COMMON ACCESS MISTAKES
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There are a number of errors which are repeatedly arising both in design and as-built assessments. These can be costly and frustrating for everyone involved!
Flush transitions are required between floor surfaces for all public buildings, common areas and adaptable/livable units. This may mean set-downs are necessary at bathrooms and laundries or where the thickness of different floor finishes varies. The tolerance is quite small: 3mm for a vertical lip or 5mm for a rounded lip. Do not assume that a ramped threshold can be installed to manage a level change – this may not be the case!
Accessible car parking spaces to AS 2890.6 require vertical clearance of 2.5m above the car parking space and shared areas, although there is a zone at the front of the space where the required height can be reduced slightly to follow the profile of the vehicle bonnet. Pipes, ducting, sprinklers, and other services are not permitted to encroach into vertical clearance. We encourage you to plan for potential encroachments when deciding on the location of accessible parking spaces.
The inside handrail in fire stairs needs to be continuous and needs to be at a consistent height throughout its length (with a few other features too). If your stair treads align at an intermediate landing, how will you transition the handrail around a change in direction without any vertical or steep sections, while keeping it at the same height when measured above each nosing and landing? Refer to AS 1428.1 Figure 28 for an illustration of offset treads to achieve compliance. Consideration must also be given to achieving a 1m wide path of travel on landings clear of handrails, fire hydrants, valves and other services.
BCA Clause D3.6 requires that each door with exit signage is also identified by Braille and tactile signage, which is to be installed on the wall on the latch side of the door (or on the door where it is not possible to locate it on the latch side). What if the exit doors are double doors or if the door and sidelight on the latch side are glazed? The BCA does not offer guidance for such scenarios! In the case of fully glazed doors and sidelights, often the only compliant solution is to install unsightly signage onto the glass.
Glazing identification on any glazing capable of being mistaken for a doorway or opening is required to comprise a solid and non-transparent contrasting line for the full width of the glazing (refer to AS 1428.1 Clause 6.6 for required dimensions and location). Glazing identification is required to achieve 30% luminance contrast when viewed against surfaces within 2m of the glazing on both sides. Discrete decals and frosted lines or elements will not achieve compliance for two key reasons:
Luminance contrast is a measure of light reflected from a surface (represented by luminance reflectance value - LRV) when compared to that of the surrounding surface/s. Frosted materials allow light to pass through and therefore an accurate LRV cannot be measured.
Discrete or frosted elements may mimic eye conditions that cause low vision and therefore do not clearly warn people with vision impairment that glazing is not a doorway or opening.
Sliding door tracks on accessible paths of travel are required to achieve a flush transition or compliant ramped threshold. This feature needs to be considered at design stage to ensure the specified door product, installation and levels on both sides will enable compliance on construction. This is particularly important for residential projects, such as SDA and Seniors Living, where external sliding doors are required to be accessible and may need to offer weather protection.