Escalators make life easier but they can also be risky

By Paul Russell, LegalMatters Staff • Escalators are a convenience we take for granted. But a surprising number of people suffer injuries on these moving staircases, says Ontario personal injury lawyer Joshua Goldberg.

“Because escalators allow us effortlessly get around places like the airport or multi-level stores, most of us don’t think about the hazards they pose,” says Goldberg, principal of Joshua Goldberg Law. “But people are injured every year on these mechanical devices, sometimes through no fault of their own.”

According to a media report, there were 626 escalator accidents in the Montreal subway system from the beginning of 2014 until June 2017.

“That’s an average of nearly one every second day on the Metro system’s 296 escalators,” the story states. “Close to half of the Metro’s escalator accident victims suffered serious enough injuries that they needed to go to hospital by ambulance.”

 42 people had their clothing snagged

The report adds that while falling is the most common cause of injury on escalators, four people had a hand or foot caught and 42 people got their clothing snagged during the same period.

“Getting your clothing caught in the escalator’s moving parts can lead to tragic results,” Goldberg tells LegalMattersCanada.ca. He points to a media report about a 47-year-old woman who died from suffocation after her scarf became entangled in a Montreal subway station’s escalator.

Goldberg says that while there is no information available about how many escalator accidents occur on the Toronto subway system, information from an agency that regulates elevators and escalators in Ontario is troubling. According to a news report, the Technical Standards and Safety Authority (TSSA) found that in 2018, more than 80 per cent of elevators failed inspections.

“Most Ontario elevators and escalators are not fully in compliance with safety laws, and the situation is getting worse,” the TSSA report found.

“As of August 31, 2018, 528 elevators and escalators were under TSSA shutdown orders for this reason,” the report adds.

The first escalator was a moving belt

The Encyclopaedia Britannica notes that the first escalator was invented in 1891, with passengers riding on cleats attached to a moving belt on the floor.

“The name escalator was first applied to a moving stairway shown at the Paris Exposition of 1900,” the entry adds. “Originally a trademark of the Otis Elevator Company, the word was adjudged in 1949 to have become public property through popular use.”

According to the National Elevator Industry Inc. (NEII), “elevators and escalators are the safest mode of public transportation … American take 283 billion trips on elevators and escalators for a total of 2.825 billion miles each year.

It adds that the distance travelled annually on elevators and escalators equals 75 per cent of the total highway trips in the United States.

283 billion trips on elevators or escalators

“In the U.S., we take 283 billion trips on elevators and escalators for a total of 2.825 billion miles each year,” the NEII notes.

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According to information from the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), there were approximately 11,000 escalator-related injuries in 2007. “The majority of these injuries are from falls but 10 percent occur when hands, feet or shoes are trapped in escalators.”

The CPSC statement adds that soft-sided shoes are the most likely to get stuck in escalators, with “77 entrapment incidents since January 2006, with about half resulting in injury. All but two of the incidents involved popular soft-sided flexible clogs and slides.”

Tips for a safe ride

To reduce the risk of injury, the CPSC provides these escalator safety tips:

• make sure shoelaces are tied before getting on;
• step off of the escalator at the end of your ride;
• always hold children’s hands and do not permit them to sit or play on the steps;
• avoid the sides of steps where entrapment can occur; and
• learn where the emergency shutoff buttons are.

Goldberg says that people may not be aware that escalator steps are higher than most regular stairways. While regular stairs rise about seven inches (17.8 centimetres) between steps, the risers on escalator steps are typically 8.5 inches (21.6 centimetres).

“That extra inch-and-a-half does make a difference,” he says. “If a rider is not paying attention and is walking up a moving escalator, there is an increased chance of stumbling.”

Goldberg notes that owners are required to keep detailed maintenance records for escalators, and these may show when one was not up to standard.

“If your injury was caused by the negligence of the building owners and/or the elevator maintenance contractor, you could be entitled to compensation,” he says.