Escalator - Is it a ride or a tool?

[Roger Wilco]

Sometimes I walk up the escalator, if there's nobody in the way. I'd never make any effort to pass anybody; it's at most a ten-second ride. And sometimes, if I'm tired, I just ride it.

10 seconds is often the difference between catching the subway and having to wait for the next one. Blocking the way is incredibly rude imo unless you're carrying something bulky or so (and even then you should make at least a token effort at trying to let people pass who are in a hurry).

 

[RoJoHen]

I suppose it would depend on how wide the escalators are when Michael Chris lives. Here in Tasmania it would be rude to pass someone on an escalator as our escalators are only one, or in a few cases 1.5 people wide. You can't pass someone without physical contact. Also I cannot think of an escalator in Tasmania that travels more than one floor though we used to have a two story escalator in one department store a few years ago.

It's possible. Almost every escalator I've ever been on has had plenty of room to let somebody pass you. Granted, I almost never see escalators at all anymore.

Most escalators I encounter even have signs that say tell you to keep to the right so walkers can pass you.

 

[Tiberius Jim]

I really don't care so long as you obey the rule: stand on the right, walk on the left.

Hell no. It's a moving platform. I stand in the middle and let it take me up. If someone behind me is too impatient to wait the 5-10 seconds that takes, and just has to show everyone how important it is that they get where they are going by walking up the escalator, usually loudly bemoaning the fact that people are in their way, well tough luck.

I see a thread in your future, titled "I got pushed down an escalator!" Because that's what I'd do to you if you were standing in the middle and I was trying to go down.

The majority of my escalatoring is done at the transit stations, and sometimes I'm trying to catch a train. To me, it's the same idea as a two lane freeway: slower traffic to the right, pass on the left. Yeah, bumping into people is rude...so when you pass, be sure to keep your profile narrow as to not bump into people.

There's not a lot I find more infuriating than being stuck behind some doofus standing in the middle while I'm trying to get where I'm going. That, to me, is far more rude than passing could ever be.

If you want to ride all the way to the top, that's fine. Just get the hell out of everyone else's way.

 

[Roger Wilco]

There's not a lot I find more infuriating than being stuck behind some doofus standing in the middle while I'm trying to get where I'm going. That, to me, is far more rude than passing could ever be.

Or: two people standing next to each other who just have to have their fucking conversation side-by-side and don't care about the people behind them.

 

[Tiberius Jim]

Gah, that too!

 

[trekkiedane]

The escalator is not a ride! If I'm behind a lot of people who get on the escalator, I immediately head up the parallel set of stairs if there are any.

Which usually is faster

 

[Geckothan]

On most busy escalators I've seen, the lazy people stand on one side while the rest walk up/down the other side. I personally walk, you get up twice as fast.

 

[Canadave]

Sometimes I walk up the escalator, if there's nobody in the way. I'd never make any effort to pass anybody; it's at most a ten-second ride. And sometimes, if I'm tired, I just ride it.

10 seconds is often the difference between catching the subway and having to wait for the next one. Blocking the way is incredibly rude imo unless you're carrying something bulky or so (and even then you should make at least a token effort at trying to let people pass who are in a hurry).

This is a good point. And in some cities (Montreal, for example) where the subways are really deep, you can save 15 or 20 seconds by walking down the escalator, easily enough to save you from the five minutes of waiting for the next train.

 

[RJDiogenes]

Sometimes I walk up the escalator, if there's nobody in the way. I'd never make any effort to pass anybody; it's at most a ten-second ride. And sometimes, if I'm tired, I just ride it.

10 seconds is often the difference between catching the subway and having to wait for the next one. Blocking the way is incredibly rude imo unless you're carrying something bulky or so (and even then you should make at least a token effort at trying to let people pass who are in a hurry).

Anybody can pass me any time they want; what I said was I wouldn't try to pass anybody else. And ten seconds can make the difference when running for a train? Big deal. So can the train running ten seconds slower or faster. So can the number of people going through the turnstyle ahead of you. So can stopping to sneeze a couple of times on the way to the station or holding the door for an old timer carrying a shopping bag. "Sorry, lady, gotta beat the clock." Thump. Seriously, I think people these days look for things to get uptight about. Slow down. Mellow out. Repent, Harlequin.

 

[RandyS]

Neither. For a guy who uses a wheelchair, it's an impossibility.

 

[KiraDax]

Every escalator I've ever seen is comparable to a staircase in height/step size, and generally a regular staircase is within visual distance of the escalator. Therefore, I'm not certain I understand the point of someone who wants to climb choosing to get on an escalator instead of a staircase and then bitching because they aren't getting somewhere fast enough.

If you want to walk, or climb at a rapid pace, take the stairs. Two at a time, even. (It's no more dangerous than walking a moving belt).

Most people who are on an escalator are on it because they cannot or do not wish to climb a regular staircase. You, my friend, are the exception, so sit back and go with the flow.

