An experimental pedestrian fast lane system deployed in England allows speedy walkers to circumvent gawking tourists and window shoppers.

Implemented by retailer Argos adjacent to a shopping complex in Liverpool, the Fast Track is a trial run (or: really fast walk) for separating dawdlers from power walkers.

If it seems like a marketing stunt, consider this: close to 30,000,000 Brits favor fast lanes for busy pedestrian thoroughfares. Close to a third surveyed in a recent study responded that they would approve of some consistent solution to slow-moving foot traffic.

As in similar attempts elsewhere, like NYC’s half-joking painted pavement markings dividing New Yorkers from Tourists, the aim is to provide clear paths for different paces, segregated by speed, cellphone use or other factors, indoors or outside.

This latest variant may only be temporary, but a store spokesperson says it is there by popular demand and if successful the same idea could continue to spread to other private and public spaces.

Combining a novel form of wayfinding with a nod to the upcoming 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, this new airport terminal trades moving walkways for a color-coded circuit of racetrack paths (or runways, if you will).

The airport extension to Narita International anticipates the additional capacity needed in a few years for the upcoming event but also reflects a limited budget for expansion, together driving a design that needs no illuminated signs and skips people-moving devices.

Blue leads to departures and red takes people to arrivals – a simple scheme but easily visible when set against the more monotone surrounding interiors. The collaborative project featured contributions by PARTY with consultants from Nikken (photography by Kenta Hasegawa).

Of course, we all know the experience of being late for takeoff – beyond its aesthetics, it could indeed prove quite useful to have fast and slow lanes during busy times and for those whose commutes demand they make their plane in time.