What cheeses me off

[cgichard]

What's the rule on those long moving walkways (travelators?) in airports?
Or does it depend on what country you're in?

 

[RooFlyer]

What's the rule on those long moving walkways (travelators?) in airports?
Or does it depend on what country you're in?

Personally, I don't mind which side people stand on, as long as its not blocking the way and I can zig-zag around the standers, without running over their feet with my bag.

 

[Forg]

What's the rule on those long moving walkways (travelators?) in airports?
Or does it depend on what country you're in?

It depends on the country you’re in, of course!

RHD countries like the UK and Australia, you walk on the left like you drive on the left, hence the slower you walk the further to the left you go. Which means when not walking at all, you go all the way to the left. Which means - stand to the left.

London Underground is the exception, escalators in shops in London are stand-to-the-left like the Underground would be if it were sensible.

Go to Canada where they’re half-American & half-French (both of which are WHD - wrong-hand drive), you walk to the right & the slower you go the further right you go … standing on the travelator, you stand to the right.

Wait why am I even explaining this to someone old enough to type?!?!

Personally, I don't mind which side people stand on, as long as its not blocking the way and I can zig-zag around the standers, without running over their feet with my bag.

If they’re not capable of the courtesy of standing on the correct side, which puts them out so very little, it’s most likely they’re blocking the other half of the travelator or escalator with their wheelie-luggage next to them …

 

[justinbrett]

The escalators things is a well established rule, but which side do you pass people on in London when walking? In most of the UK, like here, it tends to be that you stay left. I've found that in London, there are so many tourists and foreigners present that it's entirely random, some stay left, some stay right ...

Same applies on the Gold Coast.

In fact, due to the high number of Chinese tourists/students, I usually see most people standing on the right side of the escalator (the locals just stand wherever they please).

What's the rule on those long moving walkways (travelators?) in airports?
Or does it depend on what country you're in?

I want to shout "it's not a ride!" at people who stand on them.

 

[Forg]

In fact, due to the high number of Chinese tourists/students, I usually see most people standing on the right side of the escalator (the locals just stand wherever they please).

Wait … there is an implication here of CCP-land tourists intending to be polite … Mould Coast residents being oblivious tracks, but CCP-land tourists attempting to be polite seems a tad far-fetched?!

 

[JohnK]

What's the rule on those long moving walkways (travelators?) in airports?
Or does it depend on what country you're in?

A lot of airports have signs advising which side to stand. From memory SIN and BKK are stand to the right.

 

[Forg]

A lot of airports have signs advising which side to stand. From memory SIN and BKK are stand to the right.

BKK I have no idea, SIN though is stand-to-the-left ‘cos Singapore’s a RHD country.

(and I Googled for an image to be sure ‘cos it’s something you can easily mis-remember … it’s very easy to “remember” driving on the correct side of the road in a wrong-hand-drive country even though it never happened )

 

[drron]

There are signs on some BKK escalators and footpaths and they always say stand or walk on the right.

 

[Forg]

There are signs on some BKK escalators and footpaths and they always say stand or walk on the right.

I did think it was extremely indicative of the culture in Thailand vs the culture in Singapore that on the first page of search-results I could find a photo of SIN showing the great big signs telling you what you must do or we will beat you with sticks and yet the first 5 pages of images from BKK show barely any indication of anything at all.

 

[JohnK]

BKK I have no idea, SIN though is stand-to-the-left ‘cos Singapore’s a RHD country.

(and I Googled for an image to be sure ‘cos it’s something you can easily mis-remember … it’s very easy to “remember” driving on the correct side of the road in a wrong-hand-drive country even though it never happened )

Thailand is same as us in terms of driving but stand on other side of escalator/travelator.

And from memory the up escalator/travelator is on the right not the left.

 

[Forg]

Thailand is same as us in terms of driving but stand on other side of escalator/travelator.

And from memory the up escalator/travelator is on the right not the left.

From the images I did find, it appears that regardless of whether you're going up or down, the escalator to get onto is on the left & the one coming the other way is on the right.

But having said that, there are some escalators which seems to need to be run in the opposite direction to reduce wear, for some reason. You don't see 'em very often, but every now & again you come across a set of escalators that're reversed.

 

[Warks]

From the images I did find, it appears that regardless of whether you're going up or down, the escalator to get onto is on the left & the one coming the other way is on the right.

But having said that, there are some escalators which seems to need to be run in the opposite direction to reduce wear, for some reason. You don't see 'em very often, but every now & again you come across a set of escalators that're reversed.

I think I saw a few of them in Singapore recently where they were the wrong way around. Confusing especially when you are going down or up levels and it switches in between. In Sydney the Eastwood Centre always had the escalators the wrong way round and had to paint big yellow arrows at the entry points to guide people. Not sure if it's still that way.

 

[Quickstatus]

Cycling

Just popped up on my feed

 

[Pushka]

This WCMO thread has come alive.
Cycling, it must be up there with Politics, religion, Rona for what cheeses everyone off

What would be the 5th in the top 5?

