Security, Immigration & Border Control
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Birmingham Aviation
Well-Known Member
One of my dad’s mates was round last night and he mentioned these points. As he was on holiday to Majorca
- queues started to form around 3am
- 3 lifts replaced the escalator
- Only 3-5 security desks
- Less security
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I will never get my head around why you would replace an escalator with a lift, I mean sure, yes add a couple of lifts but don't do away with the escalator. You can still walk up an escalator if it's broken, but you can't use a lift if that fails.
Otisblue
Active Member
This is taken from Birmingham Live a few days ago.........apparently escalators are really dangerous and a health and safety issue.....the guy is deluded and a distinct whiff of bs.....it also says more space will become available in 3 days which i assume is more of the security hall opening......3 lifts should be enough in normal operation ?????
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Birmingham Airport's chief executive Nick Barton took BirminghamLive around the airport on June 11 to update us on the terminal works, where we put the escalator question to him along with other worries from travellers over scenes of queue chaos.
Mr Barton revealed that the escalators were removed for health and safety reasons and that they won't be be returning. He explained the lifts, when they are able to operate at capacity, will work as the main way of transporting passengers upstairs to departures.
Birmingham Airport No liquids over 100ml sign. While waiting for a software issue to be resolved with the new scanners (that can scan up to two litres of liquid), passengers arriving at the airport are being reminded to continue to limit liquids in their hand luggage to 100ml. This will then reduce the need for such long queues for security as have been recently seen. (Image: Birmingham Live)
Mr Barton said: "The escalators were really dangerous. We removed them because they were a health and safety issue. These lifts are huge, we only really need three of them to be working in the peak. When the ground space opens up people won't be queuing downstairs."
However, much-needed ground space is yet to be released, which is why holidaymakers encounter large snaking queues into the terminal at peak times, such as early mornings.
"More space [will be] released in three days' time which will give us more queueing space. The end game is that people won't be queueing [to get to the lifts]" said Mr Barton.
He added that passengers are made to queue outside to reduce panic and crowding inside. "It is much nicer to to queue outside as much as we regret the perception that this has on the passengers."
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TM3..........not been through new security yet, but i believe that it is 8 scanners..........trying to remember the lane numbers in old security and I think 14 was the highest, so 14 scanners...
Birmingham Aviation
Well-Known Member
August will be fun
TM3
Active Member
Totally agree, when you hear someone blaming health and safety you know they have run out of ideas, surprised he didn't say GDPR or Brexit.
At the risk of stating the obvious, hasn't the capacity actually decreased by 40%?
To put it another way the new scanners would have to be 75% quicker just to match the capacity in the old security hall.
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GliderPilot
Well-Known Member
It is interesting to see Escalators being highlighted as a health and safety issue, looking forward to seeing them removed from nearly every bit of public infrastructure worldwide as soon as possible with them being so hazardous, especially those ones that are used mainly in airports to make long walkways in terminals easier and quicker, why take the risk!!!—the phrase clutching at straws springs to mind, again terrible PR management, just looks desperate.
Perhaps it's just the people of the English Midlands that struggle to use escalators and create such a health and safety risk?! I wish the media outlets would give him more of a grilling, like follow up questions about every other piece of public infrastructure in the UK and the world coping with such dangerous escalators.
Clutching and straws and failing to accept any responsibility. Textbook for very highly paid execs or officials it seems these days.
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- #290
Escalators can be dangerous with high volumes of people especially if they loiter or congregate at the top but the same could be said at shopping malls but they seem to manage alright. I'm fairly sure BRS airport manages alright and passengers there are directed up an escalator to go to security.
GliderPilot
Well-Known Member
Whilst i agree with the sentiment that it can be dangerous with people loitering, the london underground copes fine and thats with people being pushed straight onto a very dangerous platform with trains approaching at high speed and many other tangible actual risks, other major transport types use them extensively also. just requires effective management of the flow of people. as the queues are quite literally out the front door at BHX and spilling into the very expensive drop off car park, footfall management is showing to not be the airports area of expertise
G-MANS
Member
- Mar 1, 2014
- 34
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Travelled through at 14.00 today - it was busy with queues back to the lifts. I didn't see downstairs but assume not bad. Probably 20-30 mins max although i tried out fast track and was through in just a few minutes. I think 8 scanners were in use.
I'd say they're making good revenue from fast track at £5 a go based on the numbers.
Nothing like the 5am mayhem generated by the first wave departures. Based on social media it seems the mayhem is gone by 9am.
The lifts do generate "waves" of people rushing towards the boarding pass scanners causing lots of shouting from stressed staff about where to go.
Airside very busy but it's June and i expect lots of people arriving 3 hours ahead.
One positive is the new hall is a big improvement. Lots more space before after and around the scanners, high ceilings, lots of light.
There's actually so much room a new escalator or two could easily have been accommodated... So the "lack of space" and "health and safety" excuses are just that.
