means a physical or mental condition that significantly limits a major life activity, a record of one, or being regarded as having one.
Who writes what
New, altered, untouched
An alteration is any change that affects usability. Resurfacing a path counts. Patching potholes is maintenance.
Level 1 check
Width and clearances
Width again, now with the exceptions: narrow spots, passing and room to turn.
36 in. clear is the base width. It can pinch to 32 in. for 24 in. at a time.
A route under 60 in. wide needs a passing space every 200 ft: 60 by 60 in., or a T where two walks meet.
Turning and clear space
A clear space is the 30 by 48 in. spot one wheelchair needs at a bench, fountain or table. One full side of it touches the route.
Turning spaces: 1:48 slope max, no changes in level.
Try a width
Clear width, inches
Things sticking out
Between 27 and 80 in. up, a wall-mounted object sticks out 4 in. max. Lower down, a sweeping cane finds it before the body does.
Signs on posts may overhang 12 in. in the same band.
Surfaces
Level 1 said route surfaces are firm and stable. Here is how real materials do.
Materials
Openings
Ramps
Slopes over 1:20 and bumps over ½ in. both end here, at a ramp.
A ramp is any walking surface steeper than 1:20.
It climbs in runs of 30 in. rise max, with a landing at the top and bottom of each run. A run rising more than 6 in. gets handrails.
Edge protection
Design tips
1:12 is 8.33%. Design exterior ramps at 7.5% running and 1.5% cross slope, so construction error stays under the limits.
Small-radius curves twist the cross slope and cannot meet the route rules.
Extra landings give a rest but do not cut the total effort.
Walk, ramp or too steep
Lay one out: Ramp builder. No room for 1:12 at an existing site: Alterations and existing sites.
Ramp builder
Now lay out a straight ramp from its total rise.
Curb ramps
Where the route meets a street, it needs a ramp through the curb.
A curb ramp is a short ramp cutting through a curb or built up to it.
New and altered streets need curb ramps at every intersection with curbs.
1:12 running, 1:48 cross, 36 in. wide, like any ramp. Flares 1:10 max.
A 36 in. landing at the top. Gutter and road 1:20 max, flush with the ramp.
Out of traffic lanes, parking spaces and access aisles (the striped space beside an accessible parking space). Inside the crosswalk markings, flares aside.
A diagonal ramp needs 48 in. clear at the bottom, outside traffic lanes. Islands are cut through level or ramped both sides.
Detectable warnings
A detectable warning is a standard surface, here a band of truncated domes, that warns of a hazard on the path.
Whether a curb ramp needs one depends on the rule set. PROWAG, the Public Right-of-Way Accessibility Guidelines, is the newest, for sidewalks and street crossings.
Park curb ramps under the 2010 Standards (non-transit sites).
Transit facilities and projects funded by the Federal Highway Administration.
PROWAG, at crosswalks: 24 in. deep, the full ramp width.
Parking
For visitors who drive, the route starts at the parking space.
Count each lot or garage on its own. Gravel or grass lots still need firm, stable, marked spaces.
Benches and tables
Along the route, people stop to sit. Benches and accessible table seats use the 30 by 48 in. clear space from Width and clearances.
Benches
Seat height. 42 in. long min, 20 to 24 in. deep.
Back support, or fixed to a wall.
Holds it at any point.
Slip resistant and sheds water.
Tables
Of seats at tables, at least, spread around the site.
Top height, with a forward approach and knee and toe space.
Top height for children's tables.
Drinking fountains
Fountains sit along the route too, and use the same clear space and protruding-object rules.
Fountains on an exterior site come in two heights: two fountains, or one hi-lo unit that does both.
More than two fountains: half wheelchair, half standing.
Wheelchair unit: centered clear space, knee and toe space.
15 in. min from the support, 5 in. max from the front.
Do not replace either height.
Sticking out
Play areas
The route reaches into the play area too.
Every play area for children 2 and up follows these rules. Separate areas for different ages each comply.
Play components
A play component is anything meant for play, socialization or learning, made or natural. Each one is ground level or elevated. The ramps and steps up to them do not count as elevated play components.
Types
A type is an experience: rocking, swinging, climbing, spinning, sliding. A spiral slide is still sliding.
Ways up: ramps and transfer systems
A transfer system is a platform with a wheelchair space beside it, then steps up to the deck. Platform 11 to 18 in. high; steps 8 in. high max.
Ramps are preferred: not every child can or wants to transfer.
The basic rule
At least one of each ground level type, and at least half of the elevated components, sit on the accessible route. Level 3 has the full count.
Required ground level components are spread out and mixed in, not grouped in one corner.
Level 2 check
Alterations and existing sites
Level 1 sketched new, altered and untouched parks. Here are the legal tests behind them.
An alteration is a change that affects or could affect usability. Resurfacing a path or road counts.
The altered part is made accessible to the maximum extent feasible. Pothole repair, patching and restriping in place are maintenance, unless usability changes.
Path of travel
More detail: safe harbor, steep sites
Safe harbor: path of travel elements built to the 1991 Standards or UFAS (the older federal standard) before March 15, 2012 do not have to be redone just for the 2010 numbers.
Steep sites
New construction only: full compliance can be skipped only where terrain makes it structurally impracticable. That is rare. Every part that can be made accessible still has to be.
