Escalators

Aside from lifts, escalators are probably the invention which has most shaped the way we live in the modern world- essentially they do exactly the same job as lifts are designed to do; they carry people quickly between floors over distances which it would be too tiring or too time consuming to simply walk down. However, the difference with escalators is that they can do this for much larger numbers of people much quicker.

Think about it next time you’re in a shopping centre or in a tube station- if all those people who you see on the escalator at any one time had to wait for a lift and then file in to it 10 people at a time then there would be massive hold ups and nobody would ever get anywhere. The fact that escalators are constantly moving mean that many more people can continue to ascend or descend quickly and can get on with their day. 

The wideness of an escalator also means that two people can fit on each step- or that one person can push past you because they are seemingly in too much of a hurry to stand idle even for a couple of seconds. When escalators first came about they were something to be scared of, and then they became a novelty for the rich; now they are a staple of our lives and we can’t imagine 21st Century living without them.

When escalators were first introduced and announced, it was far from a moment of mass celebration where people kicked themselves for wondering why they hadn’t come up with such a wonderful and amazing idea before- rather, people were absolutely terrified of them. Unlike anything they had seen before, these moving staircases really did freak people out- the person who first invented them had to spend an entire day riding up and down on them in order to try and prove to passers by that they were safe to use; there certainly seems to be no such hesitation during the morning rush hour at my local tube station I can tell you!

Escalators can bring aesthetic grandeur to any place where they are included and they can also make life much easier for people and make them more likely to enjoy spending time in your company, your business or your public place of leisure.  They don’t just come in the vertical staircase form which we are all used to seeing, there is also the travelator- the close relation of the escalator which is found in train stations and airports and is, essentially, a moving walkway which allows people to move quicker with their heavy bags and also helps to ease congestion in the busiest parts of transport terminals. 

If you fancy a bit of fun, watch people try and step of a travelator without stumbling, nobody ever seems to be able to do it! Nobody is actually sure where the name travelator comes from; some people think that it may have come from the first company to make the moving walk ways and that, as the industry has progressed, the name has just kind of stuck. One thing is for sure, whilst they may not be as famous as their A-list sibling the escalator, travelators are at   the heart of how we travel in the 21st Century.

For such a vital piece of equipment, how escalators work is actually pretty simple- the motorised tracks have a sheet of metal placed over them (which forms the steps which you walk or stand on) and the mechanisms beneath keep the escalator moving at a constant pace- this means that they never go any faster or slower but, instead, always keep moving at the same speed.

Interestingly, escalators can run both ways as well so, when you are on a downwards escalator it would only take the flip of a switch to start it rolling the other way. This ensures that, when there are a bank of escalators all together, if one stops working then another one can be drafted in and changed direction in order to minimise disruption.

There are many ways of accommodating escalators within buildings- the most space-savvy way being to stack them one on top of the other in the middle of the building- this ensures that not very much structural reworking has to be done.

Escalators also need to be maintained very regularly and this requires them to be shut off and cleaned by machines which are operated by trained service-people. Read the articles which are coming up now and see for yourself all the different facts about escalators if you decide to get one then do some thorough research first- if anybody wants to rush past then let them, take your time and soak up all the information.

To find a escalator company near you click here, or use our information guide below.

Escalator Information Guide: