So it turns out that escalator brushes are not there to clean your shoes. Check out the scary reason why they're fitted on all escalators in the video below:
As Buddy the Elf would testify, escalators can be quite dangerous if you've never been on one.
Advert
Personally, I once fell face first on one of those stationary, flat ones and had to get five stitches in my chin.
As an eight-year-old, Disney Land is supposed to be the happiest place in the world. Not for me it wasn't.
Anyway, those weird black nylon bristles are present in pretty much every single escalator you'll ever walk on and there's a good reason why.
The bristles act as a safety feature - which won't stop you from falling on a flat escalator by running aimlessly as a child in Disney Land - but will help stop other accidents from happening.
Advert
Known simply as 'safety brushes' - they are there to keep things like your shoes and clothing from getting caught between the moving stairs and the balustrade skirt.
If they weren't there, there would be a high chance of your clothes getting stuck in the moving escalator, which doesn't sound very nice to be fair.
Yet the brushes themselves are actually more of a psychological deterrent rather than a physical one.
When the passenger feels a brush moving against their leg or clothing they will instinctively move it away preventing it from getting snagged on the escalator.
TikTok account 'Untold Facts' also clarified why the bristles are so important, adding: "One of the biggest reasons for escalator mishaps is people getting their clothes and bags stuck in them when they stand too close to the sides."
Advert
One viewer commented: "I got my floor length dress caught in an escalator and it left oil/grease stains on it that I could never remove."
"Only recently my hubby helped a lady who got her skirt stuck on the escalator," another added.
As a third commented: "Escalators scare the s**t out of me to this day.
"My kids laugh at me because i take the stairs to this day!"
Skirt deflectors were not made mandatory until the amendment A2 in 2004.
Advert
According to British and European standard BS EN115-1:1995, the requirement of fitting the ‘skirt deflectors’ or ‘escalator brushes’ reduces the likelihood of getting stuck by lessening the likelihood of items entering the gap between the steps and skirt by obstruction.
It also deflects loose clothing away from the hazard to reduce the likelihood of entrapment.
Featured Image Credit: AlamyTopics: News