Having an ADA-compliant door can help your business comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act and avoid legal action. The law requires all public and commercial buildings to have doors that are accessible by people in wheelchairs. It is important to note that not every entry will need to meet this standard, but some doors will require more work than others. In this article, we discuss how you can make sure your doors are ADA-friendly.
Identify If Your Business Has Any Architectural Barriers
Find out if you have any architectural barriers at your business by looking at the environment around you. Do you notice that there are any physical hindrances to people with disabilities? If you want to check for ADA compliance, start by looking at the doors of your building. Some doors might be blocked or narrow enough that they can’t accommodate a wheelchair. If you see that this is the case, these doors do not meet ADA guidelines and will need to be altered and reinforced.
Make Sure the Doors Open and Close Automatically
All exterior accessible doors must open and close automatically, either by an electronic opener or a weight sensor, to detect when someone enters the door. If your business meets these requirements, but you’re still having problems with customers not accessing your building, then it could be the case that they are not aware of any alternate entrances. You can choose to install signage outside of doors that notify customers of any alternate entries.
Change Signage throughout Your Building To Be ADA Compliant Signage
There will need to be ADA-compliant signage throughout your building to run a business that is accessible to everyone. If there are any signs such as “handicap parking or special access,” you will likely need to alter them to make sure that they follow the guidelines of the ADA. You can also add other necessary signage such as “no smoking” or “exit” to meet ADA guidelines.
Asses If You Can Provide Any Alternate Ways for Disabled Individuals to Use Your Business
The final step to ensuring that your business is ADA compliant is to assess whether it would be possible for disabled individuals to use your business differently. For example, if a person needs a wheelchair ramp, but there aren’t any at the entrance of your building, you might want to consider providing one so the individual can have access through another route. This way, it will be easier for the individual to access your business and ensure that you follow ADA guidelines.
Having an ADA-compliant door can help your business stay in compliance with the Americans With Disabilities Act. Your entries must be accessible by people in wheelchairs, but not every door will need to meet this standard. You should identify any architectural barriers at your business and train your staff on how they can work with disabled individuals within the scope of your services. There should also be ADA-compliant signage throughout your building, and you might want to provide alternate ways for disabled individuals to access your business.