Remember when Filipinos in general didn't have a passing lane on escalators?
Remember when everyone just stood still on the escalator? It was such a pain when you were in a hurry.
But now most people stand on the right when they ride an escalator and leave one side open. We all share the understanding now that the left side should be kept clear. Even though there was some pushback, we made this the norm.
How was this possible? And could we use the same approach to make using earphones in public places the norm? How can we spread the awareness that we should be considerate of other people who share public spaces with us?
Do you think it's possible to use our phones considerately in public places?
As I recall, SM ran a campaign about this in the mid-2010s. For a while, people who didn't follow it got quite a few dirty looks. I think that side-eye was a big part of what got people to follow the new norm. When you break the rule you stand out, and after a few times even the most oblivious person gets it. Playing audio on speakers in public places is different: not that many people do it and it's easy to overlook, so it's that much harder to change the behavior socially. Unless Philippine society gets a bit more willing to speak up, that is.
Japan, China, and Korea have been actively trying to get rid of the 'stand on the right' etiquette for years. You can find it if you google it. Using only one side makes the escalator wear out faster and causes crowding at the boarding and exit points. It's kind of funny when you think about what percentage of mall-goers are in such a hurry that they have to run up an escalator. A small minority is in a rush, and all it does is raise the risk of accidents.
I read somewhere that using it like this is bad for the escalator, since it wasn't originally designed to be used that way.
"Everyone has to use the escalator at 50% efficiency so that people who can't manage their time and use it wrong can save 13 seconds by running." Such a dumb rule.
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