# Moving sidewalks in airports **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 21, 2019, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-sidewalks-in-airports/845189 "2019-12-21T19:45:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Omar\_Little](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omar_little/32/269_2.png) [@Omar\_Little](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omar_Little)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2019, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-sidewalks-in-airports/845189/1 "2019-12-21T19:45:15Z")
Since the holiday travel season is coming up, I’m curious as to how the dopers treat these modern marvels that were only ideas during the time of the Jetsons. 😉 I continue walking upon stepping into one, as I see their purpose is to speed up foot traffic flow through the airport. But the is no small percentage of people that view them as horizontal escalators, that are to take over their forward progress so that they do not need to expend any more energy to get from point A to point B. And an even large percentage of that group that believe they can spread their group and carry-on luggage which results in others asking them to move aside so they can get past. So teeming millions, do you walk on these devices or do you stand? If you stand do you leave room for those that are walking? ---
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2019, 8:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-sidewalks-in-airports/845189/2 "2019-12-21T20:03:45Z")
It depends. Most of the time, I’ll just avoid them altogether. If it’s a brutally early flight and I haven’t had my coffee, I will stand on the right with my luggage in from the of me like a good urbanite. It’ll sometimes depend on the airport and the shoes I’m wearing. If it’s a huge airport or I’m in dress shoes, I’ll stand . ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2019, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-sidewalks-in-airports/845189/3 "2019-12-21T20:16:12Z")
I walk on them, though I’m in reasonably good shape, and walking a long distance is no big deal to me. But, I know that there are many people (including my wife) who can’t walk very far, due to physical limitations, and I don’t have an issue with people standing on them, particularly in large, spread-out airports like ORD (from which I frequently fly). That said, I _do_ wish that the etiquette of “walk left, stand right” on escalators (and moving walkways) was more generally known and followed, but that’s another issue. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2019, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-sidewalks-in-airports/845189/4 "2019-12-21T20:19:03Z")
I view them like escalators. Stand on the right, pass on the left. I usually walk briskly on them and pass people, but I rarely have any trouble doing so. (Also, this is a good time to note that if an escalator is crowded to capacity, it’s actually better if everyone stands. A standing person takes less space than a person walking up the escalator, so the total thru-put is higher if everyone stands as close to each other as they can bear. Of course, few escalators are packed to capacity, and normally it’s fine to pass on the left.) ---
**Author:** ![Ann\_Hedonia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ann_hedonia/32/319_2.png) [@Ann\_Hedonia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ann_Hedonia)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2019, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-sidewalks-in-airports/845189/5 "2019-12-21T20:20:00Z")
I use them and I usually keep moving. In some large airports, this lets you cover a lot of distance fairly quickly. But it’s OK just to ride if you aren’t in a rush. I’m from an urban area, and I see the rules of etiquette for moving sidewalks as being the same as those for escalators. And there are a lot of escalators in NYC mass transit terminals and some of them cover lots of distance. It’s really simple. If you decide to stand still and ride, keep to the right. If you decide to keep moving, stay to the left. And I can get kind of annoyed if people don’t do this. It’s really easy. Yes, you might have a lot of stuff, but usually the moving walkways in airports are pretty wide. Just stand to the right, walk to the left. And I HATE HATE HATE it when children start playing on the moving sidewalks, doing stuff like trying to walk in the other direction. It’s not a carnival ride. ETA—- ninjaed a little bit. But at least we have consensus. ---
**Author:** ![WildaBeast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wildabeast/32/6_2.png) [@WildaBeast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WildaBeast)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2019, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-sidewalks-in-airports/845189/6 "2019-12-21T20:46:37Z")
I kind of changed my attitude towards moving sidewalks as I gained more experience with them. The first time I encountered them as an inexperienced traveler I stood on them. As I became a more experienced traveler I started walking on them. And I tend to assume that the people standing on them are inexperienced travelers, although that might be a little unfair, although I would guess the people who spread out so the walkers can’t get past are indeed inexperienced and don’t know the stand right walk left rule. Nowadays I tend to only use the moving sidewalks when I’m in a hurry (Like when Delta gives me like 30 minutes to get from Concourse A to Concourse F at MSP). Otherwise I just walk the whole distance to the gate without them and get a little bit more exercise. I have seen a few airports that have a yellow line painted down the middle of the moving sidewalk and stencil “stand” in the right “lane” and “walk” in the left one. I think MSP was one. I wise every airport did that, even though some people still seem to ignore the stand right rule even then. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2019, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-sidewalks-in-airports/845189/7 "2019-12-21T20:55:42Z")
I’m not in an airport to enjoy the ambiance. I’ve got someplace to be, and I want to get on with getting there. So I continue walking. ---
**Author:** ![JWT\_Kottekoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/3ec8ea/32.png) [@JWT\_Kottekoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JWT_Kottekoe)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2019, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-sidewalks-in-airports/845189/8 "2019-12-21T21:55:21Z")
I wish they had multiple lanes, increasing in speed as you go to the left. ---
**Author:** ![simster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/simster/32/1047_2.png) [@simster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/simster)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2019, 10:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-sidewalks-in-airports/845189/9 "2019-12-21T22:10:16Z")
I’ve gotten many a dirty glance as I dash between gates when I say “On your left” - I not only walk on them - I walk as fast or faster than I would without them - the idea is to get me near my departure gate as quickly as possible so that I can then relax. ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2019, 10:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-sidewalks-in-airports/845189/10 "2019-12-21T22:22:02Z")
