Inclined moving walkways
An inclined moving walkway is used in airports and supermarkets to move people to another floor with the convenience of an elevator (namely, that people can take along their suitcase trolley or shopping cart, or baby carriage) and the capacity of an escalator.
The carts have either a brake that is automatically applied when the cart handle is released, strong magnets in the wheels to stay adhered to the floor, or specially designed wheels that secure the cart within the grooves of the ramp, so that wheeled items travel alongside the riders and do not slip away.
The Central-Mid-levels escalator system on Hong Kong Island, Hong Kong also has several inclined moving sidewalks. In Carlton, Victoria, Australia, another inclined moving sidewalk can be found at Lygon Court.
Some department stores instead use Vermaport or Cartveyors—conveying systems that move shopping carts in a similar fashion to an escalator—to transport passengers and their carts between store levels simultaneously.
Inclined moving walkways can also be found at the National Aquarium in Baltimore, Maryland; the international arrivals area of Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport in Montreal, Quebec, Canada; Piccadilly Station in Manchester, UK; the Asda hypermarket/superstore in Handsworth, Sheffield, UK; and the Ikea in Bristol, UK and Stoughton, Massachusetts. Slightly inclined ones can be found at Logan Airport, in Boston, MA.
Applications
A moving walkway at the Port Columbus International Airport, United States
Moving walkways are frequently found in the following locations:
Airports
They are popular there because most larger airports require passengers – often with heavy luggage in tow – to walk considerable distances. Moving walkways may be utilized:
in passageways between concourses and the terminal
within particularly long concourses
as a connector between terminals, or
as access to a parking facility or a ground transport station.
Of particular note is the Charles de Gaulle International Airport in Paris, which has several moving walkways inside a series of futuristic suspended tubes.
Museum exhibits
Moving sidewalks may be used:
to ensure that a museum exhibit is viewed in a certain sequence
to provide a particular aesthetic effect
to make sure the crowd moves through at a reliable pace.
The 1975-76 American Freedom Train did this; they had a moving walkway inside each successive railroad car, thus maximizing the number of people who could view the interior exhibits in the limited time the train was stopped in each town.[citation needed]
The National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC uses a moving walkway to connect the two main galleries.
The Tower of London in London, UK, uses a moving walkway where visitors are passing the cabinets which contain the Crown Jewels.
Zoos
Similar to museums, some zoological park exhibits have a moving walkway to ease guests through an animal display or habitat. An aquarium at the Mall of America does this with a moving walkway made up of specially rounded pallets that enable it to change directions en route. The San Diego Zoo uses moving ramps to help guests ascend steep grades.