 

[RobertVA]

Most of the multilevel department stores around here have twin escalators in the center of the store, but the stairs are hidden away in a stairwell (or two) near the exterior wall. That makes stairwell use pretty inconvenient, aside from the exercise of the climb itself. Apparently the stairs are primarily intended as enclosed fire escapes and the architects intended for the escalators to be the transport between levels for anyone who isn't restricted to using the elevator(s).

I don't recall seeing any escalator with the same tread height as the normal stair height. All I've seen have been a couple of inches taller. Many of those installed in the last couple of decades feature prominent warnings to keep feet a couple of inches (marked by yellow edges) away from the side of the treads. There is a chance shoe strings or even the side of soles could drag against the stationary side of the escalator and cause serious injury. Periodic worn tread replacement can reduce but not fully eliminate that problem.

 

[Amaris]

Sometimes I walk up the escalator, if there's nobody in the way. I'd never make any effort to pass anybody; it's at most a ten-second ride. And sometimes, if I'm tired, I just ride it.

10 seconds is often the difference between catching the subway and having to wait for the next one. Blocking the way is incredibly rude imo unless you're carrying something bulky or so (and even then you should make at least a token effort at trying to let people pass who are in a hurry).

Anybody can pass me any time they want; what I said was I wouldn't try to pass anybody else. And ten seconds can make the difference when running for a train? Big deal. So can the train running ten seconds slower or faster. So can the number of people going through the turnstyle ahead of you. So can stopping to sneeze a couple of times on the way to the station or holding the door for an old timer carrying a shopping bag. "Sorry, lady, gotta beat the clock." Thump. Seriously, I think people these days look for things to get uptight about. Slow down. Mellow out. Repent, Harlequin.

This is, essentially, my stance as well.

 

[Miss Chicken]

This is a good point. And in some cities (Montreal, for example) where the subways are really deep, you can save 15 or 20 seconds by walking down the escalator, easily enough to save you from the five minutes of waiting for the next train.

Five minutes of waiting isn't going to hurt anyone. It didn't really both me missing a bus even when I lived in a suburb where the buses were only every half hour. If I missed the bus it gave me a chance to pull out a book and do a bit of reading.

 

[RoJoHen]

If I missed the bus it gave me a chance to pull out a book and do a bit of reading.

Well, some people have to be at work at specific times, and if missing a bus or a train makes them late for work, they can get in trouble.

 

[Miss Chicken]

Which is why I used to catch a bus earlier than I needed to when I worked. Usually about 20 minutes earlier. It gave me time to grab a coffee or visit the newsagent or something like that. If I missed the bus, I could catch the next one and not be late.

 

[Kestra]

Escalator - Is it a ride or a tool?

you said "tool".

I have to say it's a deathtrap. It's waiting to take your life the moment you're not paying attention.

I use to be scared of it, was afraid I'd get my foot sucked underneath

umm, yeah. count me in. these things scared the hell outta me when I was a kid.

I actually got a loose shoelace stuck in one as a kid but nothing grotesque happened, I eventually just yanked it out just fine. So much for all my mom's scary stories!

As for the rest of the topic, I think it's slightly ridiculous to expect everyone to make way for you on the escalator. If there's space, yes, it's courteous to do so. But if you're really that pressed for time, the responsibility lies with you to make arrangements in case you have to catch the next bus/train/whatever. Having a window of 10 seconds and expecting everyone else to conform to your needs is just not realistic. If nothing else, sprint up the stairs!

I was taking escalators the past few weeks because my right knee was messed up and it was really painful to go up stairs. Oh, the looks from people who assume I was just being lazy by standing there! Luckily the knee is almost back to normal and I'm back to taking stairs.

 

[Tom Riley]

Personally, since we had stairs before, and still have stairs now, I look at escalators as more of a way to reduce the energy spent by a person. I highly doubt that whoever came up with the idea of an escalator had the idea in mind so that people could go up faster. I am fairly certain the idea was for the stairs to do it themselves. Look at the Jetsons, they didn't walk on their sidewalks, they stood there. That being said, if I feel like going faster I do walk up or down the escalator, but I don't see that as their function.

 

[Canadave]

As for the rest of the topic, I think it's slightly ridiculous to expect everyone to make way for you on the escalator. If there's space, yes, it's courteous to do so. But if you're really that pressed for time, the responsibility lies with you to make arrangements in case you have to catch the next bus/train/whatever. Having a window of 10 seconds and expecting everyone else to conform to your needs is just not realistic. If nothing else, sprint up the stairs!

I should clarify: I don't think it makes sense to push through people if it's really crowded, but under normal circumstances, it's only courteous to abide by the standard "stand right, walk left" rules, so that those of us that want to walk, can. It's as simple as that.

 

[Kestra]

Oh, I do think it's courteous to stand to the side if there's room for that and I don't think it's rude to climb past as long as you're not knocking people over in your hurry. There's nothing wrong with that at all! I do think that it shouldn't be an expectation that everyone will be walking on the escalators as they would stairs.