Veleslavín Metro Station to Get Escalators at Last

Prague city planners forgot to build an escalator at this busy transport hub; will the famed porters finally be out of a job?

Expats.cz Staff Jason Pirodsky

Written by Expats.cz Staff,  Jason Pirodsky Published on 20.02.2017 13:06:40 (updated on 20.02.2017) Reading time: 1 minute

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Prague’s public transport authority made headlines and punch lines back in April 2015 when, upon opening a series of new stations on its A-line metro, a small glitch came to light: the Veleslavín Station, where passengers connect to the 119 airport bus, had no escalators, leaving travellers to hoist their heavy baggage up a flight of imposing stairs.

The problem was solved in a rather comical way: as a temporary measure the city hired porters to assist passengers with all that heavy lifting. 

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Ever since, the one-man porter service has operated every day from 7am to 7pm; during the busy summer season reinforcements are called in for additional help.

Now, according to the transport company those knights in yellow vests may just be out of a job.

Escalators are said to be on their way to Veleslavín, having been chosen from a few other options including a just as confounding solution as the porters: a conveyor belt for luggage.

“Currently, we are in the midst of obtaining a construction permit for adding escalators…in 2018 we proceed to implementation,” a spokeswoman for the transport company Aneta Řehková told Novinky.cz.

The publication also interviewed porters who said the job has its, ahem, ups and downs:

“People make fun of me, giving me a light suitcase. First, they [pretend] it is difficult, when in fact it is very lightweight,” said one of the porters.

#in the news #transportation
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