Waverley Princes Street escalators. Time for serious action?

[Blindtraveler]

It's over a decade since these opened and they have been absolute rubbish since day one. Frequent breakdowns and failures and at least one lot of major repairs requiring hoardings and and lots of bits being stripped down at cetera. Here we are in 2023 and at least two have been long-term off for several weeks. Granted we've had Christmas and and as has been talked about in another thread earlier today de-ale lot of the spare parts for these are probably made in countries that have gone into lockdown for prolonged periods as soon as somebody so much as sniffs or even stand too long next to the Kleenex in the chemist. But notwithstanding any of this, is it not time I'm these awful machines were simply condemned and replaced with more robust equipment which we know is out there, look at the London underground as a prime example of a super hard-wearing machine that just keeps going with regular maintenance

The frequent outages put a note in considerable strain on the the 2 passenger lifts from station to street which are already inadequate at busy times especially high peak tourist and festival season.

 

[InOban]

Do the escalators belong to NR? I suspect not. I can't remember who funded them.

 

[Peter Mugridge]

Do the escalators belong to NR? I suspect not. I can't remember who funded them.

I think it was the local council wasn't it?

If I'm thinking of the right ones... at the Waverley Steps?

 

[Scotrail314209]

It's over a decade since these opened and they have been absolute rubbish since day one. Frequent breakdowns and failures and at least one lot of major repairs requiring hoardings and and lots of bits being stripped down at cetera. Here we are in 2023 and at least two have been long-term off for several weeks. Granted we've had Christmas and and as has been talked about in another thread earlier today de-ale lot of the spare parts for these are probably made in countries that have gone into lockdown for prolonged periods as soon as somebody so much as sniffs or even stand too long next to the Kleenex in the chemist. But notwithstanding any of this, is it not time I'm these awful machines were simply condemned and replaced with more robust equipment which we know is out there, look at the London underground as a prime example of a super hard-wearing machine that just keeps going with regular maintenance

The frequent outages put a note in considerable strain on the the 2 passenger lifts from station to street which are already inadequate at busy times especially high peak tourist and festival season.

Thank you! They are absolutely horrendous things… though it does make for a fun game of: “What escalator will be broken today?”

 

[Alanko]

Use the stairs?

 

[Blindtraveler]

The majority of the money came from network Rail and they also awarded the tender and project managed. The council in fact is about as much as they could to be objectionable particularly where the heritage listed status of some of the area was concerned. Whilst they put up some funding and it was nothing compared to what the railway paid out

 

[scotrail158713]

Use the stairs?

Could do. The escalators can be useful if you've got a suitcase though.

 

[Blindtraveler]

Other fault with that logic is that since the installation of escalators the stairs and how narrower and it gets very very congested very quickly if two or more escalators out of the 6 in total, 3 up 3 down out of service

 

[38Cto15E]

I'll be using the steps/escalators next week, but I am in my late 70's and would prefer the latter, also I will have a small suitcase.
I understand that the lift from the platforms to the Balmoral Hotel is no longer in use.

 

[neil henderson]

I'll be using the steps/escalators next week, but I am in my late 70's and would prefer the latter, also I will have a small suitcase.
I understand that the lift from the platforms to the Balmoral Hotel is no longer in use.

There are two lifts next to the Waverley steps that takes you up to Princes Street, great views from them too.

 

[Blindtraveler]

Yes indeed, although as mentioned in the opening post at busy times these can also prove completely inadequate however despite Edinburgh's obsession with year-round tourism I don't think we can on-call the last full week of January a busy time. Enjoy your visit

 

[lachlan]

Could do. The escalators can be useful if you've got a suitcase though.

Don't say that in front of Network Rail

Does the planned Waverley rebuild eliminate these stairs/escalators?

 

[scotrail158713]

The other issue with the steps is few people, in my experience, observe the "keep left" signs which can lead to hold ups as people try to pass each other

 

[InOban]

Aren't there also escalators inside the shopping centre?

 

[Blindtraveler]

There are escalators inside the centre but not a practical solution for rail passengers. My understanding of the proposed rebuild is is that these would still be needed and I also suspect that this rebuild is is highly unlikely to happen in the the the current climate or any time soon as not only is it wildly unnecessary but the heritage and preservation bodies are going to make so much noise about it that it will be clearly audible in Penzance

With this in mind I think it's high time that at they simply got on with it and and and as soon as possible. If you started as soon as the Hogmanay crap is finished and put in a complete closure of the steps like was done before they could be finished by the time the tourists came back at Easter

 

[InOban]

The tourists never go away. 6 nations rugby coming up.

 

[Alanko]

The other issue with the steps is few people, in my experience, observe the "keep left" signs which can lead to hold ups as people try to pass each other

I've walked straight through those people on occasion if taking the stairs up and out of Waverley. No point in niceties.

 

[Russel]

I was in Edinburgh in October, I was shocked to find all of the escalators were actually working!

 

[Class 170101]

The escalators are outside and thus all that nature can throw at them. As such they never seem to survive the outdoors in my limited experience. just outside Southend Victoria had them too and they frequently weren't working.

