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Concept
Moving walkway
Summary
A moving walkway, also known as an autowalk, moving pavement, moving sidewalk, people-mover, travolator, or travelator (British English), is a slow-moving conveyor mechanism that transports people across a horizontal or inclined plane over a short to medium distance. Moving walkways can be used by standing or walking on them. They are often installed in pairs, one for each direction.
The first moving walkway debuted at the World's Columbian Exposition of 1893, in Chicago, Illinois, in the United States as The Great Wharf Moving Sidewalk and was designed by architect Joseph Lyman Silsbee. It had two different divisions: one where passengers were seated, and one where riders could stand or walk. It ran in a loop down the length of a lakefront pier to a casino. Six years later a moving walkway was also presented to the public at the 1900 Exposition Universelle in Paris as the Rue de l'Avenir. The walkway consisted of three elevated platforms, the first was stationary, the second moved at a moderate speed, and the third at about . These demonstrations likely served as inspiration for some of H. G. Wells' settings mentioned in the "Science Fiction" section below.
The Beeler Organization, a New York City consulting firm, proposed a Continuous Transit System with Sub-Surface Moving Platforms for Atlanta in 1924, with a design roughly similar to the Paris Exposition system. The proposed drive system used a linear induction motor. The system was not constructed.
The first commercial moving walkway in the United States was installed in 1954 in Jersey City, New Jersey, inside the Hudson & Manhattan Railroad Erie station at the Pavonia Terminal. Named the "Speedwalk" and built by Goodyear, it was long and moved up a 10 percent grade at a speed of . The walkway was removed a few years later when traffic patterns at the station changed.
The first moving walkway in an airport was installed in 1958 at Love Field in Dallas, Texas. On January 1, 1960, Tina Marie Brandon, age 2, was killed on the moving sidewalk.
Official source
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