I used to use one of these about 45 years ago in a BEA building at Heathrow and thought it was called a Paternoster because you said your prayers before getting in to it!
Yes I think I would be saying a few Our Fathers and Hail Marys before getting into one of those. That looks like one of those things that if it was invented today people would say you were crazy and too dangerous, like aircraft propellors or third rail power conductors at ground level on some electrified railways.
@@jslonisch Totally agree with you regarding 3rd rail electrification, it has been fatal to many animals and a few, usually drunk humans in the UK over time. Whoever thought of mounting a completely uninsulated busbar energized with 750 V DC at ground level needs their heads examining. The 3rd rail looks so innocent as well, until you touch it. I expect that the EU thought of making the UK convert the entire Southern system to Overhead but knew that the upheaval and cost would be prohibitive. The insulated 3rd rail system seems better, where the train picks up the current from underneath the rail as in the Docklands Light Railway and continental Metro systems.
some country are allow since it was old law and you know the risk before getting on one... i would never used them.. more for throwing shit on it and it someoneelse problem...
It's what you get when you combine the elevator and the escalator in such a way as to prevent the safety features of either of them from being implemented.
@@guidestone1392 Meanwhile our "designers" have yet to make a vehicle that won't kill the occupant(s)/participant(s) nor pedestrians... "with that level of disregard..." they must be "inconsiderate psychos who think IQ is more important than the capacity for Empathy." lol The same for streets, guns, knives and bubblegum. Spare me the empathic fake outrage.
@@BWolf00There was one of these in Salford University. I last rode it at some point in the early 1980s. It's a bit freakish when you first used it but after a while you get the idea and everything is fine. The issue is that you begin to calm down once you get to use it.
I first encountered these lifts when I was studying at the London School of Economics in the early 1980s. I was convinced that there were two separate lifts and if I didn't get off at the top floor in time, the lift car would flip upside down into the dark before it started over again. My husband, who knew how they worked, came with me one day and made me take it to the top floor with him and NOT get off. That's when I found out that the lift just moved laterally. V anticlimactic.
We had one at university... I had never seen one before, so, went to the top to have a look... My mates had a laugh when I came back down the other side doing a handstand! 😏😏
I can see why it was a common thing beside that garage in San Fran, it looks real unsafe, that is a lawsuit waiting to happen especially here in America
The 450 Sutter in SF is a "manlift" not a paternoster. It's a vertical conveyor belt used by parking valets to quickly move between floors -- it's not for public use.
I've heard of "Shabbat Elevators" in which a standard elevator would be switched to a mode that the car would automatically stop at each floor and open and close it's doors without the rider touching a single button in concurrence with Rabbinical interpretations of the Jewish laws involving the Sabbath. (Much like an Eruv acts as the extension of the doorposts and walls, allowing observant Jews to carry items or push baby strollers to and from the synagogue.)
We had something where I worked called a man-lift. It was like a conveyor belt, going straight up and down. There were foot pads to stand on, and a hand grip to hold onto. You had better get off at the top, or it would carry you right over to the down side, only standing on your head. Scary thing, it was.
I rode one of these in the middle of the night at an industrial plant that I was guarding alone years ago and got out on a pitch-black floor. I was afraid to get back on with almost no light coming thru the floor shaft but more afraid to stay. It was a great relief to reach the ground safely, and based on what you said, I was probably close to being dragged over the top in the dark.
I worked for a few months in a place that had one of those, years ago. I used it once and then took the extra time to use the stairs every time I had change floors after that.
I remember using those in a huge pulp mill when I had to to go to various factories to work on programming PLC's. I never liked it, but the place was so huge you could easily get lost and I had to use it to get to the machine I was fixing or I couldn't find it. I tried avoiding it by taking a staircase once and ended up wandering around for an hour totally lost so I was basically forced to use the man lift to not get lost. It was kind of fun to use I suppose but it went up 6 floors so it was pretty scary looking down when you only had a tiny platform just barely big enough to stand on.
