Sunday May 27, 2012

Is this the shortest escalator in the world?

Lifestyle ( 34 )

Is this the shortest escalator in the world?
PHOTO BY YOKO KUROSE

TOKYO —

Have you seen this short escalator in Japan? Some people claim it is the shortest escalator in the world. The number of steps is only 5. You can find it in an underground shopping area in Kawasaki station.

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34 Comments

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  • 1

    DenTok2009

    ha, ha, ha... there's a casino in Denver (not actually in Denver but up in the mountains of Black Hawk/Central City where gaming is legal) that has got an escalator right next to THREE steps!

  • 0

    Virtuoso

    There's one outside the wicket at Omotesando that isn't much longer.

  • -5

    tmarie

    A few in Osaka - usually at train stations. Honestly people, walk!!!

  • 2

    ironchef

    looks like the one at Tokyo station near the Joetsu shinkansen gate

  • 1

    southsakai

    tmarieOCT. 01, 2011 - 09:20AM JST A few in Osaka - usually at train stations. Honestly people, walk!!!

    Yes Tmarie quite a few here, One in Izumigaoka at the bottom of Takashimaya. I swear you could do a running long jump from top down. That short! Yes people need to Walk! Walk! Walk! Best exercise though these are good for the old people who have bad legs and have hard time climbing stairs.

  • 2

    wanderlust

    Attempt at barrier free?

    Though you'd never get a wheel chair up and down it...

  • 1

    edojin

    The Shinjuku underpasses have some really short escalators ... but I've never counted the steps. I've also seen very short escalators at various locations in cities all over Japan. Guess I've got to start counting the steps in the short escalators I encounter ... thus adding more things to do for my already overloaded brain cells.

  • 0

    Serrano

    As far as I'm concerned if there's even one step, there should be a slope, an elevator and maybe an escalator too!

    Steps suck! And they're really inconvenient for people in wheelchairs.

  • 0

    It"S ME

    Serrano.

    Agree, but gentle slopes(needed) normally take more space than steps, etc.

    As for an escalator for 1 or 1.5 metres ...

  • -4

    It"S ME

    escalator = elevator

  • 6

    sillygirl

    some people need it. please be kind to all those old people. for example, ueno station is hell on the back and knees.

  • 4

    paulinusa

    Try pulling heavy luggage up steps and you'll wish there was an escalator.

  • 1

    Scrote

    Many Sendai subway stations have escalators that only go half way up the stairs, meaning you have to walk the rest of the way. They seem completely pointless.

  • 7

    pawatan

    Hardly a waste if it helps old and handicapped people or those with large objects to carry.

  • -6

    smithinjapan

    More specifically it's an indicator of the laziest people in the world... and in all likelihood if it's like other escalators it's closer to the train or adjoining walkway than the stairs, so people wanting to take the stairs will have to cut through the masses lined up for the lazy route (unless they have physical problems going up steps, then it's fine).

  • -4

    cleo

    it's an indicator of the laziest people in the world...

    It's an indicator of having supposedly unlimited supplies of 'cheap' electricity and not knowing what to do with it all. I hope this mini-escalator has been stopped since 3/11.

    If old and handicapped people have large objects to carry, (would such large objects fit inside those bannisters?) what's wrong with a bit of old-fashioned courtesy and 'Can I carry that for you, sir?' from a passer-by?

    We've had the wake-up call, now all we have to do is get rid of waste like this (also over-bright lights, over-enthusiastic air-conditioning, rampant neon, automatic doors everywhere) and beef up renewable energy, and nuclear can go take a hike.

  • 4

    Himajin

    looks like the one at Tokyo station near the Joetsu shinkansen gate

    Yes, when i first looked at the photo I thought that's where it was.

    Though you'd never get a wheel chair up and down it...

    Not pushing one yourself, probably, but we got MIL's small wheelchair up the one at Tokyo station fine, after searching all over hell's kitchen for an elevator.

  • 9

    Kuroyama

    Seriously... Im betting most people here citing "laziness" have never lived in Japan and dont understand that you DO walk everywhere everyday. Its not like the US at all where you can drive fom place to place. (well, rural japan is) but as for the Tokai area... You are going to walk your ash off. You better enjoy that 5 step escalator.

