Escalators

Escalators are basically conveyer belts that carry passengers between floors. They can be found in supermarkets, train stations, airports or any other busy location that requires users to have access to more than one floor with ease. The not only allow access, but also act as a bottleneck to ease congestion. A crowd of people can be sorted into a manageable and orderly queue after using an escalator. They carry many passengers and ensure a constant flow of movement, unlike a passenger lift. Passenger lifts have a limited capacity and can only do a certain amount of journeys within any given time period; escalators operate continuously, making sure that they are always ready to take passengers and perform their service. They are suitable for many locations where passengers find it difficult or simply a hassle to use a staircase, and where another method of between-floor transport is impractical.

A good example of where an escalator is an ideal solution, and is almost essential is in an underground train station. It is unrealistic to expect passengers to climb such huge flights of stairs, and this can often lead to accidents, not to mention making the station entirely inaccessible to many disabled passengers. Underground stations can be very big, and will often see hundreds of passengers at any one time, especially in big cities. These passengers need quick and easy access to the platforms, and it is extremely advantageous for those managing the station to install an escalator to ease the massive congestion caused by this many people. It is clear that an escalator can benefit all involved in such an environment, and without one everything would simply grind to a halt.

Another application of an escalator would be in a shopping centre. This is a hugely different environment. It could see large numbers of shoppers at one time, but it would never experience the average usage of an escalator in an underground train station. Therefore the escalator must be made accordingly. This location would require a light-duty escalator, as opposed to the heavy-duty ones that are made to withstand a huge amount of wear and tear. Factors such as height, length and expected capacity must be taken into account to ensure the elevator is installed correctly and can function with as little trouble as possible. It’s not good having to call maintenance time after time due to an escalator which doesn’t suit the requirements of its location, or that has many technical faults.