• The ADA's parking rules tell businesses exactly where parking spaces for disabled employees must go.Handicap Parking image by Joelyn Pullano from Fotolia.com
  
  The Americans With Disabilities Act includes several laws on how many parking spaces businesses must set aside for disabled workers and where they must locate these spaces. The general rule is that handicap parking must make it as easy as possible for disabled people to get from their vehicles into places of business. Businesses that don't follow the rules for handicap parking can face significant fines.
  
  

Required Spaces

• The Americans With Disabilities Act specifies exactly how many spots businesses have to designate for handicap parking. This number varies depending on the number of parking spots that the lot has.
  
  For example, small lots, with just one to 25 total spaces, must include at least one spot set aside specifically for disabled drivers. The number then increases as the number of parking spots increases: For 26 to 50, businesses must set aside two spots; for 51 to 75, three; and for 76 to 100, four.
  
  For businesses or office parks that have 501 to 1,000 spots, 2 percent of the total number must be designated as handicap parking spaces. For businesses or office parks with more than 1,000 spaces, 2 percent of the spaces plus one for every additional 100 spaces higher than 1,000 must be reserved for disabled motorists.
  
  

Required Location

• Parking spots designed for disable drivers must be located on the shortest possible accessible route to an accessible entrance, according to the Americans With Disabilities Act.
  
  For parking lots that serve multiple buildings, these parking spots must be dispersed throughout the lots in locations closest to the accessible entrances of these buildings.
  
  

Parking Space Specifics

• The Americans With Disabilities Act also regulates the size of handicap parking spaces. Each spot set aside for drivers with disabilities must be at least 96 inches wide. At least one of every eight handicap parking spaces in a lot--or at least one, depending on the size of the lot--must also include an access route of at least 96 inches in width. Facility managers must mark these spaces as being van-accessible.