That's not quite what I was expecting--widening stairs and lowering the slope would actually improve safety, as well. I've seen enough against-code stairs that

That's not quite what I was expecting--widening stairs and lowering the slope would actually improve safety, as well. I've seen enough against-code stairs that were a positive hazard to everybody involved to get automatically antsy whenever I see somebody suggesting changing them, but this is fine from a safety POV. It's in accordance with my experience at uni, too; everywhere that had obvious stairs would have people using them in preference to elevators, but if they're both behind doors (and the extremely industrial staircases you get in some institutional buildings don't help this) it seems like the mental effort is the same, so people wait for the elevator.