I think it’s only fair to agree on one simple thing. If an indoor space, or an outdoor one, for that matter, has a stairway, however long or short, it should serve its function. First, it should bring us up and down at least one level and second, it should be safe. That’s the bare minimum, right?
But it turns out, some stair designers out there have had their minds spun by invisible hamsters on a wheel. Right below, it becomes very clear why. You see, if the stairs cost you a potentially immeasurable amount of broken legs, you’d be better off without them.
Bored Panda has compiled the most absurd cases of stair designs gone very wrong that make a ladder look like a premium lift in comparison. My popcorn is ready, how about you?
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The Perfect Building To Have Stairs In Front Of
Not A Paradox, Just A Normal Russian Architecture
Steps That You Can't See
Some poor bad eye sighted person or pretty much anyone is literally going to bash their leg on that or worse
Although the absurd stair designs may look quite funny from the comfort of a computer, in reality, they cause some very serious risks to people who use them. National Safety Council statistics rank stairway injuries second only to motor vehicle accidents among leading causes of accidents. Moreover, World Health Organization states that falls are the second leading cause of accidental or unintentional injury deaths worldwide.
According to the representative of the Law Offices of Andrew D. Myers, a civil litigation attorney who focuses on personal injury, bankruptcy, business law and other civil matters, children and adults over 65 are especially at high risk.
“Each year, one in three elderly adults suffers a serious stairway fall. Such injuries can increase the chances of an earlier death and reduce the ability to live independently. The elderly face a higher likelihood of falling because they often experience muscle weakness and potential dizziness from taking a variety of medications. This risk rises as they age.”
They Built This School Like One Month Ago
No Broken Legs I Know Of
Access For Wheelchairs On These Stairs
They state that common injuries caused by stairway falls include internal bleeding, fractured bones, brain injuries, soft-tissue injuries, and dislocations. Moreover, Safety Council statistics indicate falls are among the most common causes of traumatic brain injury, so in no way can the possibility of falling down the stairs be looked at lightly.
To prevent such injuries, premises liability law requires property owners to reasonably maintain stairways. According to the Law Offices of Andrew D. Myers, “The law also holds property owners responsible where injuries occur as a result of dangerous or hazardous conditions. If proven that injuries directly resulted from a property owner’s negligence, then the injured person may be able to collect compensation for pain and suffering, lost income, and reimbursement for medical bills related to the accident.”
These Are Stairs In My Town. Just How?
These Stairs In My In-Laws' Summerhouse. We Have Parties Here So Going Down These Stairs Drunk Is A Challenge
I Think My Stairs Fit Here
Got An Unsatisfying Feeling When Walking Downstairs And The Last Step Was Not There
And that's where you step forward gracefully expecting a stair and end up looking like an especially awkward giraffe as you try to recover.
That's How I Broke My Leg
Imagine Being Drunk
The “Extra” Two Inches Of Concrete At The Top Of My Stairs. We Call It “The Tripper”
I Saw This At My School
This Is Russia
I Present To You Jeans Stairs Or Jairs
You Have To Go Up The Stairs, And Then Down The Stairs To Get To The Door
All The Privacy You Need
Found This Beauty At My Local College
This Staircase
Escalator/Stairs Combo
I Can See Why Someone Wanted To Fix This
Stairway To Heaven
Stairs From The Top
Stairway To Heaven
This Fuzzy Staircase
When I Tripped On The Stairs I Cut My Arm On These Things, And Continued To Fall Down The Stairs (I'm The 5th Victim This Week)
Don't Think The Owner Of This Hotel Thought This Through
Let's take the stairs. Urgh...on second thought, how about we wait for the lift?
Just A Staircase In St. Petersburg
The Longer You Stair, The Worse It Gets
Wheelchair Ramp To A Staircase In A Mall In Haugesund, Norway
Why Don't You Just Use All The Stairs?
A Staircase At My Uni
These Stairs Carpeted With A Pattern That Makes It Hard To See The Edge
And Sometimes People Use The Left Part
These Stairs At Our Hotel
You Gotta Pay Attention On These Stairs In A Cinema
If it wasn't for the wall to the left in the picture I wouldn't know that those are steps
Painted In A Hotel Stairwell Leading To Fitness Center
When Your Gym Tries Hard To Motivate You But Fails To Make Any Sense
This Bathroom With Too Many Stairs
These Stairs At My Friend's House
Is that the blood of the murder dungeons previous victim on the stairs?
