That was the basic logic of the "downsizing"/"outsourcing" thing going clear back into the 90s - to turn the informal human capital present in large corporations into cash, and stuff it into the pockets of management.

It was probably somebody's Harvard Business School PhD. thesis circa 1988.

So...Chuck...do YOU know how to make anything? Or are your baby-smooth, callous-free hands only fit for long-form bitchiness via a third-rate weekly tabloid?

Wow. Come on, man, the escalators themselves are fine. They are just the wrong escalators. Sound Transit simply bought cheap escalators -- ones not appropriate for the job. A simple search reveals the truth: https://www.kuow.org/stories/yes-light-rail-station-escalators-do-break-lot-here-s-why/.

American manufacturing is very much underrated. Spreading bullshit in this way is not only unprofessional, but it plays right into the hands of Republicans, who are quick to blame unions, public schools, or the ivory tower universities. The truth is, in this case, a public agency -- left wing folks, no less -- just fucked up.

It was by no means their worst fuck up, and by no means that bad, really. Yes, it sucks that the escalators break down, but eventually they will replace them with better escalators. It was a simple "penny wise, pound foolish" act -- one often taking by those same critical penny pinching Republicans. But the problems with ST transcend the usual left-right divide. They simply ignored proper practices when it comes to designing a subway. Link is neither too progressive, nor too reactionary, it is just poorly designed. To be clear, they did make a handful of rather obvious improvements (you really can't fuck up UW to downtown too much) but time after time, they've managed to miss once in a lifetime opportunities (like a First Hill station). There are worse mistakes (of course) but not one of them was made with malice or greed (so far as we know). Just your basic incompetence.

How about just have stairs? God forbid people have to walk up and down stairs. The NYC subway system works with stairs. STAIRS. People actually have to exercise!!! Oh the horror. The only escalators (and they're monumental in size) that the Port Authority oversees are those in Penn Station, Port Authority bus station, and PATH stations (the most extreme in size and scope at the World Trade Center stop). And next to all of those escalators? STAIRS.

@2

"I don't see YOU doing it! Why don't you just go into your garage and invent something and quit complaining!", said every dumbshit 'Murican bootlick ever.

For a night or two I had a morbid YouTube fascination with watching people fall through, and sometimes be ground up beneath, the panels of generally Chinese escalators.

6, this is an argument that I made readily that was generally lauded in conversations overseas, when one lily prick was mad at me for being born and everyone else was just trying to learn, share, and have a good time.

I want you to begin listing inventions credited to non-Americans after the advent of the Industrial Revolution.

We (Americans) are still too comfortable to react to many of the stressors. If the shit really hits the fan and we begin feeling an existential threat there will be inventiveness everywhere.

Myself, I’ll skim money and loot foreign banks ;)

Also I hope the government doesn’t come back and the people steer the ship.

~

Everything @3 said. Also, according to this industry website, American escalator manufacturer Otis is the best in the world.
https://gineersnow.com/industries/worlds-best-escalator-and-elevator-companies

Any good design should provide stairs in tandem with escalators. It's insane that the station did not, or that code even allows for such a design.

@2 @6

True enough, but you have to admit that Marxist-Leninist elites who have never lifted a hammer are remarkably quick to criticize the Trades.

Then again, I suppose the Political Officer's job is to monitor commitment to the revolution, not to run the factory.

Perhaps agencies like Sound Transit should be able to acquire the best value components regardless of where they are manufactured.

Comrade Charles would remedy this situation quickly, if only he could get his hands on the levers of power.

I do have to admit that the men in that picture are much better suited to appearing in my own personal porn video than any other line of work.

Apple never completed that line of thought. Once upon a time, all kinds of PCs were manufactured in the US. Apple could have nurtured that capability but deliberately chose to cast off American workers in favor of overseas manufacturers. The reason that expertise went away is because Apple (among many others) deliberately destroyed it.

Erm, the escalators were designed and made by a European company.

Thirty seconds on google would have revealed this, Charles. Jesus fucking Christ.

+1 to @3,5,7,8,9, & Charles -- Why the fuck are there even stations with ONLY ESCALATORS, and NO stairs? Boggles the mind. Bad enough that we have to retrofit the entire damn city for light rail (and 30 years too late), but give us our last chance to do it right the first time and we fuck that up too.

smh

At least Charles admits his his “work” here consists entirely of repeating barstool gossip, with (as noted above) no actual research of any kind.

(I still recall my first trip through UW Station, and wondering why I couldn’t find the stairs.)

@5 and everyone else advocating for stairs only, It's because moms with strollers, handicapped people in wheelchairs, people on crutches, the elderly, and anyone with mobility issues needs elevators and escalators not as a luxury but a necessary part of life. The ADA requires it.
Now, obviously there should be stairs too. No brainer there and a gigantic failure on the station designers part, but we need to be considerate of everyone and build stations that accommodate all of our neighbors.
BTW, NYC Metro gets around the ADA requirement by having a van service for the handicapped. But, the issues (among many) is that it sucks because of traffic, scheduling, inconvenience, cost, carbon footprint, and general mismanagement, poor service, and even outright criminality like drivers assaulting handicapped passengers.

@18: With the exception of our house nut-case @5, everyone here is wondering why we built stations where stairs are not even an option. Compared to escalators and elevators, stairs are inexpensive to build, operate, clean, and maintain. Stairs also allow everyone with standard bipedal mobility to get the heck out of the way of persons who need to use escalators and elevators. (Every time I have used UW Station, I have pushed a stroller through it. I was looking for the stairs in case the evacuation alarm sounded, at which time I would have to remove my child from the stroller and carry him up those stairs.)

@15 Yes, and the trains were also sourced from overseas. That doesn’t fit with Charles’ narrative, however (he seems to think all transit projects are subject to US build requirements like a Jones Act compliant ship or something).

Facts don’t matter to Charles.

@10 then again, comparing Charles to MLs and political commissars has got to tell us more about you than about Charles.

@18 I am disabled. Disabled people (those with mobility disabilities) and Moms with strollers can't take escalators. I am not advocating for stairs only. And NYC lags centuries behind with available elevators for the disabled. STAIRS however, don't break down and are a a financially sound plan when creating public transportation for the majority, which are able bodied (and trust me, even with the ADA, now nearly 30 years old, this country has not even bothered to come close to making this country accessible). New buildings are built every day and they don't meet requirements. And to make matters worse, the Trump administration has now made it the responsibility of the disabled to enforce federal law by requiring they write a letter to the offender and all the offender has to do is respond with a statement (within 6 months) that they are working on it. What other federal law requires the person protected by said law to enforce it? (I'll give you a hint, NO OTHER LAW).

Paratransit is not a "work around" the ADA law. Paratransit is PART of the ADA and is a requirement of any town or city or county that has public transportation. The ADA stipulates that they must provide equal access to public transportation. And yet it's not equal. It is terrible (I had to use paratransit for 8 years and and when visiting Seattle I used it) and it is more expensive (cost wise per ride). I don't need to be schooled on any of this, thanks.

Urban planning of these light rail stations with NO STAIRS was one of the stupidest mistakes made and the people responsible for approving the plans should have to answer to why they allowed it.

@21

Fair enough, but now it's your turn-- the fact that you jump to the defense of the Political Officer tells us quite a bit more about you than about the critic of the Commisar, doesn't it?