The Messy Science of Escalator Etiquette

Quick Overview

The optimal strategy for escalator use to maximize throughput is to have passengers stand on one side (usually the left in right-hand-stand regions) and walk on the other, as forcing people to stand on both sides reduces capacity, especially on shorter escalators, though for very tall escalators like those in London Underground, standing on both sides might be slightly more efficient than standing only.

Key Points: The 2002 study on London Underground escalators found that allowing walking on one side (left) while standing on the other (right) resulted in a capacity of 66 people per minute (ppm) on the walking side, compared to 54 ppm for standing only. The same study concluded that forcing people to stand on both sides of an escalator is not recommended because it is difficult to enforce and only advantageous on very long escalators (taller than 60 feet/18 meters). In cities like the US, Canada, China, UK, France, and parts of Japan, the standard etiquette is to stand on the right and walk on the left. In other places like Australia and other parts of Japan, the etiquette is reversed: stand on the left and walk on the right. A taller escalator (like the 200ft one at Angel Station, 60 meters) benefits less from walking, as the travel time minimizes the impact of walking speed. Studies show that having people stand on both sides reduces capacity compared to the optimized 'stand left, walk right' approach, as walking passengers leave a two-step gap in front of them. The video promotes Wildgrain, a subscription service for fresh-baked bread, croissants, and cookies, offering $30 off the first box plus free croissants for life with code HAI.

Context: This video explores the widely debated etiquette of whether people should stand or walk on escalators, analyzing the impact on passenger flow and overall system capacity. It references specific academic studies, notably a 2002 paper on the London Underground, which modeled passenger movement based on personal space (the 'human ellipse') and found that mixing standing and walking passengers on opposite sides optimizes throughput, while universal standing or universal walking reduces efficiency.