Alterations use a different test. The altered part is made accessible to the maximum extent feasible.
Existing ramps
Where an existing site has no room for 1:12, a ramp may be steeper, but the steeper it is, the less it may rise.
An altered curb ramp with no top landing gets flares of 1:12 max, not 1:10.
Existing parks
NYC Parks has thousands of facilities built before January 26, 1992. When one is reconstructed or materially altered, it complies.
Until then, each program, viewed as a whole, has to be usable. The transition plan lists the structural changes and a time frame for them.
Play area counts
Level 2 gave the basic rule. Here is the full count, with ramps and transfer systems.
Step by step
Full count table (Table 240.2.1.2)
| Elevated provided | Ground level on route | Types |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | None | None |
| 2 to 4 | 1 | 1 |
| 5 to 7 | 2 | 2 |
| 8 to 10 | 3 | 3 |
| 11 to 13 | 4 | 3 |
| 14 to 16 | 5 | 3 |
| 17 to 19 | 6 | 3 |
| 20 to 22 | 7 | 4 |
| 23 to 25 | 8 | 4 |
| 26 and over | 8, plus 1 per 3 over 25 | 5 |
Counter
Play area routes and surfacing
Inside a play area, the route has its own numbers. Transfer systems are in Play areas.
Routes at ground level
Route width. 44 in. in play areas under 1,000 sq ft, with a turning space past 30 ft.
For 60 in. at a time, between 60 by 60 in. full-width stretches.
Steepest ramp between ground level components.
Headroom over routes to ground level components.
Routes up on the structure
Route width between elevated components. Transfer systems may be 24 in.
Most rise in one ramp run between decks.
Ramp handrail height. 0.95 to 1.55 in. round, no extensions needed.
At the equipment
One on the level of the play components, right beside any swing.
Seats and entry points, above the clear space.
Knee space 24 in. high, 17 in. deep, 30 in. wide.
More detail: slides, sand boxes, berms
- Stand-alone slide: route to the foot of the stairs and to the exit. Not to the top.
- Sand box: route to its border.
- Berms and sculpted ground can carry the route up to a structure.
- Ramps built for children: a handrail no higher than 28 in. is recommended.
Surfacing
Route surfaces pass ASTM F1951, a wheelchair test, and are inspected and maintained often. Use zones, the ground where a child could fall, pass ASTM F1292 for cushioning.
The surface as installed on site has to pass, not just the lab sample.
An Access Board study found:
Took the most force to push across in the first year.
Slope, gap and edge problems showed up at 24 to 36 months.
Tremendous effort in a wheelchair.
Doors, restrooms, signs and pools
Park buildings have their own rules. A few of them:
Outdoor areas
Trails and picnic grounds fall under other rule sets.
Other rule sets
Sidewalks, crossings, streets. Not enforceable until DOJ or USDOT adopts it.
Trails, picnic and camping areas. Federal sites only.
Parks capital projects. Agency policy: NYC Parks.
The trail numbers below are a federal reference only. They do not set the requirements for a city park.
Trails (ABA)
Trails and recreation routes (ABA)
An outdoor recreation access route serves picnic areas, viewing areas and trailheads. Its steepest slope is 1:10; a trail may reach 1:8.
Firm and stable, 36 in. clear tread.
Steeper than 1:12 on 30% of the length at most. Never over 1:8.
Obstacles: ½ in. on paving and boards, 2 in. elsewhere.
Passing space every 1,000 ft if under 60 in.
Firm and stable.
Never over 1:10. Steeper than 1:20 up to 1:12: 50 ft max per segment. Steeper than 1:12 up to 1:10: 30 ft max.
Obstacles: 1 in. off pavement. Roots and rocks count.
Grill cooking surfaces 15 to 34 in. high.
Picnic tables (ABA)
Federal sites only: one wheelchair space per 24 ft of table edge.
Sports
- Court sports: an accessible route to both sides of the court.
- The area of play itself is exempt from surface rules.
Slope checker
Every slope rule in this guide, in one tool.
NYC Parks
Last, how NYC Parks puts all this into practice.
Design practice
Walks under 5%, so ramps are rarely needed.
Stairs only on secondary paths or where the terrain forces them.
No loose stone screenings: too much upkeep to stay even.
Standard drawings for accessible tables, chairs, fountains and bottle fillers.
Standard drain covers and frames in paved public areas meet the ADA.
The standard play equipment spec requires ADA compliance. Playgrounds typically have equipment for ages 2 to 5 and 5 to 12.
Reviewers check slopes, ramps, doors, play, interiors and fixtures.
Older parks
In Parks’ own words, steep terrain makes full compliance structurally impractical at some sites. The federal exception is narrower: rare, and for new construction only. See Alterations and existing sites. New restroom buildings get rebuilt approach routes and flush thresholds.
The legal side: Alterations and existing sites.
Level 3 check
Quiz
Flashcards
Questions
Glossary
Sources
Each Source control opens a quote checked word for word against the source, with a link to it.
Not covered
- NYC Building Code Chapter 11 and ICC A117.1 (not public domain)
- NYC DOT pedestrian ramp standards
- A public NYC Parks accessibility design standard
- Full restroom, door, sign, pool and building design (selected federal criteria only)