Accessible Play Areas - A Summary of Accessibility Guidelines for Play Areas

Step-by-Step Guide

The following step-by-step guide has been provided to assist in evaluating a play area for meeting the minimum requirements of these guidelines.  The guide has been arranged in four steps and provides spaces to fill in numeric values of play components for evaluating a specific play area design.

STEP 1 Assess your play area design

This step identifies the number and different types of ground level play components provided in a play area design.  The number of elevated play components is also identified.

STEP 2 Determine what is needed
In some cases, the accessibility guidelines will require additional play components to be provided to meet the minimum requirements.  Step 2 begins identifying what is needed by reading Table 240.2.1.2.  Table 240.2.1.2 establishes a minimum level of ground level play components required to be on an accessible route, based on the number of elevated play components provided.

STEP 3 Compare which is greater
Step 3 compares your results in identifying the number and different types of ground level play components with those required by Table 240.2.1.2.  The greater number is considered to be the minimum number of ground level play components required to be on an accessible route.

STEP 4 Assess how to get there
Step 4 examines the number of elevated play components provided, beginning with the number established in step 1.  Once the number of elevated play components provided is identified, step 4 defines the type of route to be provided to connect to these elevated play components.  Where 20 or more elevated play components are provided, ramps must connect to a minimum of 25% of the elevated play components.  Ramp or transfer systems must connect to the remaining 25%.  If 19 or fewer elevated play components are provided, transfer systems must connect to a minimum of 50% of the elevated play components.

This step-by-step guide is applied using the proposed play area design.

STEP 1  Number of ground level play components:  3

• 1 spring rider
• 2 swings

Number of different types of ground level play components provided:  2

• spring rider
• swing

STEP 2  Determining what is needed based on Table 240.2.1.2:

STEP 3  Determining the greater number:  2

In this case, 2 types were provided.  Table 240.2.1.2 requires a minimum of 1.

STEP 4  Assessing how to get there:

Number of elevated = 4 (1 triple slide, 1 interactive panel, 1 overhead curved ladder, 1 banister bars)
50% = 2
Transfer access required to 2 elevated play components as a minimum