(a) General. All limited services rural hospitals (LSRHs) with two or more floor levels shall have at least one electrical or electrical hydraulic elevator. Elevators shall also give access to all building levels normally used by the public. Escalators and conveyors are not required but, when provided, shall comply with these requirements and the requirement of §18.3 of the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) 101, Life Safety Code, 2012 edition.
(b) Requirements for new elevators, escalators, and conveyors. New elevators, escalators and conveyors shall be installed in accordance with the requirements of A17.1 Safety Code for Elevators and Escalators, 2012 edition, published by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) and the American National Standards Institute (ANSI).
  (1) Cars and doors.
    (A) Cars of hospital type elevators for patient transport shall not be less than five feet eight inches wide and not less than eight feet six inches deep inside the cab.
    (B) The car door opening shall not be less than four feet wide and seven feet high.
    (C) Elevator doors shall be B-labeled one-hour fire protection rated doors in buildings less than four stories, and one and one-half hour fire protection rated doors in buildings four or more stories.
  (2) Type of controls and alarms. Elevator cab lighting, control, communication, and signal systems shall be connected in accordance with NFPA 99 §4.4.2.2.2.2, 2012 edition.
  (3) Location. Conveyors, elevators, dumbwaiters, and pneumatic conveyors serving various stories of a building shall not open to an exit.
  (4) Elevator machine rooms. Elevator machine rooms that contain solid-state equipment for elevators having a travel distance of more than 50 feet above the level of exit discharge or more than 30 feet below the level of exit discharge shall be provided with independent ventilation or air conditioning systems required to maintain temperature during fire fighters' service operation for elevator operation. The operating temperature shall be established by the elevator equipment manufacturer's specifications and shall be posted in each such elevator machine room. When standby power is connected to the elevator, the machine room ventilation or air conditioning shall be connected to standby power.
(c) Requirements for existing elevators, escalators, and conveyors. Existing elevators, escalators, and conveyors shall comply with ASME/ANSI A17.3, Safety Code for Existing Elevators and Escalators, 2008 edition. All existing elevators having a travel distance of 25 feet or more above or below the level that best serves the needs of emergency personnel for fire-fighting or rescue purposes shall conform to Fire Fighters' Service Requirements of ASME/ANSI A17.3 as required by NFPA 101 §9.4.3.
(d) Testing. All elevators and escalators shall be subject to routine and periodic inspections and tests as specified in ASME/ANSI A17.1, Safety Code for Elevators and Escalators, 2007 edition. All elevators equipped with fire fighter service shall be subject to a monthly operation with a written record of the findings made and kept on the premises as required by NFPA 101 §9.4.6.
(e) Certification. A certificate of inspection evidencing that the elevators, escalators, and related equipment were inspected in accordance with the requirements in Texas Health and Safety Code (HSC) Chapter 754 (relating to Elevators, Escalators, and Related Equipment), and determined to be in compliance with the safety standards adopted under HSC §754.014 and administered by the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation shall be on record in each LSRH.
(f) Where an LSRH has more than one floor, at least two elevators shall be provided.

Source Note: The provisions of this §511.164 adopted to be effective October 5, 2023, 48 TexReg 5668