The air rail and lift layout is a fiasco with crowds of people coming off the air rail trying to get around the tensa barriers to the boarding pass scanner clashing head on with people coming up the lift going to the air rail...
I'd say they're making good revenue from fast track at £5 a go based on the numbers.
Nothing like the 5am mayhem generated by the first wave departures. Based on social media it seems the mayhem is gone by 9am.
The lifts do generate "waves" of people rushing towards the boarding pass scanners causing lots of shouting from stressed staff about where to go.
Airside very busy but it's June and i expect lots of people arriving 3 hours ahead.
One positive is the new hall is a big improvement. Lots more space before after and around the scanners, high ceilings, lots of light.
There's actually so much room a new escalator or two could easily have been accommodated... So the "lack of space" and "health and safety" excuses are just that.
The air rail and lift layout is a fiasco with crowds of people coming off the air rail trying to get around the tensa barriers to the boarding pass scanner clashing head on with people coming up the lift going to the air rail...
rollo
Elite-Member
- Aug 26, 2014
- 2,616
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Arrived back yesterday just after mid day and border control etc absolutely fine through the airport in 20 minutes or so no issues at all.
Couple of observations on passing through.
Where the bus drops you from the remotes there was a working non dangerous escalator to take you and your luggage up to the first level before you reach the permanent non working and taped off dangerous one to go down the stairs into border control
Also noticed in the week we have been away the tented area outside has been extended to pretty much the whole length of the old Eurohub got a feeling its going to be a feature longer than the airport are admitting.
Couple of observations on passing through.
Where the bus drops you from the remotes there was a working non dangerous escalator to take you and your luggage up to the first level before you reach the permanent non working and taped off dangerous one to go down the stairs into border control
Also noticed in the week we have been away the tented area outside has been extended to pretty much the whole length of the old Eurohub got a feeling its going to be a feature longer than the airport are admitting.
This article on business desk site, additional areas and staff to dispose of extra liquids generated due to the latest changes to help the flow through security !!
Birmingham Airport brings in extra measures as staff throw out 1.5 tonnes of excess liquids and gels a day | TheBusinessDesk.com
Scores of photos and videos showing the chaos at the airport have been shared on social media over the last month
www.thebusinessdesk.com
Yes, exactly. Moreover, those people need somewhere to go - if they cant get them in to security quickly enough the queue gets back to the escalator and the whole thing falls over. The only way then is to turn the escalator off.
This is exactly why the escalator in arrivals isnt ever on, imo.
At a shopping mall, the queue is invariably to get ON the escalator, not off it. When they get off, they go into a shop etc. They dont stand around in a queue to get to the next place they want to go.
It all depends on how much space there is at the 'off' end of an escalator - something which is a premium at BHX.
No it doesnt!!!
At Euston, escalators are closed virtually daily (many times daily pre-Covid) because the queue from the platforms extends all the way back to the bottom of the escalators down to the Northern/Victoria lines. At that stage, the escalators need to be turned off (or, more accurately, the route is blocked for a period of time to create space). And that consequently means the access to the station needs to be blocked from the plaza so as not to create a crush.
Take a look at some of the newer stations (e.g Canary Wharf) on the LU estate and you'll immediately notice how MUCH room there is at the platform end of the escalators. We dont have that at BHX to cope with the number of passengers in peak periods - and no amount of (sensible) building work will get us even remotely close.
Lets also not forget that the e-gates access into the security area are in the space almost exactly where the escalators were previously. Where would you propose the e-gates to go if the escalators could've remained, short of removing the Air Rail Link?
Yes, same (at 2pm). Plane door to home (in Solihull) in 45 minutes. There appeared a 10 minute queue up to the e-gates upstairs, with a small queue downstairs awaiting the lifts (minutes, at most), which didnt extend beyond the little holding area they have created.
Also, and importantly i think, there is a small area thats been opened up by the removal of a wall creating space for 1) passengers arriving downstairs to get out of the area and 2) passengers trying to get to the train station to move past the queue, which although small was a noticeable improvement. My understanding is that the wall to the left of the lifts (as you face the lifts) will, soon, all be gone at which point there will be space galore.
TM3
Active Member
Escalators are used extensively in airports all around the world without problem.
If there is an issue here it's caused by a bottleneck in the building design not allowing enough passengers to travel through the aperture into the arrivals hall. As long as there is enough clear space at the foot of the escalator it shouldn't create any issue.
I can't remember ever entering the arrivals security area and seeing in anywhere near full, but because of the queuing system large areas are often never used.
If anything the queuing problem as I see it outside the inbound security is exacerbated by turning the escalator off as fewer passengers can get into the hall via with one method alone.
I always thought it was broken which TBH does not create a great impression of the airport on arrival.
If this is indeed the reason for that escalator being deactived I think there is better solution to the problem that can be achieved by changing the routing of passengers at the bottom of the stairs such that they do not have to turn right and >>>> walk in front of the bottom of the escalator to enter the e-gate queue which now the largest.
