Buggy on escalator

[CassandrasCastle]

is this a huge no no? I did it in John Lewis today because I couldn't be bothered walking all the way to the lifts, and the woman behind me told me to be careful 😬 I told her thanks for the advice, although may have been slightly sarcastic in tone. I've taken the buggy on escalators in the tube etc. as well

@Sirzy

how is it anyone else’s problem or business

Well until it goes wrong, which it can, and the pram is hurtling down the escalator towards them of course!

Exactly.

If you’ve ever been on an escalator that has come to a very abrupt stop you would not do this.

Far too dangerous with baby in, but if it saves a long walk to the lift I will take baby out and fold down buggy. I have quite a light buggy that I can carry one handed and a toddler who I can support on my hip with the other.

I wouldn't go down an escalator with baby in one hand and buggy in the other hand as I'd be afraid I'd trip if I didn't have a spare hand to hold the side. And a wriggly baby (which mine was) would have been more risk out of the buggy than strapped in it if held one-handed.

@Sprogonthetyne

Far too dangerous with baby in, but if it saves a long walk to the lift I will take baby out and fold down buggy. I have quite a light buggy that I can carry one handed and a toddler who I can support on my hip with the other.

My child was too squirmy to risk that!

@Messyplayallday

That is horrific. Truly terrifying, Angel tube station is the deepest underground tunnel I think.

There was a similar accident there about 8 years ago, with a pram falling. So perhaps it is not such a rare occurrence. In which case, it's terrible more is not done to make other options available & stop prams going on escalators there

I thought most escalators had signs saying no prams/buggys.

Obviously you shouldn't do it, and frankly it's very selfish to others, and baby!

I'm disabled, i don't need a lift most times, the times I use escalators I know I could get on/off in an emergency- if they stopped ect. The times when I don't trust my body/can't do it- I take the lift.... When with a baby unless strapped to me, it's always a lift. There's always some access even if it's people having to physically carry prams/wheelchairs (people in wheelchairs) which. Shit yes. Duh. No kidding. Welcome to 20+ years of disability :)

But if i were like someone else posted, and forced to walk down backwards and up again to keep with a momentum + not get crushed ... All because some selfish person got the pram wheel stuck on something it shouldn't be on... I would be headfirst down concussing myself and harming others in that scenario or worst case, baby strapped to me. Not forgetting actual person + other baby...

People may laugh and mock but that's a fair few stories posted on here of worst case scenarios caused by entitled parents with bloody prams not liking being inconvenienced slightly.

Think people.

I did it all the time on the tube. The other option was a child in my arms and holding the buggy with no hand left to hold onto the rail.
Providing the child is strapped in securely and you have the strength to have the full weight comfortably I’d do it. I didn’t though have a monster Pram, just an umbrella fold I could lift.
Going up you push to the step in front and stand right behind, down is trickier but you just need to bend your knees and tip it back a bit

I did do it where there wasn't another option.
When you go up, you push the buggy on first and you stand behind.
When coming down, you step on first and pull the buggy behind you.
I think it helps the fact that I am very tall so could hold it very easily without ever feeling unstable.
I felt far less safe on stairs.

I've done it. I can see why not & I can see why it's sometimes the easiest thing, anyway.

Festivemayo - my oldest was wriggley so wouldn't have risked it either, but my youngest is quite accommodating, and old enough to be put down and stand if needs be.

I don't think most people take their buggies on escalators when there are also lifts available. I would always have taken a lift if an option.

Personally I preferred stairs to an escalator. My buggy was light enough that I could carry it and baby up the stairs by myself and someone usually helped in any case. But large swathes of the underground only have escalator access, no stairs.

Personally I wouldn't. Even when travelling around London I either use tubes with a lift or I walk or use the bus. The only time I have taken a buggy on an escalator is when the buggy hasn't had a child in. It's not the worth the risk just in case

I saw a very young baby, not strapped in fall out of buggy and down escalator in a JL many years. The baby was padded out in a snowsuit so I hope it didn’t get injured but I don’t really know what happened afterwards and have never forgotten about it.

This isn't OK really. Your child could be seriously injured. Every escalator I've seen says no buggies allowed. The only ones I've seen where they are ok is in the massive tesco stores that have flat escalators that fit trolleys on.

* Is this another MN hypothetical catastrophising situation that never actually happens, like hotels catching fire if you leave a DC asleep in a room, or cars catching fire if you leave them strapped in while you pay for petrol..?

Evidently not in the least hypothetical, unfortunately.

YABU OP. You could injure your child or another person.

I was behind a buggy on an escalator up once when the mum got the wheel stuck as she was getting off. It caused chaos as a whole lot of us bunched up behind her with nowhere to go, having to step backwards down a moving escalator in order to not end up squashed. It could have been disastrous if there were children or elderly people with me. It's really not a good idea.
Same here. Was genuinely worried someone would topple over the side as they scrambled not to pile up due to the blockage at the top.

I did it, admittedly 20 years ago but nothing bad happened.
I just put the back wheels on with it tilted.

I have 3 children (all adults now), born in ‘76, ‘80 and ‘82. I never thought twice about taking a buggy on an escalator. Front wheels on going up, back wheels coming down. Always easy and felt absolutely safe. No issues, no one thought twice! YANBU

Maybe the lady advised you to be careful because she’s witnessed, or had a close call, buggy/escalator accident herself. But hey if it saves you a few steps it’s worth the risk right OP?

I still have flash backs to a buggy-escalator accident dh and I were involved in a few years ago. Woman with buggy going down an escalator. 3 people after her. Then us. As she got to the end the buggy somehow slid sideways and got jammed. The people in front of us tried to go back up. Dh took about 4 escalator steps in one go and yanked the buggy off the escalator. 1 of the 3 people immediately behind overbalanced and fell hitting his face on the edge of the step. There was complete pandemonium. Luckily a staff member was nearby and stopped the escalator.
Completely avoidable situation. I never get on one now if there is a buggy in front of me.

No, I wouldn’t take buggy on a escalator. There were 2 accidents in our local M&S involving escalator during last 5 years. There were small accidents when it’s stopped and no one was injured but still…accidents do happen.
I also wouldn’t go on a escalator behind (if going up) or in front ( if going down) someone who’s got a buggy. I was in quite a few situations in a public transport when people lost balance or transport stopped and their buggies/children/they themselves fall down on me. It’s not pleasant at all.

@mynameiscalypso

I think if you live in London and take the tube, you get used to carting a buggy around on an escalator and then it seems strange that every other non-tube escalator seems to ban them.

I would say that's only in the last few decades. People didn't take buggies on busses or tubes in London late eighties/early nineties (and if you did, they would have to be collapsible and you would collapse it first. On a bus there was literally no where to put it if you didn't collapse it immediately to stow behind the conductor.) Parents seemed to manage fine

Common on tube and I think it's fine there. Seem to remember sign saying lift over there (if there is one) or be v careful.

Suppose as not many have lifts that's that.

I think there has been a change in guidance due to accidents as other posters are describing.

10 years ago (where I lived) buggies on escalators were completely standard. No signage like there is now. You just had to carve out a bit of space and pay attention. I never had any trouble but obviously things have changed. I sympathise with having to wait in queues for lifts.