We have all taken them at least once stairs mobile: on the subway, in a shopping center or maybe in an airport. In the world, however, there are some with characteristics so unique that they defy all expectations. An example above all? The escalator longest in the world (904 meters), located in China. To complete the entire journey of this real steel giant you need about 21 minutes.
Between microscopic differences in height that make you smile, fascinating leaps into the past on wooden steps and dizzying lengths, let’s see what they are the record-breaking escalatorstheir most bizarre characteristics and in which corners of the planet they are found.
Escalator records
The longest in the world: Wushan Goddess Escalator (China)
When it comes to length in the world of escalators, the absolute record belongs to Wushan Goddess Escalatorlocated in the suggestive and very steep area of Chongqing, China. This escalator extends for almost 905 meters in overall length, overcoming a vertical difference of over 240 meters (equal to a building of approximately 80 floors). Inaugurated in order to facilitate and facilitate urban and tourist mobility in the area, the entire route (made up of 21 individual escalators and other connection systems) takes approximately 21 minutes to be covered and replaced a walk of over an hour on very steep paths.
The oldest still in operation: Macy’s Herald Square (USA)
Although the first prototypes (the so-called “inclined planes”) date back to the end of the nineteenth century in Coney Island, the oldest and most modern modern escalators still fully operational they are located inside the historic department store Macy’s at Herald Squarein the heart of Manhattan, New York. They were installed by the Otis Elevator Company starting in 1920.
Many of these escalators still retain their iconic and fascinating features steps in oak and ash woodwhich creak under the feet of customers. They are meticulously maintained to comply with very modern safety standards, integrating modern mechanics under the original structure of the time.
The shortest in the world: “Puchicalator” in Kawasaki (Japan)
The record for the shortest escalator on the planet is officially certified by the Guinness Book of Records and is located in the basement of the shopping center Kawasaki More’s in Kawasaki, Japan. It is affectionately called Petitcalator (or Puchicalator). This “staircase” has, just think, a vertical difference in height 83.4 centimetres and it just matters 5 steps. The journey from top to bottom takes just under 8 seconds. The most bizarre thing is that it is located right next to a normal flight of stairs: the engineers saw fit to place it there for the sole purpose of covering a very small difference in level between the basement of the shopping center and the underground metro corridor.
