Wheelchair lift

Last updated October 21, 2023

A wheelchair lift, also known as a platform lift, or vertical platform lift, is a fully powered device designed to raise a wheelchair and its occupant in order to overcome a step or similar vertical barrier.

Wheelchair lifts can be installed in homes or businesses and are often added to both private and public vehicles in order to meet accessibility requirements laid out by disability acts. These mobility devices are often installed in homes as an alternative to a stair lift, which only transport a passenger and not his/her wheelchair or mobility scooter.

Regulations

In the United States, the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) required that all new mass transit vehicles placed into service after July 1, 1993, be accessible to persons in wheelchairs,^[1] and until the 2000s, this requirement was most commonly met by the inclusion of a wheelchair lift. In 1993, there were 29,033 transit buses in the U.S. equipped with wheelchair lifts or ramps, representing 52 percent of all U.S. transit buses.^[2] By 2001, this figure had grown to 58,785 buses (although the percentage that were equipped with lifts, as opposed to ramps, is unknown).^[2]

A number of legal regimes in various countries regulate the use of wheelchair lifts, setting forth standards for the devices and requiring certain kinds of businesses to make parking lots accessible to vehicles bearing the devices. In some instances, accessibility standards have been achieved in legal settlements. For example, in the 2005 case of Dilworth, et al. v. City of Detroit , NO. 2:04- cv-73152 (E.D. Mich. 2005), the defendant city conceded that the ADA and its supporting legislation required the city "to maintain the wheelchair lifts on its buses in operative condition; promptly repair wheelchair lifts if they are damaged or out of order; establish a system of regular and frequent maintenance checks of wheelchair lifts; remove a vehicle from service if the lift is inoperative (with limited exceptions); provide alternative transportation when the lift doesn't work and the next accessible bus is more than 30 minutes away."

As mandated by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), wheelchair-accessible vans with wheelchair lifts are equipped with a safety lift interlock. Designed to prevent operation of the wheelchair van or wheelchair lift in unsafe situations, the safety interlock will sound an alarm if an unsafe condition exists (e.g., the vehicle attempts to move while the lift is deployed) or prevent the vehicle from shifting into drive while the wheelchair lift is in operation.^[3]

Ramps

In 2002, innovations allowed the development of wheelchair lifts that assist people in entering truck cabs, so that they may drive or operate heavy equipment.^[4] Wheelchair lifts can also be used to move an unoccupied scooter into a vehicle.^{[ citation needed ]}

Low-floor transit vehicles (buses, streetcars, light rail cars) – fitted with ramps or bridge plates rather than lifts – later began to become more common than lifts for heavy-duty transit vehicles, while lifts continue to be used in paratransit vehicles.

While some wheelchair-accessible vans use a powered lift to assist the occupant in boarding, a wheelchair ramp is usually less expensive for this purpose and is often installed on minivans. Full-size vans require the use of a platform lift. There are two types of platform lifts installed on wheelchair-accessible vans: single-arm and dual-arm. Single-arm wheelchair lifts are only used in side-entry applications. They take up less interior space and leave the passenger entry open; however, they have less lifting capacity than dual-arm lifts. Most dual-arm wheelchair lifts have a lift capacity up to 800 pounds. These lifts consume more interior space and block the side entry and, for these reasons, are often mounted in the back of the vehicle for rear-entry applications.

Residential and commercial lifts

A residential wheelchair lift is typically installed inside or outside of an individual's home to provide wheelchair access. Most often the wheelchair lift is installed against a deck, porch, or raised entryway door. The lift can take the place of a set of stairs in some situations. Additionally, a set of stairs and a landing can be custom built to provide access via the lift or stairs.

Commercial wheelchair lifts are often installed to meet ADA requirements, when an elevator is cost prohibitive or will be used only occasionally. These lifts are typically planned for during the construction or renovation of a commercial/business space. Commercial wheelchair lifts can be found in restaurants, bars, churches, community centers, and many other places of business.

Indoor vs. outdoor vertical lifts

An indoor vertical platform lift operates much like an elevator which is installed within a hoist-way or shaft-way. Although the installation of a vertical platform lift is similar to that of an elevator, it's much less expensive. Some models offer options to finish a vertical platform lift to make it operate more like a home elevator.

An outdoor vertical platform may include factory-built enclosures that protect the user from the weather and keep them dry. The enclosure acts as a shaft-way inside the unit with gates or doors that are added to the entrance or exit.

Related Research Articles

A low-floor bus is a bus or trolleybus that has no steps between the ground and the floor of the bus at one or more entrances, and low floor for part or all of the passenger cabin. A bus with a partial low floor may also be referred to as a low-entry bus or seldom a flat-floor bus in some locations.

