Why are the elevators and escalators over the Strip Out of Service?

Why are the elevators and escalators up and down the Strip always out of service?

On the Strip are 23 elevators and 48 escalators that ferry walkers and those in wheelchairs and mobility scooters on and off the pedestrian overpasses that traverse the Las Vegas Strip. Maintaining more than 70 conveyances is a big job under any circumstances, but the circumstances on the Strip are often extenuating.

First, they’re outside, so they’re susceptible to weather conditions, as well as debris and detritus, rubble and rubbish, that often accumulate in the guts of the machines.

Second, they get almost continuous use, so breakdowns aren’t uncommon, nor is vandalism. In addition, failsafe sensors, switches, and mechanisms disable the conveyances if they’re abused in any way, which they are, anywhere between occasionally and often. For example, the Off/Out of Service switches are accessible to the public, some of whom shut them down for sport.

And third, most are serviced by the county, which has a lot of other maintenance issues to deal with; the county encompasses 8,000 square miles, making it larger than six U.S. states (slightly larger than Massachusetts). Still, the county has a rigorous schedule for keeping the conveyances running: Routine maintenance on all elevators and escalators under county jurisdiction is scheduled once a month and extensive cleaning, repair, and refurbishing happens once a year. In the meantime, on-call repair crews are dispatched regularly to get broken-down machines up and running again.

All that adds up to at least one escalator and/or elevator being unusable at any given time on the Strip -- and often many more. But if it’s any consolation, the county says it tries very hard not to have an elevator paired with an escalator both down at the same time. It might not help mobility-challenged people if the elevator is down and not the escalator, but that’s the price some folks have to pay for the convenience of pedestrian walkways over the Strip.

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CLIFFORD Nov-14-2020

GREAT

ANSWER....NICE JOB

VegasVic Nov-14-2020

Why?

"the Off/Out of Service switches are accessible to the public"

Dave Nov-14-2020

Up / Down

Great answer, and I applaud your overlooking the questioner’s use of the word “always”.

But when an up escalator is out of service, why can’t they change the down escalator to go up? 

After all, it’s a lot easier to use the stairs when going down than it is going up. And changing the direction of an escalator is as simple as waiting till nobody’s on it, then hitting a button.

Hoppy Nov-14-2020

Re Dave

You make far too much sense

kennethross Nov-14-2020

“Debris and detritus,

 rubble and rubbish”
Excellent.

rokgpsman Nov-14-2020

Alt reason

I thought they shutdown the escalators now and then to help us pudgy tourists get some exercise by taking the stairs.

KennyA Nov-14-2020

on off switches

Vic they are most likely accessible to the public for emergency stops. Too dangerous to not be available, possibly insurance reasons or reduced liability.

That Don Guy Nov-14-2020

re: Why?

My guess as to why "the Off/Out of Service switches are accessible to the public" is, just in case somebody gets something caught in one; someone else can shut it down before the person gets dragged into the machinery or has part of their body's bloodflow cut off. It's sort of like asking, "Why do passenger cars on trains/subways have emergency brake handles that anyone can pull?"

Jim Veith Nov-14-2020

Shut Off Switches

One time, I was returning to Milwaukee and going down an escalator to baggage return.  Someone somehow fell at the bottom.  If it wasn't so dangerous, it was almost comical as the escalator continued to pile up folks and their luggage at the bottom with no where to go except on top of the earlier passengers.  Finally someone hit the off switch and everyone was able to get up and exit the area.  I can't imagine how much worse it could have been without an alert person coming to our rescue.

Nov-14-2020

Intentional pun?

Did anyone else notice that instead of writing "all along the Strip", the question-poser wrote "UP AND DOWN the Strip"?  [The upper-casing is my doing.]

Boomer 55 Nov-16-2020

Elevator repairman blames. . .

About 10 days ago as we finished crossing an elevated walkway at Flamingo and approached the elevator, we saw the repairman step out of the door and put up the yellow Out Of Order sign. I wheeled up to the sign in my motorized scooter, and asked, "What am I supposed to do?" Missing a leg doesn't shut me up.  The workman took a look and just went OFF, on a loud rant about the drunks and punks on scooters keeping him busy 24-7, breaking unbreakable glass, bending doors, busting up his babies.  It took me a moment to realize it was his way of empathizing with me and venting about the same jerks who have made it more difficult and expensive in October 2020 than it was October 2019 for the handicapped to rent a scooter in Vegas.  Many LV properties this year charge scooter rental companies to deliver on their property: cost is passed on to the customer.  Preferring to feed that $100 to a sports book, I waited and took delivery in the street on crutches. Wife said I needed a VFW hat n cup.

Question of the Day - 14 November 2020

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