Rail Vehicle Accessibility Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2001

Steps

6.—(1) Steps for use by passengers at any external doorway of a regulated rail vehicle shall comply with the following requirements—

(a)the surface of each tread shall be covered in slip-resistant material;

(b)across the front edge of each tread there shall be a band of colour which shall be not less than 45 millimetres and not more than 50 millimetres deep and shall contrast with the remainder of the tread;

(c)the rear of each step shall be closed by a vertical riser fixed to the rear of the tread and the front edge of the tread above or of the floor of the vehicle;

(d)each step shall be illuminated by a light placed within or immediately adjacent to the step;

(e)each step shall be not more than 200 millimetres high measured vertically from the surface of the tread to an imaginary line extended horizontally from the surface of the next tread or floor of the vehicle and not less than 300 millimetres deep measured from the front of the tread to its rear; and

(f)the surface of each tread shall be not less than 455 millimetres wide.

(2) Paragraph (1)(e) and (f) do not apply if there is not more than one step outside an external doorway.

(3) Subject to paragraph (4), inside a regulated rail vehicle there shall be no step between an external passenger doorway and that part of the passenger saloon to one side of that doorway for as far as and including the vestibule of the next external passenger doorway on the same side of that vehicle or the end of that vehicle if there is no such other doorway.

(4) Paragraph (3) shall not apply to stairs leading to any upper passenger saloon of a regulated rail vehicle.