I guess it depends on perspective. A bus, in simplest terms, shortens a trip. People pay to take a bus for 10 minutes to save an hour walking. It seems this escalator fits a similar purpose in the transit system of the district. Save an hour climbing stairs by taking a 20 minute escalator ride. Not identical, but similar.

It is probably nearly free to run but the per rider upfront cost is probably much higher (construction costs, relatively low ridership). It's also a fairly unique solution, which means it does not benefit as much from standardization, though it seems most of the parts are standardized. Both of the systems would have operating labour costs in addition to the electrical costs (maintenance, IT support, financial etc.). I would love to see a full lifecycle cost breakdown comparison.

It could very well turn out that the escalator is way overpriced per ride, I just don't have the data to say with certainty. I just think that its not unreasonable when compared against other forms of public transit.

edit: I decided to do some napkin math based on the data at the following source: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/the-worlds-longest-outdoor-escalator-just-opened-in-china-riding-the-3000-foot-long-system-to-the-top-takes-more-than-20-minutes-180988468/

• $23 million construction cost
• 9000 daily ridership
• $0.5 per ride (3 yuan)

if we assume zero O&M costs, loans, or anything else, the breakeven for the infrastructure is about 14 years.

for a comparison to an electric bus, including the cost of the driver and the cost of electricity, but ignoring distributed O&M Costs, (e.g. depots, maintenance yards, roads, etc.) the breakeven for the equipment is about 2 years.

170,000 dollar upfront cost, 0.3 dollar per ride (2 yuan), 1000 riders per bus per day, 8900 yuan driver salary, 150kWh per day, 0.5 yuan per kWh.

This assumes the busiest traffic routes, with lower ridership routes having much longer break-even points. A quick search indicates 5-7 years as the average break even point.