On Sat, 28 Apr 2007 14:53:33 +0100, John Rowland wrote:

Sorry, this is bonkers. The handrail is driven by a separate set of
drums so can run at any speed.

I understood that the speed was made slightly greater so that people
who hold on to the handrail don't fall backwards. If it was slightly
less (and it's hard to make it *exactly* the same) people might
unbalance themselves before they realize what's happening - leaning
forwards is more obvious and easier to correct in time.

But on a "down" escalator, falling forward is much more dangerous than
falling backwards.

Let me guess, when an escalator is set to "down", the handrail instead
moves slightly slower than the steps?