...


They turn the sirens off when driving down the highway at speed, when stationary, slow, at night - when safe



WCMO is that in the UK, the bastion of being proper, where they drive on the left , that on the London Tube you keep to the right. Everywhere else in UK you keep to the left

Obviously this has been a recent issue and discussion point for us too and we decided that because there are so many wordlwide tourists it all becomes a bit of a cluster. And of course there is the assumption that people care about not hitting others too. Most don't care. And don't talk to me about large travellers with large backpacks charging through queues going up to the Parthenon amidst massive crowds.

 

[JohnK]

From the images I did find, it appears that regardless of whether you're going up or down, the escalator to get onto is on the left & the one coming the other way is on the right.

BKK airport you need to get on the travelator to the right.

I thought SIN airport is exactly the same?

 

[Forg]

BKK airport you need to get on the travelator to the right.

I thought SIN airport is exactly the same?

BKK appears to be BOTH now I look harder ...

I've only used the correct side in SIN a la:

... and I think SIN is more likely to be uniform, but maybe it's swapped in other terminals (I don't know which terminal it is but I've only ever used whichever one QF uses).

 

[Quickstatus]

And don't talk to me about large travellers with large backpacks charging through queues going up to the Parthenon amidst massive crowds.

... and while looking at their mobile phones.

 

[drron]

A change of subject to an old favourite. two of our big banks have got up my nose this week.
First ANZ. I got an ANZ cash investment account when I started using ANZ share trading. Because of that I don't have an ANZ registration number,an ANZ telecode and ANZ itself has no record of any of my telephone numbers over the last 30 years. Without those you can't ring any ANZ customer service number. They do not advertise an email address to contact them.
In the past this made no difference as I could download ANZ statements from the share trading platform. However ANZ are now out of share trading and the platform is run by Cimic.

Problem I did not have 1 of the statements for the 21/22 tax year. I am sure I never received it as all super correspondence goes into one basket then sorted. I wasn't worried as I could print out a list of transactions from the Cimic platform and that list was accepted by the ATO. But not by the Super Fund Auditor. they needed the ANZ statement.
So into the local ANZ branch on Monday morning. First thing you notice. no tellers. You line up to talk to a coordinator. My turn comes and I think this should be quick all I want is a statement. Think again. The coordinator says I can't put in a request for an Investment account so I will get you an ANZ registration number and a telecode. She taps away at a computer for a while. Then goes and talks to a fellow sitting in one of the 4 cubicles. Comes back and taps some more. Sorry I am going to have to get you to speak to our head consultant. Please take a seat.

In a bank those 4 words should strike fear. So I waited and finally the head consultant comes over and I get taken to his cubicle. The problem is that accountant is a share trading account and we no longer do that so we cant get you a registration or a telecode. But there is still a share trading department so here is there card with their direct telephone line and email address, They will be able to help you.
So off I go home and first use the phone. The call gets diverted to Cimic and they say sorry you have to get statements through ANZ. So I send off an email and get an automated reply. This email address is no longer reviewed and will soon be removed. Fortunately a few minutes later I get an email from Cimic by a fellow who knows what to do. You get this sort of statement from the ANZ Wealth Management department and gives me their email. off it goes.
Next morning a reply yes we will get you a statement. It will be emailed to you sometime in the next 1-2 working days!

Second CBA. Every 2 weeks for the last 6 mrsdrron has been getting emails from the CBA telling her to come into the branch to have her ID rechecked. So today into the CBA we go. Again you line up to see the "concierge". But at least they still have tellers so the line is shorter. Mrsdrron gets to the front to be told One of our staff can deal with that but their will be a wait of 45- 60 minutes so please take a seat. Wait that long just so someone can look at your passport. no way so back we will go another day.

Fortunately as far as I am aware we have no dealings with NAB or Westpac.

 

[tgh]

We are recent to wpac and find them pretty good to deal with.
The app is fast and funky and the two nearby branches are approachable.
Compared to our long term personal bank, Suncorp…light years

 

[RooFlyer]

Wait that long just so someone can look at your passport. no way so back we will go another day.

See if CBA just want to look at it, or copy & upload it. I told my story on AFF maybe a year ago. Got asked to come in and confirm ID.

Unhappy, but OK. Took my passport and they went to copy it. Hang on, I didn't agree to that.

"If we can't identify you, we'll have to close your accounts" (Wow! Talk about the big stick).

I shrugged and said, OK, if you must, but I don't let just anyone take a copy of my passport.

Stalemate. I said look at passport, look at me - ID me. Copy down the details & upload, but you are not going to copy my passport.

Manager called. Explained that their system that the teller uses when you front up, has an actual image of you - the passport one, if they can get it.

I said - do I look like the image already in there?

Yes.

OK, use that. Or you'll have to close my accounts.

They continued to use the existing image.

Just another bloody attempted ID info grab.