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Having a handrail on stair flights is a safety measure to provide support and prevent slips. Once a flight has four or more risers, it must have standard stair railings or standard handrails. This threshold reflects that longer stairways pose a greater fall risk and require a rail you can grab for stability. Shorter flights (fewer than four risers) aren’t required to have rails by this rule, though general safety should still be maintained. “Standard” railings means they meet the applicable OSHA size and strength requirements so they perform reliably under expected use.