An interesting, little-known feature exists in most Otis and Dover elevators that will temporarily kick the lift into an express mode. By holding down the "door-close" button, while simultaneously pressing a floor number, a passenger can cause the elevator to take him or her directly to their desired floor, disregarding any calls from floors in between. Contrary to rumors, this does NOT increase the actual velocity of the elevator, however it will in many cases decrease the time it takes you to reach your destination.
Unfortunately, this trick only works on elevators in which it has been specifically enabled by a technician... however, because it still remains relatively little-known, many serviceman simply leave the feature on all the time, allowing free usage for anyone who knows about it.