OSHA requires me to mark permanent aisles and passageways. How wide do aisles and passageways have to be?

The width of aisles and passageways is generally not specified in the OSHA standard, other than in specific instances. Examples of these specific instances include requirements for aisles 3 feet wide in inside storage rooms holding flammable and combustible liquids (1910.106) and requirements for minimum exit access widths of 28 inches (1910.36(g)(2)-(3).

OSHA’s general requirement for aisles and passageways is that sufficient safe clearances must be provided where mechanical equipment will be in use. The width of an aisle or passageway will necessarily vary depending upon how the aisle or passage is used in the workplace. Aisles that must accommodate forklift trucks or other machinery will need to be wider than aisles for pedestrian traffic. Aisles for pedestrians can be narrower than aisles through which equipment or supplies will be transported. It is always a good idea to make aisles wide enough for two lanes of traffic, whether it is pedestrians or forklift trucks.