Outdoor Developed Areas: A Summary of Accessibility Standards for Federal Outdoor Developed Areas

Water Hydrants and Water Spouts [1011.2, 1011.3, and 1011.6]

Water hydrants are outdoor devices for dispensing water, including water faucets on posts and hand pumps. The opening for dispensing the water is called a water spout.

At water hydrants, a minimum of 72 by 48 inches of clear ground space must be provided with the long side of the space adjoining or overlapping an ORAR or trail as applicable, or another clear ground space (figure 23). The clear ground space must be located so that the water spout is between 11 and 12 inches from the rear center of the long side of the space. This allows people using mobility devices to approach and operate the water spout from either the right or left side.

There are different technical requirements for the clear ground space at water utility hookups in camping units required to provide mobility features, which are discussed in the next section. There are also different technical requirements for drinking fountains in section 602 of the ABA Standards.

Figure 23—Technical requirements for water hydrants.

Water spouts must be between 28 and 36 inches above the ground. The operable parts of water hydrants, such as handles or levers, must be between 15 and 48 inches above the ground. Operable parts must also be operable using one hand without tightly grasping, pinching, or twisting the wrist, and with no more than 5 pounds of force. Water hydrants with compliant operable parts may not yet be commercially available. Until products with compliant operable parts become commercially available, compliance is required to the extent practicable.