Regulations for Non-Slippery Red Traffic Paint

Americans With Disabilities Act

• The Americans With Disabilities Act has mandated that public walkways need to be slip-resistant. Furthermore, the coefficient of friction (COF) needs to be 0.60 for accessible routes and 0.80 for ramps. The COF is the amount of force need to start the movement of an object. Also, contrasting colors are required for step edges, although color used -- be it red, yellow or gray -- is not specified.

Occupational Safety and Health Organization

• According to the regulations from the Occupational Safety and Health Organization (OSHA), the standard COF is 0.50, whether the work surface is wet or dry. Section 1910.144 of the OSHA code states the color red is designated specifically as a color of danger as well as fire equipment. Fire equipment, apparatus designated to stop machinery and "danger" signs must be painted red.

Other Color Regulations

• A variety of colors have designation for various areas according to OSHA. For instance, yellow is the color of caution where areas might be slippery or caught between hazards. Black, white or a combination of the two are used for aisle marking, traffic control or housekeeping. Non-skid coatings that have aggregates, such as polymers or emery, can be used to mark specific floor or walkway areas that fall into these categories.