My brother and I delivered phone books in the '70s here in the Twin Cities, and saw a lot of cool things not generally open to the citizenry. One was an old flour mill on the Mississippi near downtown Minneapolis. Pretty much the whole place was run by a series of belts, snaking up and around the entire plant. There were two paternosters that we saw (still operating!). Not as fancy as the ones pictured here, these were basically steps bolted to a wide canvas belt that slowly moved through four floors. We spent a fair amount of time just joy-riding! Really clever how the whole mill used one giant engine to power all these belts and pulleys that ran the whole place!
@blinkvideo Your comment brings back fond memories of Minneapolis where I grew up in the '50s. My dad worked for "General Mills" flour division, which was located near St Anthony Falls, between 1st S. & Washington ave S. on the East side of 3rd Ave. Pillsbury flour mills also were located in that section of the city. Back then Minneapolis was known as the "Mill City". When the flour mills left the city, the grain elevators were converted to expensive apartments, which had a beautiful view of the downtown river front!
That's something that can be solved. Basically ensure that each floor has a foyer with a door that shuts in case of fire and most of that trouble is fixed. The other issues are harder to resolve and even in the case of adding the fire door, you're stuck with a bunch of extra firewall that wouldn't otherwise be needed.
@@SmallSpoonBrigade It can be solved by using lifts with doors too, but the point is this is faster.....BECAUSE THERE ARE NOT DOORS....oh, just simply solve the issue basically with some doors......automatic fire sensing doors even, genius.
At the ripe old age of 4 or 5 I was on one of these in the early 50s in Germany. As I grew older, I was always confused as to why elevators had doors. It wasn't until I was in my 60s that I read an article about the paternoster elevator and finally realized where my confusion had originated. One of the many grand and glorious memories of my childhood that I still cherish to this day in my 70s. Never forget the past; it is the pathway to the future.
When used properly, I'm sure the are a good idea. But, there's numerous issues including the fact that people in wheelchairs, walkers and those carrying large boxes aren't able to use them. Years ago, I worked at a warehouse where we used a horizontal version of these things to move boxes around and you had to be careful as getting a finger stuck between the cages could result in it being lost. Very efficient for moving things around, but not terribly safe.
I see this as a great idea that’s still functional today. As the narrator said it takes a bit of concentration, but it’s an elevator you’re not waiting for. “Crush” bars and other safety mechanisms can easily be retrofitted into the them.
Something very similar is used in American industrial facilities somewhat often. No cars, just a little platform to stand on and a rail to grab, the belt or chain is sometimes surrounded by a cage or shaft, but you just step on or off at whatever level you choose. They can be a little scary. They're mostly being phased out by now, but I've been in places that still use them recently.
I rode one as a student at the U. of Vienna in the 1970s. I just looked it up and as of 2015, still going. That surprised me. My first impression of it was that if you weren't careful, you could lose a limb or be decapitated. But you get used to it. It was more convenient not having to wait long, and open feeling compared to a regular elevator.
I saw one of these in the 1962 movie The Counterfeit Traitor. I wondered how such a thing could exist without the occasional person stumbling and having their head taken off.
irgendwieanders1 Or , like me , a bit hesitant in stepping off at the top floor at Aston University , so finding out by accident that it doesn’t tip over !
@@The_sinner_Jim_Whitney That's what they are called! I couldn't remember for my other post, we called them 'man-lifts'. Fun, but just scary enough at times to give tingles. One guy said that he would sometimes carry a fifty pound /22.5kg bag on them. Nutters!
There have been one too many fatalities in them. We had a paternoster lift at Leeds University and I used it a few times but it never really floated my boat. I believe it was decommissioned after a fatal accident.
Tim Hancock. One fatality in the UK and one in the Nederland's. That's it for Europe. They removed them because of the POTENTIAL for accidents. In fact they are far more serious accidents and fatalities recorded in conventional lifts but of course there are far more of them. However it was the HSE concern for potential accidents the caused many of them to be removed but they are still legal. As with all lift accidents the human element is crucial. Not sure about the UK one but the Dutch one was caused by corrosion of the bearing plate from too much water when cleaning and lack of preventative maintenance. The actual function of the lift was not the primary cause. Every lift incident I attempted as a fire officer involved human error be it on the part of the lift passenger (they do some very strange things like riding beneath the cage on a rope and standing on top of the cage) or lack of maintenance by the engineering company. Many are badly abused in council tower blocks and quite frankly they were used more as urinals that a useful function in the building, not that a urinal is not useful, but urine splashed all over the operating panel is not desirable maintenance. We had one Paternoster Lift in a bank building on King St in Manchester but I am not aware if it's still there. I am not aware of any serious incidents with it but I could be wrong as I didn't spend too much of my service in or around Manchester City centre.
