The effects of interactive stairways on user behaviour and safety

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to assess the safety of interactive stairway designs by comparing the user's behaviour and the incidence of unsafe stair use on two interactive stairways with a stairway made of conventional material. The Stairway Observation Checklist (SOC) for recording observations of stair users was developed. Observations were conducted in two museum buildings with interactive stairways and in one university building with a conventional stairway. Cautionary behaviours and incidents on the interactive stairways and the conventional stairway were documented and compared. On the interactive stairways, more users glanced down at the treads; fewer users diverted their gaze away from the stairs; and handrail use was higher. Incident rates were similar across the stairways. The research suggests that interactivity increases the risk of stair use but also can promote increased attention to the stair climbing task. More specifically, interactive stairways encourage more cautious behaviours than conventional stairways.

KEYWORDS:

• Stairway safety
• stairway design
• interactive stairways
• user behaviour
• universal design
• interactivity

Acknowledgements

The contents do not necessarily represent the policy of the Department of Education, and you should not assume endorsement by the Federal Government.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

The contents of this report were developed under a grant from the Department of Education, NIDRR grant number H133E100002.