Use the discussion space below to post resources. It can be videos, other resource aggregators, press releases to decisions enacted by other jurisdictions, whatever!
I’ll be attending the ABNDP convention in October, and I’d love to work with my local policy committee to bring this issue to the party.
I’ll need lots of resources and references to build a strong case for this, and write a policy that’s ready to be passed by a major provincial party. Give me your best, and I’ll edit this post to sort them.
Highlighting this as its own reply as the opinion of the CAFC will likely be very important going forward for an Alberta single egress policy proposal. I’m note sure when the National Research Council consultations are slated to end, however this will likely be very important to be released before any policy change is made in Alberta. https://cafc.ca/page/single-egress
Changes are being considered to the British Columbia, Ontario and National Building Codes
in Canada to permit single egress stairs in residential buildings of three to eight storeys.
The purpose of this report is to summarize the views of proponents and opponents of this
change, explore the findings of relevant research and data, and identify issues and
vulnerabilities not currently addressed elsewhere.
Proponents note that single egress stairs will increase design flexibility and reduce costs for
new low-rise and mid-rise residential buildings to help address the housing crisis, and are
already permitted in some jurisdictions in the United States, the United Kingdom, Europe,
Australia and other locations.
Proponents say current codes are outdated and modern fire protection systems, such as
smoke alarms and sprinklering, provide sufficient protection to remove a second stairway.
The proposals include fire safety measures including a maximum of four units per storey, a
maximum of 60 people served by a single exit, a maximum floor area of 150 sq.m. per unit,
sprinklering throughout the building, increased fire protection ratings for dwelling unit
entrance doors (from 10 minutes to 45 minutes), and fire alarms triggered by the sprinklers.
The proposed building code changes have received widespread and vocal opposition from
Canadian, U.S. and international fire associations, who say the move toward single-stair
residential buildings has circumvented the traditional building code consensus process that
ensures that changes reflect the interest of all parties.
Opponents note that examples from abroad of single-stair buildings do not account for
significant differences between those locations and Canada, including building materials,
geography and fire department capacity.
A single egress may be blocked for a variety of reasons, including maintenance, parking of
mobility devices or e-bikes using lithium-ion batteries, or by smoke or debris during a fire.
Research of Canadian apartment building fires showed 9% originated in the means of
egress—such as hallways and stairwells—and that smoke affected primary access routes in
more than 42% of the fires.
Second stairwells play a critical role in fighting fires and are used for staging, access and
running hose. During a firefight, second staircases are generally not available to evacuees.
Redundancy is the foundation of fire protection because individual systems may and do fail.
Research of Canadian apartment fires showed problems with smoke alarms in almost 9% of
fires, while in 7.3%, automatic extinguishing equipment did not work because the fire was
too small or other reasons. The 2022 Winters Hotel fire in Vancouver, B.C., where two
people perished in a building equipped with a sprinkler and fire alarm system,
demonstrates the vulnerabilities of fire protection systems.
The proposed 60-person maximum load per storey will be essentially unenforceable
because residential dwellings cannot be inspected for the enforcement of occupant load
without reasonable cause.
With the aging population comes more people with mobility, hearing and sight
impairments. Research on Canadian apartment building fires showed that in over half of the
unintentional residential fire deaths studied, the individual was age 70 and up. As well, in
14% of unintentional residential fire deaths, there were mobility-related issues (e.g. use of
crutches or wheelchair) or cognitive impairments (e.g. dementia). Other research showed a
declined benefit of smoke alarms and sprinkler systems for older people.
The report concludes by noting that due to the import and wide-ranging implications of
building code changes, it is not a process to be rushed, considered incremental or driven by
single-issue agendas. The report reveals a range of vulnerabilities in the arguments in favour
of the proposed change. It is imperative that any changes to the building code be made in
close collaboration with the fire service.
