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50 Of The Most Poorly-Designed Staircases That May Leave You Awestruck In The Worst Way
As we mentioned in a previous piece, climbing down a flight of stairs is one of the most mundane activities that carries inherent dangers that we often overlook. We also mentioned reports from law firms, which reveal that over one million people sustain stairway injuries in the United States each year.
A well-designed staircase should minimize the likelihood of bodily harm, but the photos you’re about to see are the exact opposite. We lifted these from a growing subreddit where 15,000 people share images of the worst stairs you likely wouldn’t want to set foot on.
Feel free to scroll through, and hopefully, you won’t develop a bad case of vertigo after you’re done.
This post may include affiliate links.
#1
In Peru
RELATED:
#2
Hope This One Will Count For The Sub
#3
I'm Not Even Sure How I Will [Get Hurt]
Let’s shed more light on the cases of stairway injuries, this time in the UK. According to a September report by the British Woodworking Federation (BWF), nearly half of adults, or 43%, have either slipped, tripped, or fallen down the stairs in the last 12 months.
Sixty percent of people who had experienced a staircase accident stated that it happened on their own property.
#4
No Room For A Staircase
Mrs Irish Mom 3 weeks ago
I hope thats just for storage up there because if it's the bedroom I'm peeing in a bucket, climbing down that half asleep is a death risk im not willing to take
#5
Airbnb Insanity
#6
This Belongs Here
The report also revealed that 32% of accidents were linked to broken safety features, such as poor maintenance. 40% were due to slippery surfaces, 32% were due to poor lighting, and 29% were because there were items along the stairs.
Then, there were the structure-related issues, with 26% of injuries occurring due to uneven steps and 26% due to the lack of handrails.
#7
Stairs At The Local Gay Club That Lead Down From One Bar To Another Bar
#8
For When You Want To Make Your Life Just That Much Harder
#9
A Quick Slip To The Beach
Mrs Irish Mom 3 weeks ago
Fall down you die, walk up you die of a heart attack, ill just admire the beach from above
However, not all staircase accidents were due to poor design. According to BWF chief executive Helen Hewitt, people are also at fault and are putting themselves at risk by using their phones while on the stairs, carrying something heavy, or rushing up or down.
“While a clear reflection of today’s busy lifestyles, these behaviours increase the risk of a slip, trip or fall, which could result in serious or potentially fatal injuries,” Hewitt said.
#10
This Occurs Every Winter At My Hometown.. The Sing Says No Winter Upkeep And Yes They Lead Strait To River Bank
#11
I Was Helping A Family Friend Move And Found These
Mrs Irish Mom 3 weeks ago
Maybe paint each one different colours or just lock it off and live downstairs
#12
High Heels? Or Barefoot?
Reports indicate that stairway accidents result in an average of 12,000 fatalities per year. There are several ways to reduce this risk, and according to the Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety (CCOHS), one of them is to design handrails that are easy to grasp.
Specifically, you should be able to run your hand smoothly along the entire length without needing to adjust the grips.
#13
The Stupid Carpet On These Stairs!
#14
My Sisters Landlord Wanted To Improve The Accessibility, So Added These Planks
#15
Stairs At My Hostel
The CCOHS also urges improving visibility on staircases. This can be achieved by utilizing angular lighting and color contrasts to enhance depth perception and incorporating matte finishes to minimize glare.
Patterned carpeting isn’t advisable because it can create a visual deception and hide the differences in depth of each step.
#16
High Turnover Apartments
#17
Stairs In My Friend's Flat
The colour and lighting make them blend into each other on the way down. Absolute nightmare while carrying a suitcase.
And now I'm thinking while posting this - what on earth was the point? You're not saving any space by doing this
BeesEelsAndPups 3 weeks ago
These are fairly common in older homes. Particularly in homes from the 16th and 17th centuries, but you'd also see them in new homes with very tight spaces where a full size stairwell wasn't practical. I see these a lot in older homes in places like Salvador Brazil, or New England in the US.
