36 CFR Part 1192 Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Accessibility Guidelines for Transportation Vehicles (2016 Non-Rail Vehicle Guidelines) - Preamble

E. Chapter 4: Boarding and Alighting

Chapter 4 in the 2016 Non-Rail Vehicle Guidelines, which sets forth the technical requirements for ramps and bridgeplates, accessible means of level boarding and alighting, lifts, and steps, has been significantly reorganized and revised from the proposed rule. All technical provisions related to boarding and alighting—including level boarding bus systems and steps (which formerly appeared in Chapters 2 and 5 respectively in the proposed rule)—are now consolidated in this chapter. Several provisions have also been revised at the behest of commenters. Responses to comments on the Board’s proposal in the 2010 NPRM to revise the technical requirements for the slope of ramps in non-rail vehicles by specifying a single standard (1:6) for maximum running slope applicable to ramps deployed to roadways or curb-height bus stops are discussed in Section III (Major Issues). Discussed below are significant comments on other technical requirements for ramps, bridgeplates, and lifts, as well as other revisions to Chapter 4 in the final rule. (We received no comments on two provisions in Chapter 4—Level Boarding and Alighting (T404) and Steps (T405)—which are unchanged from the 2010 NPRM.)

T402 Ramps and Bridgeplates

The technical requirements for ramps and bridgeplates in the 2016 Non-Rail Vehicle Guidelines include provisions on design load, installation and operation, emergency operation, surfaces, clear width, edge guards, running slope, transitions, visual contrast, gaps, and stowage. These technical requirements are organized in similar fashion to the proposed rule; they also remain the same substantively as in the proposed rule, with the exception of the requirements for maximum ramp running slopes. Section T402 has been slightly revised to clarify that the ramps and bridgeplate barriers must be a minimum height of 2 inches, but allows them to be reduced to less than 2 inches when they are within 3 inches of the boarding end of the device. This accommodates wheelchair users’ need to turn as they enter and exit the ramp and reduces the likelihood that passersby will trip on the barrier.

The Access Board received several comments relating to technical specifications for the design load of ramps. In the 2010 NPRM, the Board proposed to retain the existing requirement that ramps and bridgeplates longer than 30 inches (as well as lifts) be required to have design loads of 600 pounds (273kg) minimum. See 2010 NPRM, T303.2. These commenters – including a transit agency, an advocacy organization, and two transportation research centers – urged the Board to update (i.e., increase) the specified design loads for lifts and ramps because, over time, occupied wheeled mobility devices have gotten heavier (e.g., larger or more complex devices, growing obesity rates).

While the Board acknowledges the trend towards heavier wheeled mobility devices and other factors having a tendency to increase the weight of various potential ramp-based boarding and alighting scenarios, we do not believe a revision in the existing minimum design load for ramps and bridgeplates is advisable at this time. Additional research directed at evaluating design loads for ramps in buses and vans, as well as potential effects of increase in minimum design load on vehicle design or operation is needed. Moreover, it is also important that any potential revision of requirements for minimum design loads for ramps be coordinated with design loads for public lifts specified in the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS), which are incorporated by reference in the technical specifications for lifts in the final rule. See 2016 Non-Rail Vehicle Guidelines, T403.1. The Board also notes that the design load specified in T403.1 is a minimum requirement. Ramp manufacturers and transit operators are free to develop and use ramps with increased design loads as they deem appropriate. Indeed, there are several commercially available ramp models that have rated load capacities that exceed 600 pounds. 

A bus manufacturer commented that the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS) permit marking of the sides of the barriers to indicate the surface boundaries and warn passersby of a tripping hazard. Nothing in the final rule prevents this additional high contrast marking.

T403 Lifts

The technical requirements for lifts have been substantially revised in the 2016 Non-Rail Vehicle Guidelines. In the 2010 NPRM, the technical requirements for lifts were set forth in five enumerated provisions, with one section (T302.5) having eleven subsections. See 2010 NPRM, Sections T302.1 – T302.5. These provisions addressed design load, controls, manual operation, platform characteristics, gaps, threshold ramps, contrast, deflection, movement, boarding direction, standees, and handrails. Id. Several commenters, including transit operators and a bus manufacturer, expressed concern with certain aspects of these proposed technical provisions, including specifications for interior and exterior manual releases in the event of a power failure. These commenters urged the Access Board to instead reference existing standards for public vehicular lifts set forth in the FMVSS, which are issued by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. See 49 CFR 571.403, 571.404.

After considering this recommendation, the Board has determined that the public lift standards in the FMVSS provide a similar level of accessibility relative to the proposed rule, and, as well, provide measurable testing requirements that ensure both accessibility and safety for lift users. Section T403 of the 2016 Non-Rail Vehicle Guidelines has thus been revised to incorporate the technical requirements for public use lifts specified in Standards 403 and 404 of the FMVSS, which are codified at 49 CFR 571.403 and 571.404. We do, however, carry forward the requirement from the proposed rule that lift platforms be designed to permit passengers who use wheelchairs to board the platforms facing either toward or away from the vehicle. The public lift standards in the FMVSS are silent on boarding direction, so this requirement is set forth in a separate, stand-alone provision in the final rule. See 2016 Non-Rail Vehicle Guidelines, T403.2.