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ACCESSIBILITY GUIDELINES FOR SIGNS
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Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)
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AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT (ADA)
ACCESSIBILITY GUIDELINES FOR BUILDINGS AND FACILITIES
The U.S. Access Board published new design guidelines under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) that provide access for people with disabilities in July 2004. These guidelines cover a wider range of facilities in the public and private sector including Federal facilities, which are covered by the Architectural Barriers Act (ABA).
These new ADA accessibility guidelines will significantlyimpact the following specifications:
Character and Stroke Width
Letter Spacing
Location of Braille
Separation of Visual Letters from Braille
Sign Placement Height
The Board’s accessibility guidelines will serve as benchmarks used to enforce the ADA and the ABA standards. Revisions feature a new format, technical specifications and scoping provisions. Technical details can be referenced in the Communication Elements and Features section. The Scoping section identifies elements that need to comply and how compliance is to be achieved.
Kroy Sign Systems outlines the technical specifications, key definitions and scoping provisions that pertain to architectural signs required for existing facilities, new construction and planned alterations. Our company's intent to provide designers, building owners and facility managers with greater clarity on this evolving topic.
It is also important to note that at the time of this writing, responsible federal agencies are using these finalized guidelines to update ADA and ABA standards. Progress varies by agencies and implementation and enforcement varies as well.
INTRODUCTION
The American with Disabilities Act (ADA) was initially signed into law in 1990. It was one of the broadest civil rights laws ever enacted.
ADA provides individuals with disabilities comprehensive civil rights protections in the areas of employment, state and local government services, public accommodation and telecommunications. The purpose of the Act is to prohibit discrimination on the basis of physical disabilities.
In 1991, the Architectural and Transportation Compliance Board (ATBCB) issued compliance standards for facility alterations and new building construction. These standards are known as the American with Disabilities Act Accessibility Guidelines (ADAAG).
The ADAAG contains specific information to achieve technical design criteria in building codes and other regulations. Uniform standards are required for alterations and new construction and must allow any person with a physical disability to independently find, enter and use a site, facility, building or element.
Changes to these guidelines and, in particular, the sign requirements, have been anticipated for over a decade. After much discussion, the U.S. Access Board published detailed changes and new guidelines in 1994. These new guidelines are comprehensive, covering a wide range of facilities in the public and private sector. Additionally, they include Federal facilities covered by the Architectural Barriers Act (ABA), formerly known as the Uniform Federal Accessibility Standards (UFAS).
New guidelines are not enforceable until regulatory agencies adopt and implement the revisions. The Boards guidelines will serve as the baseline for standards used to enforce the ADA and the ABA.
The Department of Justice (DOJ) is responsible for enforceable standards under the ADA. Federal government agencies, such as General Services Administration (GSA), Department of Defense (DOD) and the U.S. Postal Service (USPO), hold similar responsibilities for standards under the ABA. Both ADA and ABA will contain more comprehensive technical information then was initially available in 1990. All agencies are working cooperatively to implement the U.S. Access Board guidelines and replace the original ADA standards.
Today, all places of public accommodation, commercial facilities and state and local government facilities must adhere to design and construction standards and be readily accessible to and useable by people with physical disabilities.