A wheelchair ramp is an inclined plane installed in addition to or instead of stairs. Ramps permit wheelchair users, as well as people pushing strollers, carts, or other wheeled objects, to more easily access a building, or navigate between areas of different height. Ramps for accessibility may predate the wheelchair and are found in ancient Greece.

A wheelchair-accessible van is a vehicle that has been modified by increasing the interior size of the vehicle and equipping it with a means of wheelchair entry, such as a wheelchair ramp or powered lift.

A stair lift is a mechanical device for lifting people, typically those with disabilities, up and down stairs. For sufficiently wide stairs, a rail is mounted to the treads of the stairs. A chair or lifting platform is attached to the rail. A person gets onto the chair or platform and is lifted up or down the stairs by the chair which moves along the rail.

Tactile paving is a system of textured ground surface indicators found at roadsides, by and on stairs, and on railway station platforms, to assist pedestrians who are vision impaired.

Accessibility for people with disabilities on the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) system is incomplete but improving. Most of the Toronto subway system was built before wheelchair access was a requirement under the Ontarians with Disabilities Act (ODA). However, all subway stations built since 1996 are equipped with elevators, and elevators have been installed in 44 stations built before 1996. Over 75 percent of Toronto's subway stations are accessible. The original plan was to make all stations accessible by 2025; however, a few stations might not be accessible until 2026.

A wheelchair is a chair with wheels, used when walking is difficult or impossible due to illness, injury, problems related to old age, or disability.

High-floor describes the interior flooring of commuter vehicles primarily used in public transport such as trains, light rail cars and other rail vehicles, along with buses and trolleybuses. Interior floor height is generally measured above the street surface or above the top of the rail. High-floor designs usually result from packaging requirements: mechanical items such as axles, motors, crankshafts, and/or transmissions, or luggage storage spaces are traditionally placed under the interior floor of these vehicles. The term is used in contrast with low-floor designs, which offer a decreased floor and entry height above the street surface. Since low-floor designs generally were developed after high-floor vehicles, the older high-floor design is sometimes also known as conventional or the “traditional” design.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fenhu Lu station</span> Suzhou Metro station

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yushan Lu station</span> Suzhou Metro station

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shizishan station (Suzhou Rail Transit)</span> Suzhou Metro station

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tayuan Lu station</span> Suzhou Metro station

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Binhe Lu station</span> Suzhou Metro station

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Accessible housing refers to the construction or modification of housing to enable independent living for persons with disabilities. Accessibility is achieved through architectural design, but also by integrating accessibility features such as modified furniture, shelves and cupboards, or even electronic devices in the home.

The physical accessibility of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA)'s public transit network, serving the New York metropolitan area, is incomplete. Although all buses are wheelchair-accessible in compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA), much of the MTA's rail system was built before wheelchair access was a requirement under the ADA. This includes the MTA's rapid transit systems, the New York City Subway and Staten Island Railway, and its commuter rail services, the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) and Metro-North Railroad. Consequently, most stations were not designed to be accessible to people with disabilities, and many MTA facilities lack accessible announcements, signs, tactile components, and other features.

References

↑ "Getting on board" (July–August 1993). Trolleybus Magazine No. 190, pp. 86–87. National Trolleybus Association (UK). ISSN 0266-7452.
1 2 "Lift- or Ramp-Equipped Buses and Rail Stations". Transportation Statistics Annual Report, 2003. Bureau of Transportation Statistics. 2003. Retrieved 2017-06-09.
↑ "49 CFR Part 571 Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards; Platform Lift Systems for Accessible Motor Vehicles, Platform Lift Installation on Motor Vehicles; Final Rule" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-08-16.
↑ Greenstein, Doreen (April 2002). "Health Equipment for Farmers who use Wheelchairs". National Ag Safety Database. US Center for Disease Control. Archived from the original on 9 June 2009.

External links

Americans with Disabilities Act

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[getting_on_board-1] "Getting on board" (July–August 1993). Trolleybus Magazine No. 190, pp. 86–87. National Trolleybus Association (UK). ISSN 0266-7452.

[BTS_2003-2] 1 2 "Lift- or Ramp-Equipped Buses and Rail Stations". Transportation Statistics Annual Report, 2003. Bureau of Transportation Statistics. 2003. Retrieved 2017-06-09.

[3] "49 CFR Part 571 Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards; Platform Lift Systems for Accessible Motor Vehicles, Platform Lift Installation on Motor Vehicles; Final Rule" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-08-16.

[Greenstein-4] Greenstein, Doreen (April 2002). "Health Equipment for Farmers who use Wheelchairs". National Ag Safety Database. US Center for Disease Control. Archived from the original on 9 June 2009.

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