 

[Russel]

The escalators are outside and thus all that nature can throw at them. As such they never seem to survive the outdoors in my limited experience. just outside Southend Victoria had them too and they frequently weren't working.

They aren't outside, they are under cover, so that's a poor excuse.

The only two that are close to the elements are the top two as they are close to the street level entrance.

 

[Parallel]

I used Edinburgh Waverley yesterday and 4 of the 6 escalators were broken.

 

[38Cto15E]

I have waited 45 years but I am finally going to stay the Balmoral Hotel this week. After arriving at Waverley behind 47421 on Saturday 20th May 1978 and not being able to afford the £42 for a night's stay I have been saving my shillings and taken advantage of the hotels winter offer.
Of course it was the North British Hotel back in the day, and as I seem to remember, there were no escalators, just the Waverley steps to get up to Princes Street.

 

[och aye]

I have waited 45 years but I am finally going to stay the Balmoral Hotel this week. After arriving at Waverley behind 47421 on Saturday 20th May 1978 and not being able to afford the £42 for a night's stay I have been saving my shillings and taken advantage of the hotels winter offer.
Of course it was the North British Hotel back in the day, and as I seem to remember, there were no escalators, just the Waverley steps to get up to Princes Street.

Enjoy your stay, especially in the SCOTCH bar if you enjoy a dram of the Water of Life.

The escalators are only a fairly recent addition (given the age of how long the steps have been there). I'm pretty sure once upon a time the hotel had a direct entrance to the station like Glasgow Central does.

 

[Hagbard Celine]

I very rarely had any reason to use the Waverley steps or the escalators until the Borders railway opened in 2015. I can't say I've really noticed them being out of order that often, although I usually use the steps anyway because it's quicker and I like the exercise.

Today one of the six was out of order (the top flight going downwards). Last time I was there, the Monday before Christmas, they were all out of order.

 

[FlybeDash8Q400]

Now I can’t dispute how much of a pain these escalators can be. However I’d say poor reliability only makes up for around 50% of the times they’re switched off. Youths hanging around McDonald’s/Subway are constantly pressing the emergency stop buttons which is another big problem.

Another problem is that they are three separate slow escalators rather than one decent paced long one. It is always considerably quicker to walk up the stairs, even if you have luggage.

The whole design in hindsight was badly thought out, and in my view they should look to reverting it back to stairs completely with large Tube style lifts from the concourse to Waverley Steps taking their place.

Here’s hoping the planned lifts from the concourse directly up to North Bridge eventually get built as well.

They aren't outside, they are under cover, so that's a poor excuse.

The only two that are close to the elements are the top two as they are close to the street level entrance.

They are as good as outside. They are only mostly covered by a glass canopy which has gaps at either side. So if it rains or is windy, you can be sure those conditions will be felt on Waverley Steps.

 

[Blindtraveler]

I think that tube style gigantic high-capacity lifts travelled at a decent speed were considered as part of this project but there simply was not the the facility to do so without losing the the existing staircase which there was a strong desire from a number of parties to retain. The lifts to northbridge will be an absolute bonus especially for bus passengers when and if they are built. I suspect that it's one of those projects that will get quiet they cancelled in the face of the current to financial constraints

 

[eoff]

I have waited 45 years but I am finally going to stay the Balmoral Hotel this week. After arriving at Waverley behind 47421 on Saturday 20th May 1978 and not being able to afford the £42 for a night's stay I have been saving my shillings and taken advantage of the hotels winter offer.
Of course it was the North British Hotel back in the day, and as I seem to remember, there were no escalators, just the Waverley steps to get up to Princes Street.

Or the passenger stairs (and I think lift) from the central building up to a walkway that goes directly into the hotel. This is not longer accessible

As for the escalators, they rarely all work, there are too many (so you have intermediate gaps) and they are I think the slowest I have ever experienced.
When they both work the lifts that take you to the top of Waverley Market (I know it got a new name) are a good option, if you notice them.

 

[Taunton]

The escalators are outside and thus all that nature can throw at them. As such they never seem to survive the outdoors in my limited experience. just outside Southend Victoria had them too and they frequently weren't working.

Escalator manufacturers are quite able to supply weatherproof units, there are some around. Trouble is they are more expensive, and the procurement process cannot get out of the habit of going for the cheapest quote.

 

[ian1944]

Good luck if you expect a repair/rebuild to be finished any time soon, considering the years (decades?) the nearby North Bridge is taking. Not that they're connected (in any sense), it's just that my current expectation of any building work in the city is vanishingly low. I always use the stairs up and down as I still can, and will continue while I can beat the up escalator without getting out of breath.

 

[CyrusWuff]

Escalator manufacturers are quite able to supply weatherproof units, there are some around. Trouble is they are more expensive, and the procurement process cannot get out of the habit of going for the cheapest quote.

Escalator (and lift) manufacturers are, of course, also able to supply heavy duty machines that will quite happily run 20 hours a day for years. Just ask London Underground.

I would assume this also comes at a premium, however.