Pedestrian guardrails, called guards in the building code, are rails, walls or panels that protect people from falling where a walking surface is more than 30 inches above the floor or grade below, such as deck edges, ramps, stair openings and light wells.
Under the International Building Code, guards are generally at least 42 inches high, and openings must not let a 4-inch sphere pass through in the lower portion, to keep children from slipping through. Guards are designed for a 50 pound-per-foot line load and a 200-pound concentrated load at the top rail. In parking structures they are a different element from vehicle barriers, which must stop a car at bumper height and are designed for much larger loads. See bumper wall.
In parking facilities
- Perimeter barriers often combine both functions: a vehicle barrier at bumper height and a guard to full height above it.
- Cable barriers must be checked for both vehicle loads and guard opening limits where pedestrians are present.
- Stair and elevator cores, ramps and openings between levels need guards along every open edge.
- Facade screens and panels used as guards must be non-climbable and meet guard loads. See perforated panels.
- Corrosion of rails, posts and anchors is a common condition-survey finding.
The Parkonomics view
Guards protect people and barriers stop cars, and a garage edge needs both. When a facade or barrier system is value-engineered, make sure it still meets the guard height, opening and load requirements wherever people can walk.
Related terms: Bumper Wall, Vertical Circulation, Perforated Panels, International Building Code