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Thursday 26 June 2014

The last step is the hardest

Why is it that people's walking speed is proportional to how close they are to the top of the escalator? Large distance = large speed ... Little distance = little speed.
If Newton had escalators, there would be an addendum to the first law of motion: An object in motion stays at a constant velocity unless acted upon by an outside force OR unless said object is approaching the top of an escalator.

Luckily, I wasn't rushing to catch a train today when the girl in front of me decided that the last 5 steps were just not worth the effort so she stopped walking and rode it out. It never ceases to amaze me when people sprint up the escalator only to realize that it's not their train at the station, so they slow right down and cause a bottleneck at the top. Because no one behind you could possibly be trying to catch that train, and besides, you just sprinted up a flight and a half of stairs, you need that cool down time to start ASAP.

I promise, guys, maintaining speed for that last half dozen steps will not kill you. (If it does, you probably shouldn't be walking up escalators in the first place.)