How much space is an appropriate amount for people to walk when designing interior spaces?

13 comments

1. Do you mean hallways and doors? There are building codes and have to meet ADA requirements. If you’re building a house they would have to meet or exceed these codes

2. They are wider in America because of ADA compliance to make sure people with disabilities, mainly those in wheelchairs, can easily go through hallways. That and buildings can be bigger due to America having so much more space to use.

3. It depends on the function of the space. For a hallway in a home 3-4 feet is a pretty good width. That’s enough space to allow 2 people to walk past each other without bumping into each other or having to turn sideways.

   In an office with much higher foot traffic you’d likely want considerably wider hallways. Especially if people will regularly need to move bulky items through the halls like in hospitals where they might have to maneuver stretchers down the halls.

   Really depends honestly.

4. As wide as possible. If you’ve ever had to move furniture/equipment in or out of somewhere you’ll understand

5. IIRC, the code for our office specified 36″ minimum. Can’t remember if this was ADA or OSHA or OSHA enforcing ADA, but we had to reconfigure a few cubicles to get compliant.

6. If for your own house, however much space you or the client wants.

   For a business, I’m not sure.

7. For a private house, 4 feet is a standard hallway

8. Another thing is Americans do prefer open houses these days. Look at any house built in the past 30 years in the US, vs one built in the 50s or before. The older houses were less open, more doors with narrower hallways etc.

9. There’s usually a minimum of 36” or 44” wide, depending on a few factors. There also has to be 60” diameter circle in most spaces, and a lot of aisles are planned at 60” wide as the ideal (but not minimum per code). Some spaces like hospital corridors have to be wider (maybe 72”, I can’t remember).

10. You might be interested in this book: https://www.amazon.com/Measure-Man-Woman-Factors-Design/dp/0471099554/ref=sr_1_7
    “Human factors research impacts everything from the height of kitchen counters to the placement of automobile pedals to a book’s type size. And in this updated and expanded version of the original landmark work, you’ll find the research information necessary to create designs that better accommodate human need. Featuring more than 200 anthropometric drawings, this handbook is filled with all of the essential measurements of the human body and its relationship to the designed environment. You’ll also discover guidelines for designing for children and the elderly, for the digital workplace, and for ADA compliance. Measurements are in both English and metric units.”

11. I have not noticed a difference between a standard Indian hallway and a standard American hallway (besides the number of people in it lol) though that’s anecdotal

12. The hallway in my home that was built in 1910 is 30” wide. I think modern standard hallways are more like 36” in homes. In public spaces they are probably wider so many people can walk by each other or to accommodate wheelchairs.

13. The American’s with Disabilities Act (ADA) dictates a lot of our public building codes for things like the size of hallways. Some places, such as hospitals will be even wider due to what has to be maneuvered through the space with hospitals having to have enough space for two beds to pass each other easily with other people on foot around them as well.