Elementary gym ramp railings fulfill ADA requirements

PINE PLAINS — The Pine Plains Central School District received a letter on Friday, Dec. 2, from David Seidner stating the handrails on the gym ramp at the Seymour Smith Intermediate Learning Center fit the requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).There had been some uncertainty about whether it was necessary for the ramp to include a secondary set of lower handrails since the building’s primary occupants are small children“The handrails installed at the exterior stairs and ramp at Seymour Smith Elementary School are in compliance with New York State Building Code, SED [State Education Department] Manual of Planning Standards and ADA requirements,” wrote Seidner, a senior architect with the Facilities Planning department of the New York State Education Department.He stressed that the Manual of Planning Standards only requires lower handrails on interior stairways and the ADA’s mention of secondary handrails is in an advisory appendix that “has not been incorporated as law into accessibility standards, and therefore it is not enforceable.”“The use of an additional lower handrail on exterior stairs and railings is discretionary, and the individual conditions should be examined closely before implementation,” he continued. “Care should be taken to prevent entrapment of children’s heads, limbs and clothing between the upper and lower handrails. An additional lower handrail could pose a climbing hazard in unsupervised exterior locations.”Ron Whisonant, supervisor at the ADA Information Line, explained that the Americans with Disabilities Act Accessibility Guidelines for Buildings and Facilities; Children’s Facilities recommends the installation of a second set of lower handrails for use by children, but those guidelines are currently not enforceable. He said that the guidelines will not go into full effect until March 15, 2012, and since the ramp and handrails were installed prior to that date, the second set of handrails is not mandatory.