I like even better the underground shuttle-trains they have at Sea-Tac airport. Questions: Do they have moving sidewalks at airports in England? Do you stand to the left and pass on the right? ---
**Author:** ![DPRK](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4491bb/32.png) [@DPRK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DPRK)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2019, 10:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-sidewalks-in-airports/845189/11 "2019-12-21T22:31:46Z")
What about the ones that accelerate you to warp speed, at least enough so that I once saw a sign urging you to keep both feet planted firmly during the acceleration and deceleration zones? I guess the same issues arise, but, since the walkway moves at twice the speed of a regular moving walkway, there is less of a temporal impact if people choose to stand still. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2019, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-sidewalks-in-airports/845189/12 "2019-12-21T22:34:50Z")
I seldom see people blocking the walkway with luggage. I do see clumps of people blocking it, but I see that on sidewalks (non-moving) also. I usually walk on them. I’m not sure the first time I saw one, but I’m pretty sure there were some moving walkways at the NY World’s Fair. The most fund one is the one up the steep (very steep, and I live near San Francisco) hill in Hong Kong. ---
**Author:** ![galen\_ubal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/galen_ubal/32/4440_2.png) [@galen\_ubal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/galen_ubal)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2019, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-sidewalks-in-airports/845189/13 "2019-12-21T22:39:56Z")
> [@Senegoid](#): > > I like even better the underground shuttle-trains they have at Sea-Tac airport. > > Questions: Do they have moving sidewalks at airports in England? Do you stand to the left and pass on the right? Not England, but Australia, where we drive on the left also. Yes, stand to the left, pass on the right. (In theory, as a lot of the world doesn’t do it that way, and there’s always those who just stand wherever anyway.) ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2019, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-sidewalks-in-airports/845189/14 "2019-12-21T22:40:28Z")
> [@JWT\_Kottekoe](#): > > I wish they had multiple lanes, increasing in speed as you go to the left. Ah, like the ones Heinlein envisaged in “The Roads Must Roll.” ---
**Author:** ![galen\_ubal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/galen_ubal/32/4440_2.png) [@galen\_ubal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/galen_ubal)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2019, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-sidewalks-in-airports/845189/15 "2019-12-21T22:43:09Z")
> [@JWT\_Kottekoe](#): > > I wish they had multiple lanes, increasing in speed as you go to the left. > [@Voyager](#): > > Ah, like the ones Heinlein envisaged in “The Roads Must Roll.” I was thinking of the belts in Asimov’s books - _The Caves of Steel_, for example. ---
**Author:** ![Ashtura](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ashtura/32/2963_2.png) [@Ashtura](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ashtura)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2019, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-sidewalks-in-airports/845189/16 "2019-12-21T23:00:06Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > I view them like escalators. Stand on the right, pass on the left. I usually walk briskly on them and pass people, but I rarely have any trouble doing so. > > (Also, this is a good time to note that if an escalator is crowded to capacity, it’s actually better if everyone stands. A standing person takes less space than a person walking up the escalator, so the total thru-put is higher if everyone stands as close to each other as they can bear. Of course, few escalators are packed to capacity, and normally it’s fine to pass on the left.) ^ This. ---
**Author:** ![WildaBeast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wildabeast/32/6_2.png) [@WildaBeast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WildaBeast)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2019, 11:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-sidewalks-in-airports/845189/17 "2019-12-21T23:07:35Z")
> [@Voyager](#): > > I’m not sure the first time I saw one, but I’m pretty sure there were some moving walkways at the NY World’s Fair. I think Dallas-Love Field was one of the first if not the first airport to have them when they built a new terminal in the late 1950s. At least that’s the impression I got from a now long defunct website that detailed the histories of old and abandoned airport terminals. I’m sure it seemed very futuristic at the time. The first time I personally encountered one was in United’s terminal at O’Hare, the first time I took a trip by plane in 2003. I didn’t fly for the first time until I was 23 years old, since my family always drove for long trips. ---
**Author:** ![ASL\_v2.0](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asl_v2.0/32/3525_2.png) [@ASL\_v2.0](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ASL_v2.0)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2019, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-sidewalks-in-airports/845189/18 "2019-12-21T23:08:45Z")
I’ve quite often seen these horizontal conveyors explicitly labeled with “Stand on right, walk on left” or words to that effect. If I take one at all, I walk on it to go faster. I’ve commonly found I can walk faster off the conveyor than the conveyor moves a standing person. ---
**Author:** ![Melbourne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5e925/32.png) [@Melbourne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Melbourne)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2019, 11:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-sidewalks-in-airports/845189/19 "2019-12-21T23:49:03Z")
> [@galen\_ubal](#): > > I was thinking of the belts in Asimov’s books - _The Caves of Steel_, for example. I was thinking of the ones in Disneyland… Do they still have those? A corner at the start and end, to switch the orientation of the plates from short to long, like where water changes from a broad slow channel to a fast narrow channel. ---
**Author:** ![Baron\_Greenback](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baron_greenback/32/48_2.png) [@Baron\_Greenback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baron_Greenback)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2019, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-sidewalks-in-airports/845189/20 "2019-12-21T23:57:09Z")
I walk on them. My internal voice is usually going “Woooooooooooh, I stride boldly towards destiny!” at the time too. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-sidewalks-in-airports/845189.md?page=2)