If there is an issue here it's caused by a bottleneck in the building design not allowing enough passengers to travel through the aperture into the arrivals hall. As long as there is enough clear space at the foot of the escalator it shouldn't create any issue.
I can't remember ever entering the arrivals security area and seeing in anywhere near full, but because of the queuing system large areas are often never used.
If anything the queuing problem as I see it outside the inbound security is exacerbated by turning the escalator off as fewer passengers can get into the hall via with one method alone.
I always thought it was broken which TBH does not create a great impression of the airport on arrival.
If this is indeed the reason for that escalator being deactived I think there is better solution to the problem that can be achieved by changing the routing of passengers at the bottom of the stairs such that they do not have to turn right and >>>> walk in front of the bottom of the escalator to enter the e-gate queue which now the largest.
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Otisblue
Active Member
I think removing the escalators from where they were is actually a good thing as it provides more room for the check in area. They have had to extend the terminal to accommodate the new lifts and they could have extended it further to create more space for both check in and security on the 1st floor. In the extended area of the terminal, they could have had a mix of lifts and escalators to move between the floors. The airport are currently managing access to lifts during peak, so they could do the same for escalators if they were there as well.
As well as the obvious gripes over the queues, the next biggest gripe is the lifts and removal of the escalators. People are not objecting to lifts per se, but that this is the only option now available.
GliderPilot
Well-Known Member
Whilst I appreciate the points you've made Nibbles, what you've essentially said is that poorly placed escalators can still be effective when the flow of people is managed properly, or infrastructure can be built/modified to accommodate them better, which is the crux of my original point.
Calling them dangerous is an excuse, instead of managing the flow of people through them or ensuring the surrounding infrastructure can accommodate them properly. BHX is doing neither of these things. Trying to get the same number of people through a set of conventional lifts will not work.
They are used extensively in every form of public transport, safely and effectively, every day.
TM3
Active Member
Another factor I see that creates bottlenecks at arrivals is the way that passengers are bused to the terminal when they don't use a jetbridge.
The ground staff always wait until all the pax are on both of 2 buses before driving to the terminal, where if they filled the buses one at a time they could stage the arrival of passengers rather than have everyone arrive one go.
In an ideal world the first bus would be carry on only pax as checked baggage will typically still have to wait for luggage on the other side of security anyway.
The ground staff always wait until all the pax are on both of 2 buses before driving to the terminal, where if they filled the buses one at a time they could stage the arrival of passengers rather than have everyone arrive one go.
In an ideal world the first bus would be carry on only pax as checked baggage will typically still have to wait for luggage on the other side of security anyway.
Yes, they are. But they have the space for the number of people using them in a busy period to be able to disperse. An escalator will work perfectly well if there is sufficient space at the exit end of the escalator.
Well, i am guessing that is the reason, using logic and experience having worked on these type of projects in the past.
I agree completely that the layout of the arrivals hall (i.e. the queuing area) has a lot of area fenced off and hence being badly utilised. But during busy periods that area is needed (e.g. just after Emirates/Qatar/Saudia arrive). I guess they have found it easier just to leave it all in place rather than removing it then reinstalling every day.
Which means everyone has to get down into the hall, turn right, then do u-turn if UK/EU etc. (or delay everyone by not reading the signs, meaning the whole queue comes to a stop), then queue a bit to the e-gates. If the escalator was on, you'd have to have passengers standing at the top and not jumping on until the bottom was clear (or, more precisely, you'd have to have a staff member there). Once you are on, you are joining the gaggle of people at the bottom whether there is space or not, as is the person behind you, etc. etc.
My assumption is that with the number of people approaching arrivals from the International Pier who would use that escalator (or the stairs) vastly exceeds the number of people that can flow into the e-gate queue. So they turn it off for safety. It's partly the same reason why they havent used escalators at departures security (though the driver was creating space).
Ideally, the stairs would be located more centrally into that hall, with more dispersal space. But ultimately the hall isnt big enough to accommodate peak flow without these constraints.
I think there is a fair point here, that a reliance on lifts only could be a problem. But as i've tried to point out several times, its not finished yet. There is more and more space being created every day, a second phase of the project to follow (at some point in the future), two additional lifts to the east of the existing bank (near the Emirates desks) and two sets of stairs (probably as much as anything for safety purposes).
Again though, an escalator takes up a lot of space above and below. If there was an escalator, how would they manage it all when the queue upstairs is full, to avoid everyone using that rather than the lifts? They'd have to turn it off again, wouldnt they. This is probably why the stairs that do exist are slightly tricky to find (and are discouraged). It'd be good to have something other than just lifts, but there is only so much space and money to do it all.
Yes, IF you can manage the flow of people. But how would you propose to do that other than simply turning the escalators off (so they become a set of stairs) or by blocking access to the escalators, which would result in the same queue that we currently have for the lift. When you answer this question, remember that 'just create some more space' is not an option because of all of the other airport changes (e.g. duty free move).
A good video, showing an escalator system working well;
(i'm having a look to see if there is another video showing it all going to hell, but cant immediately find one).
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