How many escalators are there in the Magic Valley and in Idaho and where are they?
At this time, according to Department of Building Safety records, there are no escalators in the Magic Valley. Forty-four escalators are active in the state of Idaho , the majority at Boise Towne Square Mall and the Boise Airport said Gary Barnes, Elevator Program Supervisor for the Division of Building Safety.
At the mall there are four sets in the common area and most of the anchor stores have multiple sets. Dillard’s has six escalators in one store. There are three sets of escalators at the airport.
In Wyoming there are actually only two escalators, and both are in banks in Casper.
Escalators have the capacity to efficiently transport large numbers of pedestrians or goods between floors, and they can be installed in the same physical space as a staircase. Benefits also include: no waiting interval (except during very heavy traffic), used to guide people toward main exits or special exhibits, and they can be weatherproofed for outdoor use. A nonfunctioning escalator can still function as a normal staircase. Other conveyances such as elevators become useless when they break down.
Elevators, however, are in abundance. There are roughly 320 elevators in the Magic Valley and Sun Valley. Elevators are often a legal requirement in new multistory buildings because of wheelchair access laws, especially where wheelchair ramps would be impractical.
According to the National Elevator Industry, Inc. there are approximately 900,000 elevators and almost 35,000 escalators in the U.S. alone.
“Idaho Division of Building Safety requires permits for elevators and escalators for our state. The city of Twin Falls would require a building permit if one were to be installed in our jurisdiction. We would need to look at exiting, path of egress travel, and other similar life safety requirements, inclusive with the state requirement for the mechanical portion of the escalator,” said Dwaine Thomson, city of Twin Falls Building Official.
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