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Transit

New York City subway commuters trip going up these stairs

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Is there a set of stairs on your way to work that you always trip on?

In New York, Dean Peterson decided to explore why everyone trips on a certain set of stairs. It turns out that the stair is a fraction of an inch higher than all the rest, sending nearly every stair-climber toppling.

As you can see in this short video, it’s no laughing matter.

[vimeo]http://vimeo.com/44807536#[/vimeo]

Via ManMade

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3 comments

  1. Ugh. The stairs from the two North entrances to the Grandin LRT station! They’re taller than they are wide (and taller than normal stairs) and I am terrified I’m going to fall every time I go down.

  2. So has anyone called it in to the DOT/Transit Authority and asked to have it fixed?

  3. Sometimes changing the rise of one step in a stair to make it slightly higher is deliberate, as in Edinburgh where in one very old house the variation functioned as a very early burglar alarm, causing intruders who were not familiar with the stair to trip and give themselves away.