@@Biffo1262 It always amazes me that here in the UK we always (well sometimes) seem to wait for a fatality before we take action to improve a potentially dangerous situation. I live in Basingstoke, Hampshire and as an example the A33 to Reading has a dual carriageway section with a 70 mph speed limit (same as a motorway) but features no crash barriers in the central reservation so there's potential every day for a 150 + mph (being realistic) head on crash. But it's been like that for as long as the dual carriageway has been open (more than 35 years).
For those who never used one, it was perfectly safe to go over the top or under the bottom - the actual ‘cage’ moved sideways and across and they had a light in the area for those frightened of the dark 😀
TBH, I'm not sure why that wouldn't be safe. They'd have to go out of their way to make it unsafe as the box itself has walls on 5 sides making it difficult for objects to penetrate the car. At least, not any more so than the other areas between floors.
My company has a building where there's still a paternoster working tirelessly. The maintenance people love that thing as it nearly never fails since the motors are constantly running at the same speed. Very very low-maintenance and employees love them to easily switch between floors. There's also an industrial version where there's only steps (and a handle) on a rubber band going up and down - called a "belt manlift". This is used to get workers quickly to different floors.
4 года назад
That must be the US then. The EU banned these years ago.
They used to be in the University of Aston in Birmingham, UK in the late 1960's. they took a little getting used to. A couple of us stayed in as it went 'over the top' just for the experience. The things you do as a student...
They were popular at Universities, Salford had one too. If you were going to the top floor and missed getting off you always had the bonus of going over the top. They were great fun over normal lifts and no waiting too.
When the new Civic Centre in Southend-of-Sea opened, back in the early 60s, it had a paternoster lift for papers. If you wanted to send documents to another floor you pressed the button on the next available carrier to select the floor and put your papers on the carrier. When the carrier reached the selected floor it would tip up and the papers would be ejected into a receiving container.
Alejandra y Alan Bowman They had something similar in Bart's Hospital, London, for medical records; Always jamming because people would put x-ray films in then, and these were too big/heavy for the system.
I remember the paternoster in Claremont Tower - I'd never seen one before and it took me a few attempts before I plucked up the courage to step into the moving lift. Once you'd done that you realised it was easy peasy. A unique experience. I was saddened to learn, years later, that it had been removed.
I can remember as a kid getting on one of these in the netherlands in the seventies in a department store either C&A (clothes) or V&D( household) cant remember which one but never forgot it, it scared the crap out of me when my father told me that if you got your head stuck it would be ripped off 😬
_Finally the mystery is solved!_ In the film *The Omen,* there is a scene at about 1 hour and 6 minutes in where Gregory Peck's character is talking to a nun at a hospital & she got on one of those contraptions... well now I know the name of it: *Paternoster Lift!* *Thanks* for posting this clip! ⭐
Very interesting. I only heard of these because I saw a documentary , think it was Stephen Fry demonstrating one still in use in Britain. Love these videos 👍
The University of Salford (UK) had Paternoster lifts in the Chemistry Tower in the '70s. I believe they lasted up until the building was demolished in (I think) the '80s. They were very popular and no injuries occurred as far as I know. I seem to remember that if someone's body wasn't fully in the car an automatic sensor immediately halted the motion for maybe 5 seconds to give someone time to get their leg or whatever out of the way. Many people happily travelled "over the top" beyond the 12th floor through the winding compartment and back down the other side just for a laugh, and similarly at the bottom end under the basement. No real danger at all. Happy days! :)
This brought back fond memories from both Birmingham University and Birmingham Poly - Long story. Once you get used hopping in and out of the cars, they're quite convenient.
I absolutely loved the paternoster lift at the University of Leicester , UK. It sadly shut down very recently as replacement parts could not be found. Many a student had great fun terrifying themselves by going complete circle in the iconic lift.
