ADA Parking Symbol Update
The old wheelchair icon has been around since 1968. A newer version is spreading across the country , and Texas property owners are starting to ask questions.
Questions About Your ADA Markings? Call (281) 826-2527If you manage a commercial property in North Houston, Harris County, or Montgomery County, you’ve probably noticed something lately , some parking lots have the old wheelchair symbol painted on the asphalt, and some have a newer one that looks more like a person in motion. Maybe a tenant asked about it. Maybe your inspector flagged it. Maybe you just want to stay ahead of it.
Here’s the short version: the original International Symbol of Access (ISA) , the stiff, upright wheelchair figure designed back in 1968 , is still the federally recognized standard under ADA and TAS law. A newer design called the Accessible Icon (sometimes called the “dynamic ISA”) is being adopted by individual states and cities. It is not yet required by federal law or Texas state law. But it’s spreading fast, and it’s worth understanding.
This guide covers what changed, why it changed, who has officially adopted the new symbol, what the law actually requires in Texas right now, and what you as a property owner should do.
The original ISA was designed in 1968 by a Danish design student named Susanne Koefoed. It shows a person seated upright in a wheelchair, viewed from the side, with rigid geometry and no suggestion of movement. For nearly 60 years, that image appeared on parking signs, pavement stencils, and restroom doors worldwide.
In 2010, two academics , Sara Hendren and Brian Glenney , started the Accessible Icon Project as a street art campaign in Boston. Working with graphic designer Tim Ferguson-Sauder, they developed a redesigned version of the symbol that shows the figure leaning forward, with one arm raised ahead and the body angled as if in motion. The idea was to show a person with a disability as active and engaged , not passive and seated.
The new design was placed in the public domain, meaning anyone can use it for free. It gained significant attention when New York State officially adopted it in 2014, followed by Connecticut in 2016. It’s been installed at schools, hospitals, government buildings, and private businesses across the country , including here in Texas at a growing number of properties.
Critically, in May 2015, the Federal Highway Administration formally rejected the new design for use on road signs, stating it had not been adopted by the U.S. Access Board. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO), which governs the original symbol under ISO 7001, also rejected it. So as of 2026, the new icon is still not the federal standard.
Adoption of the new Accessible Icon is patchwork across the United States. Most states still use the original ISA because federal law hasn’t changed. A handful of states and cities have passed their own legislation or policies to require or permit the new design. Here’s where things stand as of 2026:
| State / Jurisdiction | Status | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| New York | Required | Legislatively required on all new and replaced accessible parking signs since 2014 |
| Connecticut | Required | Adopted the new symbol for new reserved parking signs in 2016 via Governor’s order |
| Georgia | Optional | Permitted but not required for accessible parking markings |
| Massachusetts | Optional | Widely used by cities and institutions; no statewide mandate |
| Texas | Not Required | Original ISA required under TAS (Texas Accessibility Standards). New icon is not prohibited but not mandated. |
| Federal (ADA) | Not Required | FHWA rejected in 2015. U.S. Access Board has not adopted. Original ISA remains the federal standard. |
| British Columbia (Canada) | Optional | Permitted as alternative in BC Building Code 2024. Not yet in national code. |
The original ISA was functional but impersonal. Critics in the disability community pointed out for years that the stiff, upright figure felt like it was representing a broken or passive person , someone sitting still and waiting for help. The new Accessible Icon was designed specifically to push back against that idea.
Sara Hendren and Brian Glenney started the project as a street art campaign, placing vinyl stickers over existing ISA signs in Boston. The new icon showed the figure leaning forward aggressively with one arm raised ahead , representing a person actively directing their own movement, not just existing in a chair. The message behind the design: disability is not passivity. People with disabilities are agents in their own lives.
The project went global fast. It caught media attention, got covered by NPR, CNN, the Boston Globe, and Fast Company, and eventually the Museum of Modern Art in New York acquired the icon for its permanent collection. New York State’s adoption in 2014 was a direct result of this grassroots campaign reaching state legislators.
Still, the disability community itself is divided on the change. Some disability advocates point out that the wheelchair-pushing figure doesn’t represent the majority of people with disabilities who don’t use wheelchairs. Others say the dynamic icon is still a wheelchair symbol, just a more honest one. The ISO rejected the new design in part because changing a global symbol creates confusion and inconsistency across countries.
If you own or manage commercial property in The Woodlands, Conroe, Katy, Spring, Kingwood, Humble, Tomball, Magnolia, Cypress, or anywhere else in Harris, Montgomery, Fort Bend, Walker, or Waller County , here is exactly what you need to know right now.
You are not required to change your symbol. Texas law requires the original International Symbol of Access on your accessible parking stalls and signage. If you have a freshly painted, code-compliant ISA on your lot, you are in compliance. There is no Texas enforcement mechanism around the new Accessible Icon because it hasn’t been adopted by the state.
You are allowed to use the new symbol. The Accessible Icon is in the public domain. Nothing in federal ADA law or TAS prohibits you from using it. Some forward-thinking properties in the Houston area have switched over as a voluntary upgrade, particularly hospitals, universities, and retail centers that want to signal inclusion. If you want to use it, you can , just make sure every other dimension, color, and signage requirement is still met.
What actually causes ADA violations is not the symbol design. In our experience striping lots across North Houston, the most common ADA failures we see have nothing to do with which wheelchair symbol is painted. They are: missing or faded pavement symbols entirely, access aisles that are too narrow or blocked, signs at the wrong height, van-accessible stalls with only a 5-foot aisle instead of 8 feet, and wrong stall count for the lot size. Those are the things that get properties cited and that expose you to demand letters and lawsuits.
Maybe , but not because of the symbol design change. Here’s a simple way to think about it.
You should repaint your accessible parking symbols if:
If your symbols are still clearly visible and your stall dimensions and signage are correct, you don’t need to repaint just because of the symbol design conversation. But if you’re not sure , that’s what our free site walk is for. We’ll look at your lot, measure your access aisles, check your stall count against your total lot size, and tell you honestly where you stand.
When you do repaint, we can paint either the traditional ISA or the new Accessible Icon , your choice. Both are compliant under current Texas law. We just want to make sure the rest of the markings are right.
We keep up with ADA and TAS changes because it’s our job to. When property managers in The Woodlands, Conroe, Spring, or Katy call us about accessible stall repainting, we’re not just showing up to slap a wheelchair icon on the asphalt. We’re checking your access aisle dimensions, your van-accessible stall placement, your signage height, your stall count, and your connection to an accessible route from the stall to the building entrance.
We paint both the original ISA and the Accessible Icon depending on what the property owner wants. We do not charge differently for either design. What changes pricing is the size of the lot, how many ADA stalls and stencils need painting, fire-lane requirements, and whether you need a fresh layout or a refresh of existing markings.upfront.
Every accessible stall we paint includes:
We also verify that your van-accessible stall is correctly placed according to TAS , it must be on an accessible route and in a location that doesn’t require a wheelchair user to move behind other parked vehicles. That placement requirement trips up more properties than the symbol debate ever will.
Call us for a free walk of your lot: (281) 826-2527. We serve all of Harris County, Montgomery County, Fort Bend County, Walker County, Waller County, Grimes County, and Liberty County.
Podium Pavement Works provides ADA-compliant parking lot striping across North Houston, The Woodlands, Conroe, Katy, Kingwood, Spring, Tomball, Humble, Magnolia, Cypress, and surrounding areas. We paint both the traditional ISA and the new Accessible Icon , your choice , and we make sure everything else is code-compliant too.