TOKYO >> Ahead of the 2020 Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games, campaigns are underway to encourage people to stand on both sides of an escalator instead of the current custom of standing to one side.

The campaigns recommend the side-by-side approach, emphasizing safety. However, the current custom of leaving one side open for people in a hurry has become deep-rooted in various places around the globe, and change will likely take time.

In the Roppongi Hills complex of Minato Ward, Tokyo, a campaign kicked off July 22, soon after the start of the school summer break, encouraging people to adapt to the new way of riding escalators.

On the first day of the campaign, aimed at groups of parents and children, an 11-year-old girl from Nakano Ward, Tokyo, said, “Whenever people carrying big bags pass me on an escalator, I worry that they might bump into me. I think etiquette is important.”

Leaving space on one side of the escalator is a common custom across Japan, but which side depends on the region. In Tokyo, people vacate the right side of the steps, while in Osaka, it’s the left side.

But people with physical disabilities, and some elderly people say that they are unable to hold the handrail on only one side of an escalator. The new etiquette would boost safety for these riders in particular.

According to the Japan Elevator Association, in 2008 and 2009, 674 escalator accidents were caused by the way people rode them. The total number in 2013 and 2014 rose to 882.

The association recommends holding onto handrails and standing still while riding escalators.

Revisiting the custom of standing to one side addresses more than safety. There’s also the matter of efficiency. During rush hour in big cities, it’s common to see people forming long lines as they wait to ride an escalator.

Train service operators across the nation are re-examining the longtime custom from the aspects of both safety and transportation efficiency, and have made efforts to encourage people to stand side by side on escalators.