Article 27 -Authorized Speed for Escalator and Moving Walk
Escalator and moving walk nominal speed
In escalators and moving walks the speed must be such that the passengers when entering and exiting the device can keep their balance and have a comfortable and smooth experience. Also in the whole direction of movement, passengers must not feel discomfort or fear of high speed. If the speed is too high passengers will arrive at exit point too fast and it causes danger of crowding and accidents. In consideration of this issue, choosing the right speed is essential. In this article we intend to explain about the authorized moving walk and escalator nominal speed according to the standard.
Escalator nominal speed
According to EN 115, the nominal speed must not exceed 0.75 m/s for an escalator with angle of inclination of up to 30° and must not exceed 0.5 m/s for an escalator with angle of inclination of more than 30° up to 35°. The most common nominal speed of commercial escalators at both 30 and 35 angles of inclination is 0.5 m/s and for infrastructure this is 0.5 and 0.65 m/s based on their utilization. Our recommended nominal speeds based on the project utilization is as the chart below:
| Utilization | Commercial | Infrastructure | ||||
| Small shopping mall | Medium shopping malls | Large shopping malls | Rail way station | Urban subway station | Airport | |
| Angle | 30 or 35 | 30 or 35 | 30 | 30 | 30 | 30 |
| Speed (m/s) | 0.5 | 0.5 | 0.65 | 0.65 | 0.65 | 0.5 |
Note: Escalator nominal speeds of more than 0.65 up to 0.75 m/s are not recommended due to dangers of tripping and falling.
The number of horizontal steps at both landings must change considering the nominal speed changes as the chart below.
| Elevation Height | Angle | Speed (m/s) | Horizontal Steps |
|
Elevation height ≤ 6 meter
| 35 or 30 | ≤0.5 | 2 |
| 30 | >0.5≤0.65 | 3 | |
| 30 | >0.65≤0.75 | 4 | |
|
Elevation height > 6 meter | 30 | ≤0.5 | 3 |
| 30 | >0.5≤0.65 | 3 | |
| 30 | >0.65≤0.75 | 4 |
Moving walk nominal speed
According to EN 115, the moving walk nominal speed must not exceed 0.75 m/s but If the width of the pallets does not exceed 1.10 meters and the pallets at the landings, before entering the combs, move horizontally for a length of at least 1,60 meters, deviating from 0.75 m/s up to 0,90 m/s speed is authorized .
For shopping mall moving walks, the common speed is 0.5m/s and the maximum recommended nominal speed is 0.65 m/s especially where baggage carts are used on the moving walk while for the infrastructure the common speed is 0.65 m/s.
Note: Moving walk nominal speeds of more than 0.75 up to 0.9 m/s are not recommended due to dangers of tripping and falling.
The horizontal distance which the pallets must run at both landings must change considering the nominal speed changes as the chart below.
| Elevation Height | Angle | Speed (m/s) | Horizontal Pallet Distance (mm) |
|
Not considered in EN 115
| 0 up to 6 | ≤0.75 | Not Required |
| 10 up to 12 | ≤0.75 | 400 | |
| 0 up to 12 | >0.75≤0.9 | 1600 |
Note: Unloaded escalator and moving walk speeds must not deviate by more than ± 5 % from the nominal speed at nominal frequency and nominal voltage.
Multi-speed with inverter option
The escalator can have the VVVF option and the inverter in this option can create different speeds in order to reduce the energy consumption. When there is low traffic on the device, the speed reduces to 40% of the nominal speed, which is called “Standby Mode”, and when nobody uses the escalator for a long time, the device stops which is called “Stop Mode”.
When operation is changed from standby mode or stop mode to the normal, the changes in speed must occur at suitable acceleration to prevent passenger fear and falling.