#19
Smooth As A Pebble
#20
The Stairs Up To The Kids Loft In My Beach Rental For The Week. They Shake When I Walk On Them. Fun!
#21
New Floors At My Job
#22
Tower Of Babel
#23
The What?
#24
Just Saw This
#25
Should There Be Two Railings?
#26
They Look Normal Far Away
#27
I Hate Going To The Theater
#28
By Windex
BarBeeGirl 3 weeks ago
Does the title mean the stairs were made by windex or do they mean buy windex?
#29
At Least They're Colorful
Mrs Irish Mom 3 weeks ago (edited)
Yes because the colour will save you when you fall up/down/sideways
#30
Sure, They Look Nice
#31
The Closer You Look The Worse It Gets
#32
I Guess We're Gonna Have To Feel Our Way Down These Stairs
Mrs Irish Mom 3 weeks ago (edited)
All I see is a flat carpet, what half price cheap àss designs these death traps
#34
Seriously?
#35
"Beatiful And Sturdy Stair" It Says In The Listing
#37
Stairs In A Century House I Toured!
#38
Curved, Yet Rhomboidal
Mrs Irish Mom 3 weeks ago
Stairs like that are not only dangerous but thats a workout and they seem to have enough room for a proper stairs
#41
For Design
#42
Looks Like A Trap
#43
Head Trauma
Bruce Mardle 3 weeks ago
Reminds me of some stairs at a castle where I used to work. They were off limits to the public. I wonder why...
#44
Nearly 90° Stairs Leading To The Backstage Area Of My Latest Stand-Up Performance
#45
Stairs With Handholds
#46
Rippling Ribbon Staircase
#47
One Misstep Is All It Takes
#48
Even Fell Down These Stairs Once
#49
One Wrong Move And You’ll End Up In The Hospital
#50
These Stairs In This Flipped House
BarBeeGirl 3 weeks ago
Why the emojis ? What exactly is the OP hiding? Maybe I don’t want to know on second thought
#51
Location: Havanna, Cuba. Level 9/10 (Gets Wet When It Rains)
#52
Special Ramp For Wheelchair Users
#53
Carry Chair Extrication Anyone?
#54
You Can See When You're Going!
#55
This Is Sooooo Terrible
Mrs Irish Mom 3 weeks ago
Fire exit, think i would rather take my chance with the fire than try this
#56
There’s Nothing Like Relaxing In Bed…
#57
Not My Picture But Thought It Belonged Here
#58
Going To A Bar In Finland
#59
“Honey, I Installed The New Stairs!”
#61
Steady…
#63
Can Break A Leg Just Looking At These Stairs
#64
The Stairs At My Friends House
BarBeeGirl 3 weeks ago
The shoes at the bottom belong to all the former friends who didn’t make it out alive
#65
You’re Given A Throne…
Multa Nocte 3 weeks ago
And how do you explain to someone how you got injured when you fall off there? That sink looks a right treat as well.
#66
Knock, Knock
#67
Hold The Walls?
#68
Friend’s Loft. It Jiggles And Shakes When You Walk On It
Fransanchez 3 weeks ago
Who thought this side steps stairs were a good idea????? Not only this one's, obviously, there's plenty to choose from in the post.....
#69
The “Ankle Twister”
Multa Nocte 3 weeks ago (edited)
There is no way in hell I could make it up or down those stairs without twisting an ankle, and you can't even sit on your butt and slide down without personal damage.
#70
Staying At The In-Laws
#71
Weird Perspective?
#72
That Is A Slide
#73
Slice And Dice
#74
That’s Quite The Step Down
#75
Don't Cut Yourself
Fenouille Fenouille 3 weeks ago
Moreover at the top they give you the choice to just jump to your death.
#76
They Need A Sign
#77
Chicago Slip And Slide
#80
Just To Smoke, With My Broken Ankle I Have To Traverse This Nonsense
#81
Just Why?
#83
At Least You Fall Into The Lake?
