Japanese sidewalls are rather paradoxical: where rules and order are so valued, pedestrians are in chaos. People walk 4 abreast, walk in bicycle lanes, randomly change direction without looking etc.
Escalators are even stranger. There are signs everywhere telling people to stand on both sides. These are completely ignoreed. People fill up one side completely and leave the other side empty for the occasional walker.
^ This guy has really been in Japan! There is no standard of walking on the left or the right. People don't follow vehicle driving protocols because many of them never have or will drive. "Paradoxical" is absolutely the best way to describe Japanese pedestrian behavior.
The escalator one depends on how busy it is. During rush hour or when the line at the "entrance" begins to grow longer the free side gets a lot more traffic, though usually people will still try to walk on that side in order to not block the "fast lane".
Escalators are even stranger. There are signs everywhere telling people to stand on both sides. These are completely ignoreed. People fill up one side completely and leave the other side empty for the occasional walker.