ADA Wheelchair Lifts Ensure Easy Operations For Wheelchair Users

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) protects people with disabilities from being discriminated. Under this act, public accommodation as well as commercial facilities have been set up and constructed to comply with ADA standards. Buildings, facilities or wheelchair accessories that work in accordance to the ADA code are known as ADA-compliant. One of these guidelines relate to the use of wheelchair lifts, in which ADA wheelchair lifts are classified under title 4.11 of the ADA standards – Accessible Element and Spaces. ADA wheelchair lifts have to be installed according the particular requirements that has been set up under that title for the safety and convenience of wheelchair users.

Under the act, ADA wheelchair lifts should be designed with a clear floor space for wheelchairs and able to accommodate a single wheelchair of 30” by 48” in size. The levels between the surface of the floor and the floor of the ADA lift should not exceed half an inch, failing which a ramp must be used. Apart from that, any carpets used in an ADA wheelchair lift is limited to a maximum thickness of half an inch. Furthermore, all edges of the carpet must be fastened down to the floor surface to prevent any incidences of tripping the wheelchair.

Communication devices or lift controls in ADA wheelchair lifts should be placed within reach of the wheelchair user, and should not be mounted more than 15 inches above the floor. Controls should be easy to use, with only one hand required for operation without any forceful movement of the wrists. If force is needed for these controls, it should not require a force of more than 5 lbf or 22.2 N.

Currently, most ADA wheelchair lifts are incline lifts. One of the common challenges wheelchair lift manufacturers face is building space and designs which have not been developed to accommodate ADA chair lifts in the first place. However, the ADA guidelines that have been drawn out make a huge first step in ensuring full accessibility for wheelchair users in the future.