The floor-path lighting system is always vulnerable to damage from routine passage of shoes (including stiletto), baggage, and catering equipment. On some aircraft, it has been moved to the base of the seats. Maybe your aircraft was one of those.
This is quite common, particularly on aircraft with convertible business/economy seats as the aisle is never neccesarily "fixed". On the BA shorthaul fleet, for example, the emergency lighting is on the sides of the seats.
In some ways this is a good system, as the lighting is at crawling eye level.
Maybe there also should be a way to activate the floor-path lighting during the safety briefing.... not everyone could see it maybe, but it would help.
FR demonstrate the emergency lighting sytem during the safety demonstration but as far as I'm aware they use photoluminescent floor strips which aren't really "turned on".
Not many airlines are keen to use the emergency lighting system in situations other than an emergency as it runs off a battery that, if I recall correctly, cannot be easily recharged.