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Lesson 3: TAS technical chapters, accessible route and doors

2012 Texas Accessibility Standards, Chapters 3 and 4 · 14 practice questions

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This lesson starts the technical core of TAS, the actual numbers a RAS checks a building against. These come from the 2012 Texas Accessibility Standards themselves, Chapter 3 (Building Blocks) and Chapter 4 (Accessible Routes), not from a secondary summary. Every dimension below carries its TAS section number so you can verify it directly in the standard.

Turning space, the building block behind every accessible room

Before a route or a room can be called accessible, a wheelchair user has to be able to turn around in it somewhere. TAS Section 304.3 gives two ways to satisfy that: a circular turning space of 60 inches diameter minimum, or a T-shaped turning space, a 60-inch square footprint with arms and stem 36 inches wide minimum, keeping 12 inches of clearance at the end of each arm and 24 inches at the base. Either configuration may use knee and toe clearance under Section 306, though the T-shaped option only where that clearance falls at the end of the base or one arm. This is a building block. It shows up again inside toilet rooms, at the base of ramps, and anywhere else the standard requires room to turn.

The accessible route: clear width and slope

Section 403.5.1 sets the clear width of a walking surface at 36 inches minimum, with an exception allowing a short segment down to 32 inches. Section 403.3 caps the running slope of a walking surface, the slope in the direction of travel, at 1:20, and the cross slope, perpendicular to travel, at 1:48 maximum. Above a 1:20 running slope, the surface is no longer a walking surface under this section, it is a ramp, and Section 405 takes over instead. That threshold matters on a plan review: a designer who calls a steep walkway a "sidewalk" does not get to skip ramp requirements just by not calling it a ramp.

Ramps

Section 405.2 caps a ramp's running slope at 1:12 in new construction; an exception lets existing sites use steeper slopes under Table 405.2 where space limitations require it. Section 405.6 limits the rise of any single ramp run to 30 inches, and Section 405.7 requires a landing at the top and bottom of each run. Section 405.8 requires handrails complying with Section 505 on any ramp run with a rise greater than 6 inches. A RAS reviewing ramp drawings is checking three numbers at once: does the slope stay at or under 1:12, does any single run stay at or under a 30-inch rise, and are handrails present wherever the rise exceeds 6 inches.

Doors: clear width

Section 404.2.3 requires a minimum clear width of 32 inches at a door opening, measured with the door held open 90 degrees. This is a clear opening measurement, not the door leaf's nominal size, so a "36-inch door" on a set of drawings does not automatically satisfy this section once you account for the door's thickness and the stop.

Doors: maneuvering clearance

Section 404.2.4 sets maneuvering clearance on both sides of a door, and the required clearance changes depending on which side a wheelchair user approaches from and whether the door swings toward or away from them. A front approach on the pull side, the harder case, needs 60 inches of clearance perpendicular to the doorway and 18 inches parallel to it, past the latch side of the door. Other approach types, front push-side, hinge side, and latch side, each carry their own clearance figures in the same section. The practical point for a plan review: maneuvering clearance is not one number, it depends on which side of the door and which direction of swing you are looking at, so each door on a plan set needs its clearance checked against the specific configuration drawn, not a single memorized figure.

Why this lesson matters for GCHS's own work

GCHS already evaluates properties for TAS, ADA, and Section 504 compliance as part of its existing service lines. The specific numbers in this lesson, the 36-inch route width, the 1:12 ramp slope, the 32-inch door clearance, and the door maneuvering clearances, are the same numbers that would appear in a RAS plan review report's list of deficiencies. This is the technical vocabulary a plan review report is written in.

Accessible route and door clearance dimensions A walking surface labeled 36 inches minimum clear width, a ramp labeled 1 to 12 maximum slope with a 30 inch maximum rise per run, and a door labeled 32 inches minimum clear width with 60 by 18 inches of front pull-side maneuvering clearance. Route36 in. clear width minimum(403.5.1) Ramp1:12 max running slope (405.2)30 in. max rise per run (405.6) HandrailsRequired on ramp runsrising more than 6 in. (405.8) Door clear width32 in. minimum, door open 90° (404.2.3) Front pull-side clearance60 in. perpendicular, 18 in. parallel (404.2.4) Every figure carries its own TAS section number; verify against the standard, not this summary
Core accessible route, ramp, and door dimensions from TAS Chapter 4, each traceable to its own section number.

