On 2015-12-01, Clive Page wrote:
On 01/12/2015 09:38, Robin wrote:
As a libertarian are you arguing that your choice to walk should trump
the choice of others to stand side-by-side?

Well of course. What's the point of being a libertarian if you can't be
selfish.

That was, of course, a somewhat light-hearted comment.

If you are arguing there should be no rule at all then I agree that
might work in some places. But my expereince of travelling across
London with people who find escalators difficult, and really want a
companion alongside them, is that a fair few passengers are prepared to
pursue vigorously their "right to walk".

This is a difficult issue, I agree. But at many stations there are now
perfectly good lifts which are much more suitable for those with luggage
or walking difficulties.

The lifts are generally much more suitable for those with luggage or
in wheelchairs. They are often not suitable for those with walking
difficulties because using them requires walking further than not
using them, often to the extent that stairs are better than walking to
the lifts.

Is the reason that people are so unwilling to
use lifts that nobody knows they are there? I admit they are often
tucked away and badly signposted.

Both true.

Or could it be that they like getting
to their destination as quickly as possible and lifts are sometimes
slower? If the latter, then they may see the point of allowing those
of us still tolerably fit to walk up an escalator on the left-hand side.

A dubious argument anyway, since the entire point of changing the
escalator rules is to get an entire crowd to or from the platforms as
quickly as possible. This is a safety issue and the slowing down of a
minority is not relevant.

Eric
--
ms fnd in a lbry