I was fascinated to see this type of lift in the early 90s when I worked as a temp at Unipart Oxford. Always volunteered to take papers so I could have a go. It clearly stated not to stay on above the top floor or the bottom one, but one lunch break I did the whole round. Honestly wasn't convinced I wouldn't be tipped upside down but I can confirm that it didn't and it was just a bit dark with lots of bricks
I used one when I worked at a public hospital in Sweden. That was the fastest way to get from floor to floor and department to department; used by staff and usually not patients..keeping it safer for the public and quicker for staff when in a hurry to an emergency I imagine.
I love these. The Stuttgart townhall still has one in service and it has become kind of a tourist attraction. It is fun to ride. Similar to the old London buses where you could get on and off while driving.
This was in the (now demolished) GEC building in Borehamwood, just a short walk from Elstree Studios, and the Prisoner Appreciation Society occasionally came for a visit to see it. I used to work there in the late 90s and rode the paternoster most days. It was a rite of passage to do a full circuit, going over the top and round the bottom. Shortly before I left to work elsewhere the paternoster broke down and it wasn't allowed to be repaired.
@@JohnMonsteur I "rode" on that during a training course there back in the 90's. Quite an experience. If I remember, there was a wooden flap on the floor which had a one way hinge such that if you leaned too far forward on the way up, the flap would hinge so the worst you would get was a smack on the top of your head (rather than having your head taken off!)
Still in use in a few places in the US. One of them is in a parking deck where the valets use this lift to go from floor to floor. It's very efficient and takes little space they could use for parking cars.
As a kid I used to dream of elevators without doors, shallow compartments, nightmares usually. Years later I went to a Museum in Berlin (the Stasi-museum) and found out these things really exist.
Great vlog as always! In Oslo there were a Max of four lifts, all privat companies. One in a bank, one at a hangar at FBU, the former airport in Oslo. Now none are left.
Steven! That's where I saw it, Thanks, it was driving me nuts trying to remember. How could anyone not take one look at the design and think, "yep, folks will lose arms, toes and the occasional pecker" ?
We used to have two in our office. As far as i can remember though, they went about twice the speed of the one in the video. Scary at first but you got the hang of it. Seemed safe enough until more than one tries to get in at once. They were removed eventually probably around 1988.
I see the logo sign "Hitachi" on the side of the paternoster. Wow, I am a Japanese, but I've never seen it before. Is there still demand? Is there any self stopping mechanism or any on it? I don't see any different to a guillotine.
Had one of these in the Seven-storey block at Rolls-Royce. We used to love riding over the top or round the bottom. If someone was watching, stand on your head as you go over and see their reaction.
I remember using these in Czechoslovakia back in the 1980s. I'll say this, if you are a cellphone zombie or a text message zombie, I suggest taking the stairs. 😉😉😉 The life you save may be your own.
We had one in the police headoffice in Rotterdam up till the 90s. As long as grease them well they are very low energy and practically without maintanance. Very funny to ride.
"Too Far Afield," a novel by Günter Grass, is about two old guys who used to work in Berlin for the Stasi, set after the end of East Germany, and mentions the paternoster many times. I thought it was maybe a metaphor (probably was, also) and not real until I found out they really exist!
LOL! Still a shocker! I remember being totally blown away when I saw one in the movie "Ruby Cairo" with Andie MacDowell & Liam Neeson. To this day, it still seems so strange to me that there are technologies out there being used quite nonchalantly by swathes of people and I've never even heard of or seen them. Thank you for the name "Paternoster", would never have imagined :)
As someone with a mild case of claustrophobia, I see these as a valid alternative to the existential terror I feel when I get into a windowless metal coffin that can snap and pulverize me at any time. I'm just a bit scared of the warp gate at the end that teleports the elevator back to its starting position.
Great new channel, looks like there'll be endless material here in the future. Never seen this lift/elevator before, fascinating. Were you able to go around all the way at top and bottom?
Generally it's unsafe to go all the way over or under. It's possible to destabilize the thing because of the angles, or something to that effect. But there are plenty of 'up and over' videos out there which show what's up and down there - a big old slab of wall, usually.
