A lot of people support the idea of keeping to the left of the
escalator so that people in a rush can run for their life on the
right side.
I would say that this only makes sense if it is not
crowded. Afterall we must practise courtesy right? However if it is
crowded, the main intention will be to move the crowd ASAP and
not to slow down the crowd in order to make way for a few
people who are running to meet their doom or something.
Let me explain my claim. Imagine if everyone stands on both
sides (left & right) of the escalator. Assume that the
escalator can transport 20 people per min this way. This means that in 1 min, 20 people at the bottom can
reach the top.
However, if everyone were to insist on keeping to the left, the
transport rate is reduced by half. This means that the escalator
can now only transport 10 people per min. Let's say we
have 2 buggers running for life on the right side. That means that in 1 min, only 12 people at the bottom
can reach the top.
Think about it people. This is
simple math. In the morning peak hour, do we want to clog the
bottom of the escalator just to let a few "impatient" ones run up
or do we want everyone to reach the top ASAP?
