Escalators are everywhere. They're especially prevalent in subway systems and malls. For those who have trouble taking the stairs, escalators are extremely helpful. But I notice way too many able-bodied people just standing there. Convenience aside, escalators are wasteful. According to a study performed by the Hong Kong Housing Authority, escalators use:- 1700-2500 watts while no one is riding
- 4000-5400 watts with just 16 people riding
In fact, someone solved this issue nearly 7,000 years ago: the stairs. Not only is 0 watts required to operate the stairs, Facility Architects is developing a solution that will actually generate electricity from people's foot steps. Living in a supply/demand type of world, I expect that if fewer people use escalators, we'll be much more likely to see these types of innovations pop up.
The docs at Duke support stair-steppers. I enjoy taking the stairs because it helps me to:
- burn calories.
- reach my goal of 30 minutes of daily activity.
- beat the people standing on the escalator.
Image: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image:Escalator.jpg
2 comments:
OMG gives me horrible memories of the escalators in DC and all our grumblings about the throng of nondisabled people who just stand there, no rush, no place to go, riding slowly down (on the left side, to boot!) Come on people, how lazy can you be?!
that's right, we ought to rid all those airports' "walk-a-lator" too. Lazy people, you've been sitting on the plane all day, take a walk. But seriously, like everything in life, escalators should not be used every locations. It is a great system at large convention area because it moves great number of people in less amount of time. And you want to move people from such large space.
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