TPA promotes escalator safety during Risk Awareness Week
Tampa International Airport’s Enterprise Risk Management and Safety team is launching a public safety initiative focused on a simple but important message: when you’re carrying multiple bags, pushing a stroller or otherwise loaded down, the elevator is often the safer choice.
The campaign is designed to remind travelers that escalators can become hazardous when guests are distracted or overloaded. Bags can shift, strollers can become difficult to control, and a momentary loss of balance can lead to a fall or cause luggage to slide down the escalator and injure someone else.
“Our mantra is, if they’ve got wheels, you should probably be using the elevator instead of the escalator,” said Chris Reyes, Senior Manager of Risk and Insurance at Tampa International Airport. “We just want our guests to be safe.”
Reyes said the effort builds on a successful safety campaign from last year where Airport guests were warned not to take their pets on escalators which can lead to accidental falls for humans and injured paws for their furry friends.
The initiative is a multi-pronged effort that includes safety signage, overhead announcements and guest experience volunteers positioned near escalators to help direct travelers with luggage or strollers to elevators.
The campaign also includes a Public Service Announcement produced to alert everyone of the potential risks.
“The issue isn’t just your individual safety, it’s the safety of others,” Reyes said. “You may be able to get on and feel strong and confident, but if something happens and that luggage goes flying down the escalator, it can hurt someone else.”
The campaign also emphasizes that elevators are not only safer in these situations, but just as convenient.
“We want the general public to know it’s just as fast and safe to use the elevators as it is the escalators,” Reyes said.
Ultimately, the goal of Risk Awareness Week is to strengthen TPA’s culture of safety and ensure every guest reaches their destination securely.
