ADA Design Guidelines & Parking Lot Striping
The Americans with Disabilities Act was a comprehensive package designed to guard those with handicaps from discrimination in employment, housing, transportation, access to public places and more. Since the ADA went into effect in 1992, all companies that conduct business with the public must provide parking spaces specifically for those with disabilities. Whether you are installing a new parking lot, changing its layout, resurfacing it or having existing stripes repainted, you must make sure that the markings conform to the requirements of the ADA.
ADA Design Guidelines & Parking Lot Striping
• The size of your parking lot determines how many parking spaces you must set aside as handicapped parking. For example, a parking lot with up to 25 spaces is within the guidelines if it offers a single handicapped space, while a parking lot with 200 parking spaces must have at least six handicapped parking spaces.
• The first handicapped space must be van-accessible.
• Handicapped spaces cannot be less than 96 inches wide.
• Access aisles must extend the length of the space on both sides; their minimum width should be 96 inches wide for spaces that are van-accessible and 60 inches wide for all other spaces.
• Handicapped spaces must be clearly identified through signage and pavement markings. Signs have to be affixed permanently, such as on a pole or secured to the building, at a height that makes them visible from a vehicle pulling into the space. Access aisles should be painted to identify them as no-parking areas.
• Handicapped parking spaces should be positioned to provide the easiest access from the space to your entrance. This path should not pass behind parked vehicles, and if it crosses a lane of traffic, designated crosswalks have to be identified through the proper pavement markings.
• The standard symbol used on signs and pavement markings is the international graphic denoting handicapped access. This symbol is a white figure in a wheelchair superimposed on a blue background.
Affordable Striping & Sealing is an asphalt maintenance company specializing in parking lot maintenance, repair and marking. Whether you need pavement stenciling, bumper blocks, sign installation, crack filling, sealcoating or any other asphalt-related service, we can help. Give us a call at 702-222-9009, or submit our online form to request a free quote.
