World′s tallest elevator tower rises in Rottweil, Germany (2015) | Hacker News Reader

World′s tallest elevator tower rises in Rottweil, Germany (2015)

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47 pointsTomte21 comments

Official site for the tower: https://testturm.thyssenkrupp-elevator.com/en/

Has some decent shots that show what it looks like finished, when viewed from Rottweil, and the conference rooms (!) contained within.

KONE's test tower is 300m, but it goes down an old mine shaft, so technically not the "tallest" :)

First link I google'd up: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nGRMY-9a-tw

The locals were also very keen to test the elevators: https://plus.google.com/photos/photo/102130165946129620198/6...

I was flying in the area this past summer, and took a spin around it. Just in the middle of nowhere, there's this tower: https://cl.ly/463e9f3eaeab

From this article, I learned of the terrifying paternoster lift. I would rather take the stairs.

Why do you see it as terrifying? It's easier to fall on stairs than hurt yourself in a Paternoster. If you can, try to ride one, it's an interesting excursion in efficiency that once was.

You can also get limbs removed in that type of elevator.

I did not deny that falling badly can be deadly. Falling down stairs however easily breaks your neck once the stairs are long.

From Wikipedia:

>> The construction of new paternosters is no longer allowed in many countries because of the high risk of accident for people who cannot use the lift properly. In 2012, an 81-year-old man was killed when he fell into the shaft of a paternoster in the Dutch city of The Hague. Elderly people, disabled people, and children are the most in danger of being crushed or losing a limb.

Generally if a country bans it due to safety, it could be pretty terrifying to use it.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paternoster

Human-driven cars should also be banned due to an even higher risk. If you don't trust yourself to follow the guidelines, just take the stairs, but don't deprive others of the lack of waiting for an elevator. There is a reason bureaucracy like(s/d) it.

He fell into the shaft. I mean really?

Those things are absolutely amazing in busy buildings like universities. Where you have an extreme throughput in short intervals. I studied in a 15 story building and even with 4 big elevators you had to wait forever during rush time.

Here you can see one working in the Goethe University in Frankfurt. Sadly, now you need a "drivers license" to ride the damn thing and are only allowed to use it alone. https://youtu.be/zFikKlHHCbw?t=20

Ski lifts are more dangerous.

edit: used to* apparently after they were made fun of by extra3 they got rid of the paternoster police and drivers licenses.

Exactly, I rode the one at the University of Leicester a few years ago, and it was a fun experience. Would definitely recommend! It's easy to see how you could injure yourself if you were to do stupid things, but completely safe when used normally.

I suppose my reaction is based on how easy it would be for the machine to mangle a stray limb.

I've wanted to try out a paternoster for years since I found out about them. There's something very appealing to me about about the efficiency of them both in terms of space and the amount of people they can move simultaneously. It's like being halfway between an escalator and an elevator.

If you find yourself in Prague, Czechia’s second largest city Brno is an easy day trip away by train. Next to the train station is the main post office. Inside the main entrance, imediately to the right, is a paternoster (at least as of this summer). It was fun.

Czech Post

https://goo.gl/maps/txNY4VB7Pfz

Is that the right one?

Yes, and the correct entrance too. Pan to the left to see the train station.

City Hall in Wuppertal, Germany also has one open to the public. I didn't see tripwires however a few weeks ago.

The "new paternoster" is quite a different beast. Tom Scott did a video on it:

https://youtu.be/kdTsbFS4xmI

I live close to the tower and was really positively surprised how it turned out. Often, an architect's "vision" is far from what it ends up looking, but since this tower got its cladding, it looks spectacular - especially when the sun is low in the early morning or evening hours.

The tower is amazing, been there in the past; but not on the top of it.

I have family in a nearby village, interesting to see this here :)

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