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50 Times Designers Went Ahead To Make The Worst Stairs Nobody Asked For (New Pics)
Interview With Expert
Ever looked at something – or someone – and thought “What’s the actual point?” It turns out there are lots of useless things in the world but surely stairs should never make the list.
To prove a point, to no-one but myself, I did a quick Google search. “What’s the point of stairs?” The results yielded no surprises: “The primary purpose of stairs is to provide a simple and easy means of moving between levels.” “Provide access from one floor to another.” “Provide a suitable means of escape in case of fire.” And so on and so forth.
Yet there are stairs aplenty that could have you scratching your head - and possibly even breaking your neck. They are, for lack of a better word, pointless. So my next question for Google had to be “Why do some stairs look like they were designed and built by a blindfolded ostrich with its head in the sand?” Google was confused but did inform me, as a side note, that an ostrich’s brain is smaller than its eyeballs.
Bored Panda has compiled a list of some of the most epic and bizarre stair design fails that might leave you thinking your eyeballs are deceiving you. And in case you ever encounter any of them, we spoke to two experts. One about the hidden purpose of strange stairs and another about how to remain firmly on your feet.
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#1
Good Luck Getting Furniture And Drunk People Up These Things
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#2
I Don't Think The Owner Of This Hotel Thought This Through
Hippopotamuses 2 years ago
Its amazing that this wasn't fixed immediately. Putting metal strips on the edge of each step (called 'nosings', apparently) would make the individual steps obvious.
#3
This Gave Me An Aneurysm
#4
This Staircase. I've Almost Fell Down Several Times, And It's A Pain To Go Up
#5
Can You Guess Where Does The Step Start And End In The Stairway Of My University?
#6
The Staircase At My Hotel Room Just Drops Off
#7
Wheelchair Ramps In Pakistan
Multa Nocte 2 years ago
The person who designed/allowed these should be forced to go up and down them in a wheelchair with no assistance.
#8
A Little Nauseating Looking Down
#9
This Staircase In My Home. Architects Told My Parents This Was The Best Solution To Fit The Small Space. After 20 Years, I Still Sometimes Save Myself From Falling Down
rorschach-penguin 2 years ago (edited)
But look how cat friendly! Also nice use of Keith Haring's work...
#10
These Stairs In An Airbnb That We Are Wiring
Hippopotamuses 2 years ago
Presumably this is to make the staircase take up less space. But it doesn't look legal.
#11
The Stairs Leading To This Bedroom
#12
Handicapped-Accessible Ramp In Germany
#13
Stairs In Front Of A Local Beer Stand At A Festival
#14
Alternating Tread Staircase. I've Fallen Down It Before When I Was Going Too Quick And My Life Flashed Before My Eyes, Especially With It Being Easy Enough To Fall Over The Railings
#15
In Mexico, We Have Handicap Stairs
Lydsylou (she/her) 2 years ago
This would help my cousin. He has a condition where he can walk but he has very weak legs so he finds stairs hard. This shallower step would really help him get up the kerb.
#16
This Space-Saving Staircase Has Alternating Half-Steps
#17
This Restaurant Had Wheelchair-Accessible Washrooms… Down The Stairs
Colleen Glim 2 years ago
Wheelchairs come with levitation options. It’s just a subscription option
#18
Me On My Girlfriend's Stairs
#19
Disastrous Stair Gap
#20
Please Step On Your Kitchen Counter To Go Up
#21
This Was A Wheelchair Ramp To A Mall, But When People Started Using It For Shopping Carts The Mall Decided To "Fix" The Issue Like That
#22
Imagine Being Late To Catch The Train And Realizing Where This Leads Halfway Down
#23
These Stairs Where You Have To Hug The Wall Or You'll Sprain Your Ankle
#24
Left Leg Goes Straight, Right Leg Carries On Down. Plus, It's On Marble At A Swimming Pool
#25
What Kind Of Disabled Ramp Is This?
#26
I Saw This House For Rent. Original Hardwood And Bonus Death Trap Stairwell
#27
These Weird Stairs I Found On A Hiking Trail
#28
Useless Access Ramp In A Dubai Shopping Mall
#29
Brand New Handicapped Ramp At My Local Public Park
#31
This Ridiculous Wrist-Breaker Handrail. This Was A Real Handrail That I Saw At A Real House
#32
They Don't Like Visitors I Suppose
#33
Arbitrary Stairs In The Middle Of A Hallway
rorschach-penguin 2 years ago
There're probably pipes or something under it. Still odd, but I'm sure there's a reason why there are pipes or something there and therefore stairs there.