#84
Around And Around And Around
#85
If Maps Didn't Mislead Me, This Is A School Building In Alghero, Sardegna
#86
Stairs At My Friend's House
#88
What In The…
#90
Inside A 200-Year Old Home In Japan
OneHappyPuppy 3 weeks ago
We had something similar in our small river house. They were easy to climb up, a b***h to climb down... And there was a door at the top, for keeping the warmth in
#91
Long Invisible Steps
#92
Quality Craftsmanship
#93
The Stairs Down In My Local Movie Theater
#94
Do These Count? Not Steep But I Tripped Multiple Times
#97
Heavy Duty
#98
These Glass Stairs My Dad Was Faced With At Work
#101
Trip Right In…or Out
#103
Just Spotted On A Zillow Listing
#105
A Thousand Cuts
#106
Somebody Suggest I Share My Girl Here Too...would You Walk These Stairs?
#107
Definitely Colorful
#109
The Less Snowy Bits Are Glazed Over
Mrs Irish Mom 3 weeks ago
Just stay home and watch other people doing this shìt on the discovery channel
#110
I'm Sure They Are Fine
#113
To The Attic Of A House Built In 1902
#114
The Original Plan They Paid For On The Second Pic
#115
Airbnb Stairs
#116
Does The Tape Prevent It From Being Dangerous?
#117
Glass Staircase, Go'o Shrine, Designed By Hiroshi Sugimoto
#118
Bachelorette Party Airbnb
#119
It Ain’t Much, But It’s Something
#120
Malerweg Mountain
Mrs Irish Mom 3 weeks ago
It would be safter to take them away and walk on the actual ground in between the rocks
#121
Hmmm This Doesn’t Look Right
#123
Storage
#129
Holiday Cottage; We Feel Slightly Threatened
Wonnie-Cookie713 2 weeks ago
When you fall down the stairs your life will pass by your eyes in fact.
#130
Stairway To Heaven
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What do you think ?
Otto Katz 3 weeks ago
Most of these are not to code. This is why regulations are important, and what makes me shake my head when people freak out about 'too many regulations!" Those regulations keep you safe, friend.
Seadog 3 weeks ago
Where I live none of them would pass inspection. No handrail, improper tread size and/or rise, improper overhead clearance, improper support just to name a few.
Load More Replies... Lady Eowyn 3 weeks ago
I have a bad left knee, bad right hip, balance issues and a massive phobia about stairs. I will stick to level ground, thank you very much.
Michael Fernandez 3 weeks ago
This is one of those rare, delightful days in which I feel relatively sane. Thank you, BP.
persephone134 3 weeks ago
As soon as you add a website address or a picture, BP puts your comment as "hidden" and gives you -2 points, or more? Why, and since when? Is there any reason left to use this website?
Serena Myers 3 weeks ago
It's quite recent. I thought at first it was to block those annoying scam bot "I earn so much working from home" but they still appear. I think (I don't know for sure) that BP give the -2 downvotes themselves to give an apparently valid reason for the "hidden" message?? As BP won't explain, we are left in the dark!
Load More Replies...
Purple light 3 weeks ago (edited)
For someone with severe dyspraxia (like me), this is scarier than the scariest horror movie. I need the handrails on regular ones, the stairs depicted here are impossible to climb for me.
Hippopotamuses 3 weeks ago (edited)
Is BP run completely by bots now? Any comment with web link is hidden, regardless of its content. It happened to me last week. Simply a real estate site. This makes me think that BP editors either don't exist, or can't be bothered checking web links in comments. If it's the former, then one can't help wondering whether its worth visiting the BP, anymore!
persephone134 3 weeks ago
It happened to me, too. Not only is your entry a "hidden comment", BP also automatically punishes you with two or more downvotes.
Load More Replies... Wonnie-Cookie713 3 weeks ago
Tbh I think bp should get rid of downvotes they are very discouraging and I got a lot of hate in this post so…… but the post was ok.
