Showers

Equal access
Requirements for the integration of equal access for all users
The Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) defines ‘premises’ as the whole of the built environment and includes existing buildings, new or proposed buildings, transport systems, car parks, pathways, and public parks and gardens.
Note: Consult an access consultant accredited by the Association of Consultants in Access Australia (ACAA).
Elements required for equal access
- Embellishments must be designed in accordance with AS 1428 Design for access and mobility.
- Ensure that the shower base is connected to a ‘continuous accessible path of travel’ (CAPT), to enable equal access for people who use wheelchairs. Ensure that the path of travel is connected to an accessible car park space.
- Provide equal access to showers at the recommended mounting and circulation heights to provide beach wheelchair access and reach heights.
- Install equal access showers in consistent locations for ease of recognition by people with vision impairment.
- Shower controls operable by one hand require force to be no more than 19.5 N.
- It is preferable that the shower is installed to provide front on wheelchair access to controls.
- To provide 90° wheelchair turn in the front of the shower unit – minimum deck or slab area to be 1.5 m x 1.5 m.
- To provide 360° wheelchair turn in the front of the shower unit – minimum deck or slab area to be 2.5 m x 2.5 m.
- Minimum traditional wheelchair footprint is 1300 mm x 800 m, however beach wheelchair footprint may require more space.
- When retro-fitting an accessible shower, consider the location of surrounding embellishments. If there is insufficient circulation space, a new location may be required.
- Avoid finished height difference between a concrete slab and adjoining surfaces to prevent trip hazards and to prevent ‘tramlining’ of pram, bicycle and wheelchair wheels.
- Install handrail and ramped path for equal access.
Visual/sensory wayfinding
- For people with a vision impairment, provide a minimum 30% luminance contrast between objects and the background they are viewed against, for ease of identification.
- Where luminance contrast may not be achieved (such as grey aluminium furniture on grey concrete), luminance contrast can be addressed by introducing colour into the ground surface providing a minimum 30% luminance contrast with the embellishment base, resulting in the embellishment being more visible for people who have low vision.
- Consider designing nodes with a contrasting coloured concrete, or a variation in surface texture, to enable people with a disability to identify the location of embellishments along a pathway.
See the following:
- Figure 6: Plan – shower on a deck platform
- Figure 7: Elevation – shower on a deck platform.
Figure 6: Plan – shower on a deck platform

Figure 7: Elevation - shower on a deck platform

This component is currently in development