  • -6

    YongYang

    handicapped

    Jeez. Have you been outside since the 70s? 'Handicapped'! LOL. Wow. Physically challenged people do need help to get around, up down, back and forth.

  • 6

    Yubaru

    To the elderly and infirmed that little escalator is probably a life saver. Nothing to do with laziness to the people who need it, and like other posters wrote, in Tokyo you are going to walk your butt off and even a little bit of assistance is a help.

  • 1

    Elbuda Mexicano

    You do not need to be old to understand that if you BRAKE A LEG, in my case 3 times! My idiot friend broke my right leg back in California on a speed boat accident and just as I got back to Tokyo my father had a huge heart attack. I had to travel from one side of Tokyo to another in a WHEEL CHAIR. Many of these escalators do really help so for all of the people here who have NEVER EVER hurt their legs etc..you will never understand how much escalators, elevators etc..help not only people who have injured themselves but also mothers with children, baby strollers etc..Japan still has a LONG, LONG way to go but I do agree, Healthy Japanese are way TOO LAZY!! Many Japanese look like zombies riding the escalators going to their shitty jobs?? So I guess if you hate your job, your life you want to just ride escalators real slow to avoid being at your stressful environment?? Me?? I love my life, my job/jobs, so I always pass everybody walking, getting a work out running UP the long flight of stairs, heck I am gonna stop blogging here and go out side and get some fresh air! My legs are better now so I must enjoy! Thanks JT for this interesting picture and topic.

  • 0

    tokyotom

    i thought that one was from akabane station, don't know how these pass the accountants gambarre nihon!

  • 1

    Himajin

    A wheelchair ramp to span 8 steps would take a lot more room. For someone who is disabled or very elderly, those 8 steps could be a formidable obstacle.

  • -1

    cleo

    It looks like there's plenty of room to put a ramp in there. Wouldn't a ramp be easier for someone in a wheelchair/pushing a pram?

  • 0

    cloa513

    How about a travellator- more flexible useability than a escallator and more assistance than a ramp.

  • -1

    Ed O Jidai

    Has anyone counted the steps on the escalator in the photo above?

  • 0

    Himajin

    Yes, I did, Ed, there are 8.

    How high are those 8 steps?

    The maximum slope for a wheelchair ramp is 1 inch rise to 1 foot of run. In other words, the top of a 12-foot straight ramp should not be more than 12 inches from the bottom of the ramp. For some wheelchair users, even this slope is not gentle enough to allow them to navigate up the ramp by themselves. A slope of 1:16 or even 1:20 is often used in these cases, depending upon the needs of the disabled person. Figure out the needed slope from where the ramp starts and where it will end, because sometimes the ground drops away farther out from the building exit.

    Read more: DIY Wheelchair Ramp Design | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/way5746081diy-wheelchair-ramp-design.html#ixzz1ZbOA6SyD

  • 0

    Himajin

    If the building is quite high off the ground, a wheelchair ramp will need to be pretty long. For example, some manufactured homes are built 3 feet off the ground, which would necessitate at least a 36-foot ramp. This is usually not feasible due to space limitations, but you can bend, loop or zigzag a ramp to fit. At each turn, however, you should insert a landing---a level area large enough (usually 5 feet square) for the wheelchair user to easily turn around in. Landings should always be built at the top of a ramp and securely attached to the structure.

  • 0

    Sasoriza

    I've seen shorter one in Nagoya's Sakae district. First I thought "Is this a joke?"

  • 0

    Cripple

    Another short one outside of Yodobashi in Kyoto.

  • -1

    Mirai Hayashi

    what of waste of resources! People are so lazy that they can't walk up 5 steps?

  • -1

    Gurukun

    As meaningless and lazy those are, you would think they would be in America somewhere.

  • 0

    Mirai Hayashi

    As meaningless and lazy those are, you would think they would be in America somewhere.

    Americans are too lazy to build them...(whispers: its okay...I am an American)

  • 0

    Gurukun

    Americans are too lazy to build them...(whispers: its okay...I am an American)

    LOL!! me too (shhhhhhh)

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