Bank Parking - What's Wrong With This Photo? [8/29/25]
Recently on a visit to a local branch office of a bank I noticed some non-compliant installations in the parking lot. Please look at the photo below which shows the parking area intended to be accessible (yellow arrow) and the public pedestrian entrance (blue arrow). What’s wrong? Note that the parking lot has recently been re-surfaced and re-striped.
Bank Parking Lot
The photo below shows the parking area in front of the public pedestrian entrance. Note the parking spaces not used for accessible parking.
Bank Parking Near the Public Entrance
A fundamental rule regarding ADA parking is that the location of the accessible parking spaces should be on the shortest accessible route to the public pedestrian entrance(s). See below.
2010 ADA Standard 208.3.1, [Parking, Location] General, states, “Parking spaces complying with 502 that serve a particular building or facility shall be located on the shortest accessible route from parking to an entrance complying with 206.4. Where parking serves more than one accessible entrance, parking spaces complying with 502 shall be dispersed and located on the shortest accessible route to the accessible entrances. In parking facilities that do not serve a particular building or facility, parking spaces complying with 502 shall be located on the shortest accessible route to an accessible pedestrian entrance of the parking facility.” Standard 502 covers the technical requirements for ADA-compliant [accessible] parking areas. Standard 206.4 covers the scope requirements for pedestrian entrances. So for this bank installation, the accessible parking area is not on the shortest accessible route to the front public pedestrian entrance.
Another violation of the ADA is the curb ramp installed at the parking area intended to be accessible. Please look at the photo below. You are looking at the two ADA accessible parking spaces with a shared accessible aisle that connects to a walkway leading to the bank pedestrian public entry/exit door. Focusing on the curb ramp at the end of the access aisle [yellow arrow], what’s wrong? HINT: ADA accessible parking spaces and aisles must have level surfaces.
Curb Ramp Projecting Into ADA Parking Access Aisle
2010 ADA Standards for Accessible Design Standard 406.5, [Ramp] Location, states, “Curb ramps and the flared sides of curb ramps shall be located so that they do not project into vehicular traffic lanes, parking spaces, or parking access aisles.” So that is what is wrong. The curb ramp has been installed so that it projects into the aisle. Furthermore, Standard 502.3.2 [Parking Space] Length, states, “Access aisles shall extend the full length of the parking spaces they serve.” So in this case a parallel curb ramp should have been installed instead of this curb ramp. The graphic below is representative of a parallel curb ramp.
Parallel Curb Ramp Graphic
SUMMARY: A commercial bank branch office is a Title III public accommodation facility subject to the requirements in the ADA. When a facility such as this undergoes renovation, including re-surfacing and re-striping the parking lot, the installation must comply with the ADA. ADA parking areas must be on the shortest accessible route to the public entrances. The surface of the accessible parking areas must be level.
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