The “Door Close” Elevator Button is Fake

Every time you jab that door-close button and nothing happens, that’s not a malfunction. That’s the Americans with Disabilities Act working exactly as it should.

When the ADA passed in 1990, it set a minimum hold time for elevator doors, calculated based on how far the call button sits from the doors. So the farther the walk, the longer they wait. It’s built so anyone using a wheelchair, cane, or crutches has time to actually get on board. Karen Penafiel, who runs the National Elevator Industry