New Staircase At My School
Wasting A Third Of The Staircase
Building codes change and if this is in a public space rails probably added to comply
Great Paint Job, Especially That Last “Step”
When Personal Injury Lawers Moonlight As Interior A Designer
Pubic Hair-Themed Handrails
Somehow, I Managed To Go 5 Blissfully Ignorant Stair-Traversing Years Without Noticing
An Alternate Path For Disabled With... Steps
I'm Sorry, But How Is This Even Remotely Designed To Be Wheelchair Accessible? It's Insulting To Even Have The Sign There
My School Has A Staircase To Nowhere
If You Walk On The Right You Fall Down A Staircase
Whoever Designed Those, Must Have Not Been Sober
There Are Three Steps Down At The Entrance To This Lobby
We Do Really Loud
Poor Choice In Carpet For Steps
These Deadly Looking Stone Decorations
These Long Stairs That Require You To Have Either One Awkwardly Long Stride Or Two Awkwardly Short Strides For Each Step
This 3” Step In My Sister’s Hallway. I Have Stubbed My Toe 3 Times In 2 Hours
These Thin Stairs
You Either Have To Leave The Stairwell Or Climb The Bar If You Want The Upper Floors
Never Thought I'd See A Staircase Like This With My Own Eyes
dangle one foot down to the other staircase.....hopefully you'll reach it?
A Handicap Ramp With A Step At The Bottom
One Half Of The Stairs Has A Bar Across The Path For No Apparent Reason
Someone fell. That's the reason for the majority of these 'strange' rails.
Staircase Installation
The Los Angeles Subway Designed Their Stairs To Look Like Escalators. You Don't Notice Until You Turn The Corner
Is This How Architects Commit Murder?
This Escalator Starts After The First Set Of Stairs
Invisible Step At My Parent's New House That Has Injured 4 Of My Family
Stairwell At My University
This "Handicap Friendly" Staircase
These Stairs Have An Extra Step That's Only An Inch
The Spiral Stairs At My House. Im Barely 5'7"
Some Homemade Stairs Someone On Facebook Did. They Seemed Really Proud, But I Don't Think They Thought This Through
A Pillar In The Middle Of A Stairway
This Stairway At My Doctor's Office Where You Have Exit And Reenter To Keep Going Down
Watching My Cholesterol, Better Take The Stairs
My House Has Many Of These Architect Flaws (I Live In Brazil), One Of Them Is The Flaw In The Ceiling Of The Living Room's Stairs That Makes My Mom's Bathroom Have Stairs
This Staircase In My Hotel
These Stairs At My Grandma's House
Earn The Escalator
This Handrail
These Stairs In A Mexican Beach Resort (Near Cabo San Lucas)
Every 4th Step Is Slightly Longer Than The Others, Making You Almost Stumble Down
It Isn't A Step. I Almost Tripped
Who Needs Clearly Visible Steps On An Outdoor Starway?
Did they make a carpet pattern out of the printer cartridge alignment page?
These Are Right Next To The Stairs In My School
This Stairwell
This Stairwell Without A Crossover
Wheelchair Accessible Bathrooms With Stairs
These Stairs Lead To A Wall
A Useful Staircase At The Mall
This Crappy Staircase At My School
A Hotel Room For Disabled People With A Staircase
This Staircase
Streamlining traffic in a safe (handrails) traffic. Many times, situations like the stairs becoming congested as the wider bottom blends with the rest of the staircase only show over time. So rather than removing and rebuilding, this is a safe compromise.
This Staircase To Nowhere At My University
False. The staircase leads to a wall. And the wall is the entrance to Platform 9¾.
Oh So You Want The Wheelchair Ramp? Climb
Weird Stairs, You Climb Up Them And Then You're Met With A Small Set Of Stairs That Go Down
This Apartment Has A Bench Attached To The Stairs
Handrail That Funnels People Onto Ever-Narrower Steps
The Disabled Bathroom? It's Right There - Up The Step
You Can't Really See The Step
My Sister's Staircase
I Raise You One "Most Useless Staircase In The World"
Guess I'll Just Walk Out Of My Wheelchair To Climb Those Stairs And Then Continue Happily On The Ramp. When I Come Back I'll Do A Backflip
Wheelchair Accessible Washrooms Are Located On The Second Floor. Just A Quick Trip Up The Escalator
So... What Are These Stairs For? They Don't Lead Anywhere
This Six Inch Wide Triangle Window In A Stairwell On My Campus. Just Why?
This Staircase
Where Do Those Other Stairs Go
What Is The Point Of The Left Side Of The Stairs?
I Always Trip On These Stairs Every Time Walk On Them
Stairs In One Of My Lecture Halls
This Totally Misleading Handrail
is this the set of basically every high school from disney sitcoms?
Useless Stair
Not Only Do These Stairs Alternate Heights, But They Are Uncomfortable To Go 1 Nor 2 At A Time Because Of The Length Alternation
This Staircase At My Work
These Stairs Go Into A Block Wall
My Apartment Building. Many Old People Have Complained Cause They Have A Hard Time Getting Up The Stairs But Management Just Told Them To Go The Extra 50 Meters And Take The Elevator
I Don't Understand Why'd You Even Waste Concrete With These Stairs
The lighter concrete tells me the ramp was added later, and the stars were blocked off at that point.
The Lift In This Building Is On Every Alternate Half-Level From Where The Doors To The Houses Are
Same in my building. Not enough space to build full floor height stairs.
Pipe Blocking Stairway
Probably for the best. This is a murder stairway if there ever was one. 😬
Fun Stairs
Am I the only one who had a headache after looking at all those illusion(ish) pictures? TwT
Am I the only one who had a headache after looking at all those illusion(ish) pictures? TwT
