New agreement aims to co-ordinate building accessibility codes in Canada and U.S.
May 24, 2022
By CCE
The agreement took effect earlier this year.
Photo courtesy ICC.
The International Code Council (ICC) and Accessibility Standards Canada have signed an agreement to facilitate the sharing of best practices related to building accessibility, with the aim of improving and co-ordinating requirements in codes and standards between Canada and the U.S.
The agreement, which officially took effect on Feb. 21, 2022, will allow Accessibility Standards Canada to reference the standard ICC A117.1-2017, Accessible and Usable Building and Facilities, and share its own model standard for the built environment with ICC, so as to lay a foundation for more consistent accessibility across North America.
“I look forward to what we will achieve together to benefit our respective countries,” says Philip Rizcallah, CEO of Accessibility Standards Canada, which plans to better address barriers faced by Canadians. “Our hope is the standards we create will become regulation in Canada. By collaborating with a proven organization, we are developing world-class standards and increasing the odds they are adopted nationally and internationally.”
“It is essential for the global building community to find innovative ways to work together to improve building safety and accessibility,” says Dominic Sims, CEO of ICC. “We look forward to the ideas our collaboration will add.”
