300-person festival: how many ADA units with 15 standards?

Question

I'm planning a one-day music festival for 300 people on a flat farm field. We'll have 15 standard portable toilets in two clusters of eight and seven units. The event will run 10 hours with food vendors and beer sales. Our service truck will have no problem accessing the clusters on level ground.

I'm finalizing the order and need to confirm the ADA requirement. The 2010 ADA Standards for Accessible Design state the [ADA 5 percent cluster rule](https://portapotty.forum/glossary/ada-cluster-rule/): when multiple single-user portable toilets are grouped, at least 5 percent of the units in each cluster must be ADA-compliant. Since each of my clusters has more than 20 units, does this mean I need one [ADA-compliant portable toilet](https://portapotty.forum/glossary/ada-unit/) for each cluster, for a total of two? Or is one for the entire site sufficient?

Porta Potty Forum Team · Answer

You need one ADA-compliant portable toilet per cluster, for a total of two. The ADA 5 percent cluster rule applies to each cluster of units at a single location, and your two clusters (eight and seven units) each require at least one ADA unit since both exceed 20 units in the count for the rule. One ADA unit for the entire site does not comply.

For 300 people at a 10-hour event with food and alcohol, 15 standard units may be insufficient. Industry guidelines suggest one unit per 50-75 people for a four-hour event, but alcohol, longer duration, and mixed-gender crowds increase demand. Consider adding more standard units or a restroom trailer to reduce lines. Weekly service is standard, but for a one-day event with heavy use, schedule service before and after the event. The rental cost depends on unit types, service frequency, delivery distance, and add-ons like handwash stations.

300-person festival: how many ADA units with 15 standards?

1 answer