ADA Compliance: Ensuring Accessible Parking with Proper Line Striping in the Lowcountry

As a responsible member of your Lowcountry community, you want to ensure your business remains compliant with Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) requirements. What you might not realize is that one of the most important elements of ADA accessibility is your parking lot. Here we look at the importance of providing equal access for all customers and the role parking lot line striping plays in avoiding potential legal issues.  

What is ADA Compliance?

The Americans with Disabilities Act protects the rights of individuals with disabilities. ADA standards ensure all public spaces, including privately owned businesses and commercial properties, provide access via accessible parking lots. When you install parking lot line striping, it allows you to designate accessible parking spaces in compliance with 2010 ADA Standards for Accessible Design.

What are the ADA-Compliant Parking Space Standards?

ADA-compliant parking spaces adhere to the following standards:

Location

Parking lot line striping allows you to identify accessible parking spaces located with the most direct route to your entry. If you have multiple entries with adjacent parking, it is best to disperse accessible parking spaces among each parking area and place them as close as possible to each entry. Also, you must provide an accessible route from your accessible parking spaces leading to an accessible entrance. This means the route must be free of curbs and stairs with a pathway at least 3 feet wide.

The surface must be firm, stable, and slip-resistant with a slope no greater than 1:12 in the direction of travel. Your parking line striping service provider can indicate pathways and apply a safe, slip-resistant coating. You should also consider other factors like accessibility to payment centers for parking fees, elevator availability for multi-level parking, and creating van and accessible parking in clusters adjacent to logical entries, payment centers, elevators, etc.

Identification

Parking space identification requires a sign with the international symbol of accessibility mounted 60 inches minimum from the bottom of the sign to the ground. A symbol can also be painted in the parking space by your parking lot line striping service to make it clear the parking spot is designated for accessible parking.

Size

Accessible parking spaces are a minimum of 96 inches wide and must be marked to define the width using parking lot line striping. Vertical clearance for indoor parking is a minimum of 98 inches to accommodate van height which also requires an adjacent access aisle for wheelchairs and ramps. These access areas are designated with diagonal yellow parking lot line striping. 

Boundaries

The boundary of the access aisle must also be marked with yellow diagonal striping to discourage parking. The diagonal striped areas are easily recognized as no parking zones, as well as an area that prohibits vehicular traffic.