# Moving walkways in airports **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [June 6, 2023, 4:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-walkways-in-airports/985087 "2023-06-06T04:40:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![chela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chela/32/21582_2.png) [@chela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chela)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2023, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-walkways-in-airports/985087/21 "2023-06-06T13:39:11Z")
6’4” at 200 lbs would be pretty thin on that side. Now if you’re talking kilos that’s big. I check my luggage always. Never had an issue. It’s always waiting for me at the carousel. Yet in the terminal I have to deal with people obliviously pulling their trolley bags zig zagging behind them because the wheels suck and that supposedly fit in the over head bin taking up room at the gate and everywhere else. Huge backpacks and full size luggage is very common to encounter. So yeah they do take up a lot room on the moving sidewalks. And on the escalators too, once had some bastards bitch loose control of her full size samsonite at the top of the escalator. Did she call out heads up? Watch out? I’m so sorry? NO! She let it tumble down knocking people off their feet including myself while good sams tried to catch it for her before it really injured someone. Man that pissed me off! ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2023, 1:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-walkways-in-airports/985087/22 "2023-06-06T13:46:28Z")
> [@susan](#): > > It’s as if the OP hasn’t heard of childhood, old age, waiting for a knee replacement, war wounds, or chemotherapy. I disagree with OP, but I’m not sure a moving walkway is a sensible place for chemotherapy. ---
**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:** [June 6, 2023, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-walkways-in-airports/985087/23 "2023-06-06T13:56:21Z")
> [@Odesio](#): > > > [@Jackmannii](#): > > > > I’m one of the walkers on those moving walkways and am fine with people remaining motionless on them when they keep to the right. > > Same here. I don’t mind if people take a break and stand, but please allow me some room to walk on by. While I don’t fly very frequently, I’ve not experienced people blocking the walkways often enough for me to get annoyed. Me three. I usually walk briskly on slideways, but of course people stand on them. And if there are people standing in the way, perhaps a parent with children, or someone with too much luggage every which way, I might say “excuse me” and try to squeak past, or I might just wait until the end of that segment of slidewalk to pass them, but I’m no more annoyed than I am by red lights, and other expected slowdowns. (Which is to say, yes, I’m annoyed. But I consider that a “me” problem.) ---
**Author:** ![Horatius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/horatius/32/3572_2.png) [@Horatius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatius)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2023, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-walkways-in-airports/985087/24 "2023-06-06T14:04:25Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > Next you’ll be telling me I need to climb escalators two steps at a time and that I should make my car go by sticking my feet through the floorboards and running like I’m on The Flintstones. Damn straight! And don’t even get me started on those lazy bastards who get on a subway train and then just sit there! You should be getting on the last car, and then walking all the way to the front, so you get there sooner! Anything less is deserving of nothing more than scorn and condescension! ---
**Author:** ![Jasmine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jasmine/32/2964_2.png) [@Jasmine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jasmine)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2023, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-walkways-in-airports/985087/25 "2023-06-06T14:15:57Z")
> [@Omar\_Little](#): > > The so-called people movers purpose is to speed up travel through the concourse, not to give standers a break. > > I say ban standing on these walkways. If you need a break…take a seat at anyone of the many gates around you. Cite? I think that is an assumption on your part. There are some walks in O’Hare that are very long. What’s wrong with resting a little while the moving walkway does the work? Some people are old, or arthritic, or partially disabled, or just plain tired of carrying a lot of carry on stuff. I’m sorry, but I think your attitude is insensitive, and it really rubs me the wrong way. ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2023, 2:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-walkways-in-airports/985087/26 "2023-06-06T14:28:24Z")
I usually walk on moving walkways, but now I plan to start walking in the reverse direction to show my support for the right to stand. ---
**Author:** ![DPRK](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4491bb/32.png) [@DPRK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DPRK)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2023, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-walkways-in-airports/985087/27 "2023-06-06T14:52:14Z")
> [@Machine\_Elf](#): > > > [@Omar\_Little](#): > > > > The so-called people movers purpose is to speed up travel through the concourse, not to give standers a break. > > Have you got a cite for that? No mention in this thread of those conveyors that accelerate people to warp speed (about 7.5 mph)? Last time I saw one was in Paris. ---
**Author:** ![Pleonast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pleonast/32/1183_2.png) [@Pleonast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pleonast)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2023, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-walkways-in-airports/985087/28 "2023-06-06T14:52:22Z")
Moving walkways and escalators are for those who aren’t capable of moving easily–the youngest, the oldest, the infirmest. Probably a few lazy people as well. Your typical, able-bodied adult should be using the floor and stairs to get from one area to another. Hence: > These standers also clog up the walkway slowing down travelers attempting to make short connections. and that is exactly why able-bodied people in a hurry should not be using moving walkways and escalators. You know this; it’s your own fault for taking the wrong path. ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2023, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-walkways-in-airports/985087/29 "2023-06-06T14:55:27Z")
> [@Pleonast](#): > > Moving walkways and escalators are for those who aren’t capable of moving easily–the youngest, the oldest, the infirmest. Probably a few lazy people as well. Your typical, able-bodied adult should be using the floor and stairs to get from one area to another. As an able bodied person, do you use an elevator? There are usually stairs available, and walking up or down ten floors is less effort than the distance you have to walk in many terminals. ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2023, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-walkways-in-airports/985087/30 "2023-06-06T15:06:55Z")