#34
Carpeted Stairs, Except That Last One
#35
Ramp Followed By Stairs, Outside My Clinic
#36
This Staircase At My University Has No Perceivable Purpose
#37
This Double-Spiral Staircase
#38
My Mate Moved Into A New Apartment And This Is His Staircase
The Announcer 2 years ago
Those look like boxes that would break as soon as I stepped on top of them
#39
These Stairs At An Art Museum Are Horrible. I Have Difficulties In Depth Perception Even If My Eyesight Is Perfect And I Had To Keep My Hands On The Ramp At All Time
Colleen Glim 2 years ago
My depth perception is wonky at the best of times. I’d be clinging to the rail for dear life
#40
Garden Stairs Of Death
#41
Discovery Park, Seattle. The Top Half Is A Ramp
#42
This Tiny Stair Handrail
#43
Stairs That Lead To My Unit. Always Need To Warn People Who Come Over For The First Time
#44
This Flight Of Stairs Is So Narrow It's Designed To Be Used Only Left Foot First (Skopje, Macedonia)
#45
Got The Wheelchair Ramps Installed, Boss
Zoe Vokes 2 years ago
When I was wheelchair bound for a few months due to an injury my parents took me out a couple of times to pubs or restaurants so I didn’t go stir crazy. Dad would unload me at the door and park. I wasn’t disabled so I didn’t want to take the space but I realised how many places have their car parks gravel. Gravel is the worst.
#46
What's The Purpose Of These Stairs?
#47
The Stairs In My Airbnb
#48
These Wheelchair-Accessible Stairs In Switzerland
Bill Swallow 2 years ago (edited)
They could probably have done better, but really, if you need to add a wheelchair ramp alongside stairs, and you don't have the room for a proper shallow grade, switchbacks like this are about your only other choice. They're very difficult to design effectively, though.
#49
Useless Stairs, Freshly Installed
#50
Staircase To Nowhere
#51
The Choice Of Stairway Carpet In This Hotel Messes With My Mind
Hippopotamuses 2 years ago
What is it about hotels and inappropriate carpet? They're constantly showing up in the 'How not to carpet' threads. You'd think they'd be more concerned about public liability.
#52
This Space-Saving Staircase Aka Witches' Stairs
#53
The First Step Of These Stairs Is Not A Step
Annik Perrot 2 years ago
And no step where you were expecting one can be just as bad as a step where you were not expecting it.
#54
This Escalator Requires That You Still Use The Stairs
#55
“Stairs” Going Down To Lower Antelope Canyon In Page, AZ
#56
This Bit That Looks Like Two Stairs Even Though It’s Not, So When You Step On It You Almost Trip Down The Stairs
#57
Mildly Infuriating But Also Mildly Sketchy
#58
This Odd Handrail Blocking Half Of The Staircase At The San Jose Convention Center
#59
Not All Of These Stairs Go Where They Are Supposed To
Hippopotamuses 2 years ago
I look, and I look, but I still can't work out what the hell is going on here!
#60
A Hospital Ramp So Steep That You Risk Bottoming Out The Wheelchair
Hippopotamuses 2 years ago
Well. On the plus side. If the worst comes to the worst. At least at least you don't have far to go for treatment.
#61
The Last Two Steps On These Stairs Are Higher Than The Previous 50
#63
These Stairs Have A 35°-Ish Angle To Them. You Can't Walk On Them In A Straight Line
#64
One Day Someone's Gonna Walk Right Into The Only Step Without The Railing. I Nearly Did
#65
Slip-N-Trip Stairs
#68
Almost Every Female Bathroom At My University Has This Narrow, Twisty Staircase
It's a shame since, for the most part, the building is accessible, having elevators, ramps, and even wheelchair escalators.
#69
Stairs Leading To Nowhere
#70
Stairs To Nowhere
#72
How Do You Expect The Other Dude To Go Down The Staircase?
#73
These Stairs That Lead To Nowhere
#74
This Staircase With A 1-Meter Sheer Drop
#76
It Was Really Fun Tripping On These Stairs Like 4 Times
#77
Staircase
#80
This Staircase To Nowhere At A Mall
Add New Image
What do you think ?
sdorph 2 years ago
As an ex EMT all I could think about was how the hell would you get someone down some of these stairs on a stretcher
Georgia Ireland 2 years ago
Thank you for doing what you do. Folks like you are my heroes.
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Romek Vili 2 years ago
There are some stupid stairs, but mostly there are pictures taken by stupid stair users or people with bathmophobia (Fear of Stairs)
David Paterson 2 years ago (edited)
I actually like a lot of these, but certainly not all. Try lugging luggage up a ladder, or staples set in the wall or a knotted rope. Ramps with a few stairs are much safer for prams, strollers and wheeled luggage than stairs alone.
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RageOfAquarius 2 years ago (edited)
A lot of these are functional variations of classic ship's ladders, not "stair errors".
sdorph 2 years ago
As an ex EMT all I could think about was how the hell would you get someone down some of these stairs on a stretcher
Georgia Ireland 2 years ago
Thank you for doing what you do. Folks like you are my heroes.
Load More Replies... Romek Vili 2 years ago
There are some stupid stairs, but mostly there are pictures taken by stupid stair users or people with bathmophobia (Fear of Stairs)
David Paterson 2 years ago (edited)
I actually like a lot of these, but certainly not all. Try lugging luggage up a ladder, or staples set in the wall or a knotted rope. Ramps with a few stairs are much safer for prams, strollers and wheeled luggage than stairs alone.
Load More Replies... RageOfAquarius 2 years ago (edited)
A lot of these are functional variations of classic ship's ladders, not "stair errors".
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