Practice questions

1. What is the minimum clear width of a walking surface on an accessible route?

  1. There is no minimum width if one wheelchair can pass
  2. 32 inches minimum along the entire route, with no exceptions permitted
  3. 44 inches minimum, measured at the widest point of the route
  4. 36 inches minimum, per Section 403.5.1

2. What running slope turns a walking surface into a ramp under TAS?

  1. Any slope at all
  2. Steeper than 1:20
  3. Steeper than 1:12
  4. Steeper than 1:48

3. What is the maximum cross slope allowed on an accessible route?

  1. 1:20
  2. 1:12
  3. 1:100
  4. 1:48

4. What is the maximum running slope for a new-construction ramp?

  1. 1:20
  2. 1:8
  3. 1:12
  4. 1:48

5. What is the maximum rise permitted for any single ramp run?

  1. 30 inches
  2. 60 inches
  3. There is no maximum
  4. 12 inches

6. At what rise does a ramp require handrails under Section 405.8?

  1. Any rise at all
  2. Only above 30 inches
  3. Only above 12 inches
  4. Above 6 inches

7. What is the minimum clear width required at a door opening?

  1. 32 inches minimum, door open 90 degrees
  2. 36 inches minimum, door open 45 degrees
  3. Doors have no clear-width requirement
  4. 28 inches

8. Why does a "36-inch door" on a drawing not automatically satisfy the 32-inch clear-width requirement?

  1. It does automatically satisfy it, since a 36-inch door leaf always provides at least 32 inches clear
  2. Clear width is the actual opening with the door open 90 degrees, so thickness and stops reduce it
  3. Because 36 inches is less than 32 inches, so the opening would always be too narrow to use
  4. Because the requirement applies only to interior doors, and this drawing shows an exterior door

9. Under Section 404.2.4, what clearance does a front approach on the pull side of a door require?

  1. 60 inches perpendicular, 18 inches parallel, past the latch side
  2. No clearance is required on the pull side of a door that has a closer
  3. 36 inches perpendicular, 12 inches parallel, past the hinge side of the door
  4. 18 inches perpendicular, 60 inches parallel, past the latch side of the door

10. Does maneuvering clearance at a door use a single figure regardless of approach direction?

  1. Yes, but only for exterior doors
  2. Yes, 60 by 18 inches applies to every door configuration
  3. No, the required clearance changes depending on the approach side and swing direction
  4. No, maneuvering clearance was eliminated in the 2012 edition

11. What is the minimum diameter of a circular wheelchair turning space under Section 304.3?

  1. 60 inches
  2. 36 inches
  3. 72 inches
  4. 48 inches

12. What are the two options for satisfying the wheelchair turning space requirement?

  1. A hallway or a doorway, as long as either is at least 36 inches wide
  2. A 60-inch circle, or a T-shaped space within a 60-inch square
  3. A rectangle or a triangle, each at least 60 inches on its longest side
  4. Only the circular option; T-shaped spaces are not permitted in any room

13. A designer labels a steeply sloped walkway a "sidewalk" instead of a ramp. Does this avoid ramp requirements?

  1. Yes, sidewalks are exempt from TAS entirely
  2. No, but only if the slope exceeds 1:8
  3. Yes, labeling determines which section applies
  4. No, a walking surface with a running slope steeper than 1:20 is a ramp under Section 405 regardless of what it is labeled

14. Why does this lesson matter directly for a RAS plan review report?

  1. Because these numbers only apply to inspections, not plan review
  2. Because TAS Chapter 4 was repealed in 2012
  3. Because a deficiency in a plan review report is written against a specific TAS section and the dimension the drawing fails to meet
  4. Because plan review reports do not reference specific dimensions

Glossary

Turning space
A 60-inch circle or T-shaped space (Section 304.3) allowing a wheelchair to turn around.
Accessible route
A continuous path meeting Chapter 4's width and slope requirements (Section 403).
Ramp
A walking surface with a running slope steeper than 1:20, governed by Section 405.
Clear width (door)
The actual open clearance at a door held at 90 degrees (Section 404.2.3), not the door leaf's nominal size.
Maneuvering clearance
The floor space required on each side of a door, which varies by approach direction and swing (Section 404.2.4).
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