StumblingThroughLife 3 weeks ago
The stairs in these images look like they've been stolen from one of those galleries that display stupid artwork made by idiots pretending to be trendy.
ABC NrTen FCK CENSORISM 3 weeks ago (edited)
I'm not sure what's worse, this list or the comments. Half of the staircases shown are simply space-saving stairs because people have to work with the space they have, and as long as you're smart enough to check for the right foot to start with, you're completely fine. The other half shows either mid-remodeling/half-built staircases, artsy ones that were probably the very reason some people booked the AirBNBs they're built into, or stairs that are exposed to weather making them deteriorate (Machu Picchu etc) or slippery (icy finland ones). None of those fit the title. And all those "I'd rather burn alive than using this staircase", "deathtrap" and similar comments... Ugh. What's wrong with y'all? Don't want these stairs? Don't buy the house, rent the AirBNB, or visit Finland in winter.
ynyrhydref56 3 weeks ago
What boggles me is that the mountain ones had to be constructed - and who made them???
Otto Katz 3 weeks ago
Most of these are not to code. This is why regulations are important, and what makes me shake my head when people freak out about 'too many regulations!" Those regulations keep you safe, friend.
Seadog 3 weeks ago
Where I live none of them would pass inspection. No handrail, improper tread size and/or rise, improper overhead clearance, improper support just to name a few.
Load More Replies... Lady Eowyn 3 weeks ago
I have a bad left knee, bad right hip, balance issues and a massive phobia about stairs. I will stick to level ground, thank you very much.
Michael Fernandez 3 weeks ago
This is one of those rare, delightful days in which I feel relatively sane. Thank you, BP.
persephone134 3 weeks ago
As soon as you add a website address or a picture, BP puts your comment as "hidden" and gives you -2 points, or more? Why, and since when? Is there any reason left to use this website?
Serena Myers 3 weeks ago
It's quite recent. I thought at first it was to block those annoying scam bot "I earn so much working from home" but they still appear. I think (I don't know for sure) that BP give the -2 downvotes themselves to give an apparently valid reason for the "hidden" message?? As BP won't explain, we are left in the dark!
Load More Replies... Purple light 3 weeks ago (edited)
For someone with severe dyspraxia (like me), this is scarier than the scariest horror movie. I need the handrails on regular ones, the stairs depicted here are impossible to climb for me.
Hippopotamuses 3 weeks ago (edited)
Is BP run completely by bots now? Any comment with web link is hidden, regardless of its content. It happened to me last week. Simply a real estate site. This makes me think that BP editors either don't exist, or can't be bothered checking web links in comments. If it's the former, then one can't help wondering whether its worth visiting the BP, anymore!
persephone134 3 weeks ago
It happened to me, too. Not only is your entry a "hidden comment", BP also automatically punishes you with two or more downvotes.
Load More Replies... Wonnie-Cookie713 3 weeks ago
Tbh I think bp should get rid of downvotes they are very discouraging and I got a lot of hate in this post so…… but the post was ok.
StumblingThroughLife 3 weeks ago
The stairs in these images look like they've been stolen from one of those galleries that display stupid artwork made by idiots pretending to be trendy.
ABC NrTen FCK CENSORISM 3 weeks ago (edited)
I'm not sure what's worse, this list or the comments. Half of the staircases shown are simply space-saving stairs because people have to work with the space they have, and as long as you're smart enough to check for the right foot to start with, you're completely fine. The other half shows either mid-remodeling/half-built staircases, artsy ones that were probably the very reason some people booked the AirBNBs they're built into, or stairs that are exposed to weather making them deteriorate (Machu Picchu etc) or slippery (icy finland ones). None of those fit the title. And all those "I'd rather burn alive than using this staircase", "deathtrap" and similar comments... Ugh. What's wrong with y'all? Don't want these stairs? Don't buy the house, rent the AirBNB, or visit Finland in winter.
ynyrhydref56 3 weeks ago
What boggles me is that the mountain ones had to be constructed - and who made them???
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