I’m too damn impatient to use moving walkways, and living in London has made me a fast walker. So I just avoid them entirely and still outpace any standers (and about half the walkers) on the travellators. But I don’t blame anyone for just standing on them. Stopping abruptly at the end (of walkways or escalators) and blocking the people behind you should be punishable by a punch to the back of the head, though. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2023, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-walkways-in-airports/985087/31 "2023-06-06T15:11:17Z")
Cite? This seems to have no more basis in reality as the OP’s claims. ---
**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:** [June 6, 2023, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-walkways-in-airports/985087/32 "2023-06-06T15:46:25Z")
I’m not Pleonast, but I assume he means not that walkers aren’t supposed to use the moving walkways, but that it’s generally faster to avoid them and the clogged traffic, and just walk briskly in the open space between them. I sometimes do that if I’m really tight on time. ---
**Author:** ![Machine\_Elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2023, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-walkways-in-airports/985087/33 "2023-06-06T15:53:21Z")
> [@What\_Exit](#): > > Cite? > > This seems to have no more basis in reality as the OP’s claims. Indeed. It seems the only cite that’s really relevant is the policy of the airports in which these walkways are installed. If any given walkway has markings that clearly designate areas for walking or for standing, then it would seem patently obvious that the purpose of that walkway is to accommodate people who choose to walk _and_ people who choose to stand, and it’s incumbent on all users of that walkway to make room for each other. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2023, 3:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-walkways-in-airports/985087/34 "2023-06-06T15:58:47Z")
Agreed. I’m one that always walked fast on the walkways. Then I had kids. So when traveling as a family it was keeping the kids to the standing side. On business trips I still fast walked. Now I’m older and fat and I tend to mix walking (not so fast) with standing and just vary the side I’m on to match the traffic pattern. Anyone who thinks no walkers should be on the people movers or who thinks only walkers should be on the people mover is clearly wrong. * * * * * * I do agree, there is something wrong with those special idiots that at the end of the belt or escalator, don’t know how to resume moving and block others. I wouldn’t punch them in the back of the head, but I do say “excuse me” loudly and probably a little snarkily. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2023, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-walkways-in-airports/985087/35 "2023-06-06T16:08:45Z")
> [@Riemann](#): > > I usually walk on moving walkways, but now I plan to start walking in the reverse direction to show my support for the right to stand. If you want some extra exercise, use the moving sidewalk that’s in the wrong direction for where you’re headed. I’ve done that on escalators a few times. ---
**Author:** ![chappachula](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/d2c977/32.png) [@chappachula](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chappachula)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2023, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-walkways-in-airports/985087/36 "2023-06-06T16:15:41Z")
> [@Die\_Capacitrix](#): > > Also used quite frequently in the London Underground. And the London Underground has signs posted on the escalators. “Stand on right” is obeyed by everyone… Now the other Underground sign-- “dogs must be carried on escalator” is a bit problematic, because… . . . … Some people use the escalator even when they don’t have a dog. 🙂 . ---
**Author:** ![Pleonast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pleonast/32/1183_2.png) [@Pleonast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pleonast)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2023, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-walkways-in-airports/985087/37 "2023-06-06T16:16:34Z")
> [@Riemann](#): > > As an able bodied person, do you use an elevator? There are usually stairs available, and walking up or down ten floors is less effort than the distance you have to walk in many terminals. Elevators have even less capacity than escalators, and are often explicitly marked for “wheelchair use only”. I haven’t seen an airport with a ten-story vertical, but walking a level surface is much easier than any stairs. > [@puzzlegal](#): > > I’m not Pleonast, but I assume he means not that walkers aren’t supposed to use the moving walkways, but that it’s generally faster to avoid them and the clogged traffic, and just walk briskly in the open space between them. I sometimes do that if I’m really tight on time. Yes, it’s a matter of capacity. Elevators can handle a handful of people at a time. Escalators and moving walkways can handle more. Stairs and open floors can handle the most. Considerate people use the least restrictive means so that the less capable can get to their destinations in a timely manner. Of course, there’s no problem using a less capacious means if there’s space on it. But it’s not fair to use those means and then complain it’s slow when the open floor is there for you to move as fast as you’d like. ---
**Author:** ![Leo\_Krupe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ebca7d/32.png) [@Leo\_Krupe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Krupe)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2023, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-walkways-in-airports/985087/38 "2023-06-06T16:33:35Z")
Regarding the OP specifically, that’s a crock. I have arthritis, and while on vacation last year, could barely walk faster than a toddler (I used a cane). The people movers were a godsend to me. Of course, I try to be considerate and stand as far as I can to the right to let others by, and at the end of the walkway, if I have to stop, I get out of the way. ---
**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:** [June 6, 2023, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-walkways-in-airports/985087/39 "2023-06-06T16:49:31Z")
For those I have offended, please forgive me. This is more of a pet peave of mine…as @Die_Capacitrix quoted a thread I apparently started in 2019 that I completely forgot about starting. I try not to be rude to the standers, I just don’t understand them, that’s all. 😛 For those asking for cites, who knows if this is credible enough for you, but it is logical. [Why Do Airports Have Moving Walkways?](https://simpleflying.com/why-do-airports-have-moving-walkways/#:~:text=The%20moving%20walkways%20at%20airports,there%20is%20more%20to%20it.&text=A%20moving%20walkway%2C%20also%20known,airport%20terminals%20and%20departure%20gates). “The moving walkways at airports are primarily installed to assist walking passengers” ---
**Author:** ![slicedalone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slicedalone/32/12515_2.png) [@slicedalone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slicedalone)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2023, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-walkways-in-airports/985087/40 "2023-06-06T16:55:29Z")
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