Call for Feedback: Proposed CAN-ASC 2.2. Standard for Exit Stairs

Last week, Accessibility Standards Canada (ASC) released a new draft standard titled “CAN-AS-2.2 – Emergency Egress (Exit)” for open public review until mid-January 2026. It is encouraged that anyone interested in building codes across Canada read it and submit for the public review (ASC account required).

If looking to submit feedback, please read Section 12 of the standard, which sets out various requirements for areas of refuge and exits. A few noteworthy aspects:

• 12.1.1. says that “Sprinklers provided in buildings shall not be considered an acceptable form of refuge.”
• 12.1.5. requires an area of refuge on each storey, with at least two clear waiting spaces of 900 x 1500 mm served by a 2100 mm turning radius.
• 12.5.2 requires a minimum clear width of 1650 mm for exit stairs. (the Canadian model code minimum is 900 mm up to 3 storeys, 1100 mm over three storeys. In the United States, an “accessible means of egress” is defined by the IBC code as 48″ wide (1200 mm) between handrails, but does not apply to sprinklered buildings).

The standard also includes a note that, “The Standard’s requirements reflect best practices that may differ from approaches prescribed in an adopted building code.”

The document is likely to be of interest to builders and architects, especially for affordable housing or CMHC MLI. Select programs that often require compliance with voluntary CSA/ASC standards to obtain financing. Many architects are familiar with the impact of changes to accessibility criteria, especially from the 2018 to 2023 update of CSA/ASC B651.

Above additional context about this public call for feedback has been provided by Conrad Speckert, building code researcher, for information and educational purposes only.