For areas with sloping terrain and buildings that are high compared to the common surface, the construction of stairs is still limited access to the terrain for the disabled and the elderly. At that time, the outdoor escalator maximizes its accessibility to this terrain. Even outdoor escalators are not only installed at short distances such as in residential areas, this is also a chosen solution to promote tourism in mountainous areas.
The ADA is the Americans with Disabilities Act, which has been in place for 30 years, so there is little reason to defend buildings that don't comply with the regulations.
Although Japan is not the home of the car industry, Toyota (Japan) has become the dominant car company in the world. This makes one want to decipher why the company is so successful. When the world gradually understood the philosophies of the production model, it was discovered and transformed into the knowledge of the Japanese people: Lean Manufacturing.