Provide Equal Access

by the WBDG Accessible Committee

Last updated: 06-02-2009

Overview

For Americans with disabilities, access means simply being able to use, enjoy, and participate in the many aspects of society, including work, commerce, and leisure activities. While removing architectural barriers may allow people with disabilities to circulate within and around a facility, other factors, such as transportation, affect their ability to fully participate in activities. Designers and other suppliers of services and goods need to provide equal access for all without undermining the needs of people with disabilities.

What is "Equal Access"?

Providing equal access means ensuring all individuals can make use of transportation, buildings and facilities, programs and services, employment opportunities, and technology. It also means offering all users the same provisions for privacy, security, and safety.

Design professionals can promote equal access by incorporating and integrating accessible features throughout a building's program.

Why Provide "Equal Access"?

Providing equal access removes discrimination and protects human rights. An accessible built environment provides the opportunity for all people to fully participate in and contribute to their families, communities, and society. Equal access offers individuals the occasion to improve the quality of life and standard of living for themselves, their families, and other people in the world. Finally, providing equal access is required, to varying degrees, in order to meet applicable building codes, accessibility standards, and accessibility guidelines.

How Do We Achieve "Equal Access"?

Equal access must be an integral part of the life-cycle process (planning, programming, design, construction, operation, and maintenance) of buildings and facilities, not an afterthought. Accessible features should blend seamlessly with the design. All stakeholders on the project should work together from the start to coordinate and optimize the design of the site and the building. A building and its site should be designed as an integrated whole, rather than as a collection of isolated systems (see also WBDG Functional—Ensure Appropriate Product/Systems Integration).

Design and construction decisions impact accessibility. Single building elements or systems should not be added, deleted, or modified anytime in the life of the building until they are coordinated and evaluated with the other elements and systems in the whole building package and with all parties involved.

Keep in mind that "equal access" applies to programs, services, benefits, transportation, fixtures, furnishings, equipment, employment opportunities, and technology. The Rehabilitation Act of 1973 prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability in aspects of all programs conducted by Federal agencies, in programs receiving Federal financial assistance, in Federal employment, and in the employment practices of Federal contractors.

Relevant Codes and Standards

• Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)
• Americans with Disabilities Act Accessibility Guidelines (ADAAG)
• ANSI A117.1 Accessible and Usable Buildings and Facilities
• Architectural Barriers Act (ABA)
• Fair Housing Accessibility Guidelines
• Rehabilitation Act
• Uniform Federal Accessibility Standards (UFAS)

Major Resources

WBDG

Design Objectives

Aesthetics, Cost-Effective, Functional / Operational, Historic Preservation, Productive, Secure / Safe, Sustainable

Products and Systems

Fenestration Systems—Exterior Doors

The major resource for guidance on accessible design is the U.S. Access Board (Access Board). The Access Board is an independent federal agency devoted to accessibility for people with disabilities. Key responsibilities of the Board include developing and maintaining accessibility requirements for the built environment, transit vehicles, telecommunications equipment, and electronic and information technology; providing technical assistance and training on these guidelines and standards; and enforcing accessibility standards for federally funded facilities. For additional resources, see the Access Board's Links Page.

Organizations

• International Code Council (ICC)—ICC is the secretariat for the ICC/ANSI A117.1 Accessible and Usable Buildings and Facilities.
• ICC Code Requirements for Housing Accessibility (CRHA)—Provides an opportunity for safe harbor in compliance with accessibility requirements in the federal Fair Housing Act.
• National Fire Protection Association (NFPA)—NFPA 72 National Fire Alarm Code

Federal Agencies

• ADA Information Line for documents, questions, and referrals:
• (800) 514-0301 (voice)
• (800) 514-0383 (TTY)
• Department of Defense (DOD):
• U.S. Air Force—Air Force Center of Expertise for Accessibility
• U.S. Army—TI-800-01, Provision for Individuals with Physical Disabilities, Chapter 7, Section 4, 20 July 1998.
• Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)—Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity (FHEO)—HUD enforces the Fair Housing Act and has issued guidelines under this law (the Fair Housing Accessibility Guidelines) which cover multi-family housing. Information is also available on how to file a complaint with HUD under the Fair Housing Act. HUD's website also addresses access under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act.
• Department of Justice (DOJ)—DOJ offers technical assistance on the ADA Standards for Accessible Design and other ADA provisions applying to public accommodations and commercial facilities, including businesses, nonprofit service agencies, and state and local government programs and services; also provides information on how to file ADA complaints. Many of its technical assistance letters are available online.
• Department of Transportation (DOT)—People with Disabilities
• Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)—Accessibility Program
• General Services Administration (GSA)—National Accessibility Program

Publications

• Mechanical Lift Analysis (Accessibility Method for Accommodation of Physically Disabled People in the U.S. Courthouse Courtrooms)
• The Principles of Universal Design, Version 2.0 by The Center for Universal Design. North Carolina State University: 01 Apr 1997.

Others

Special thanks to Lex Frieden for his inspiring words in the speech "Toward a Barrier Free World for All," April 5, 2001.