I did it on my first ever trip in one: missed my exit on the ground floor and was taken down into total darkness where I then lost all sense of direction, due to the movement of the car at the bottom of the loop, until daylight reappeared at the top of the lift as it rose back to the ground floor. I didn’t miss my exit a second time - quite unnerving!
These lifts were in Claremont Tower at Newcastle University in 1970s. Never particularly efficient when a lot of students trying to get to 10th floor lecture theatre.
I’ve only seen and used this once when visiting a friend in Hamburg Germany. He was a lawyer so must have been working in legal offices or something like that. We both got in for a laugh and I had no idea what would happen once the lift got to the top.
I remember travelling in one ,it was in St Thomas's hospital, very handy in case of accidents! I was about ten at the time went right round full circle ,fancy being more sensible 58 yrs ago than people today.
Thanks for the facts and data. I missed a video showing how it looks if you stay inside and make the u-Turn on top floor. I did once. It makes scary noise but is safe.
Hi, I enjoyed the presentation. Hope it's OK if I add another dimension to what you have here. My father was a millwright during the interwar years here in Southern Ontario, Canada. He told us of using a simpler version within the flour mills. It was simply a flat belt running between floors with small foot pads projecting from the belt. Someone wanting to change floors would simply step on one of the pads and grab onto the belt. In his version of the story the Paternoster title came from the fact everyone stepping on to the lift (lower) always gave a little prayer in hopes it would secure a safe trip. :-)
There was one I used daily in the Abrams Complex (the IG Farbin Bldg) in Frankfurt when I was assigned to the V Corps Headquarters. It really worked quite well.
Memories of growing up in 1970's Bristol; there was a big CRS ( co-op) store called Fairfax House with these lifts installed. Always thought they were potentially pretty dangerous but fun at the same time being a child. The building itself had a short life, opened in 1962 and demolished in 1988 to make way for the redevelopment of the Broadmead shopping area.
I worked for a time in the IG Farben Building in Frankfurt very late 1969, before I was transferred to Berlin in the Army. I rode one in that building for about a month. It took some practice to get on and off for a while, but it worked well. I certainly beat climbing several flights of stairs.
I rode a tiny, claustrophobic, coffin-like one of these lifts some 25 years ago or so. Somewhere in Germany in a public building (think it was Cologne). At the time, I remember being freaked out about how dangerous it seemed. I had even begun to wonder if I'd simply imagined it. At least now, after two decades, your explanation has finally ended my late night anxiety about what would happen if you made a mistake and stayed on one of these lifts thinking there was another floor still to go! I had been filled with dread that a horrible end befell one or two unfortunate souls each day... and that a special workman was on call to do the grizzly daily clean up around the back! (These lifts must have become even more dangerous since the advent of smart phones!)
when I was a kid, I took a tour of Quaker Oats factory. They had freight elevators(which the tour group took) and this other type for employees to hop on or off
That's not true. They are practical, because they don't have time stopping or opening or closing doors, for journeys of just one or two floors they are faster than a normal lift. People didn't instal them in many buildings just for fun, but because they are practical.
A very interesting concept and arguably more efficient than conventional lifts. It’s easy to see how accidents could happen though, especially when departing the carriage.
The 'obvious' accident potential is all catered for - by hinged floors and stop mechanisms. Real accidents are where the thing has failed for some reason.
@@millomweb having watched more videos about these I see what you mean by the hinged floors, the one at Sheffield Uni also seems to have several trip wires, buttons and laser beams to stop it in an emergency. I am of course going to actively seek out these lifts next time I go traveling in Europe so I can have a go on one!
@@GPOTOM The size of the hinged portion ought to be 'man size' so as the machine keeps running, a flap should open to avoid trapping anyone - meanwhile the motor should also be stopped. There was one about 40 mins drive from me at a works - dunno if it's still there - but I got a job on the same site and a school-friend worked in the building with it in. So, on the eve of my first anniversary of that job I arranged to go and see him - just as an excuse to ride it ! They take a bit of learning to transfer smoothly on and off them ! I'd be interested in the fatalities as I'm sure they're far more complex than simple trappings !
I used the paternoster in the former Ziggo building in The Hague when I worked there more than a decade ago. That is where the deadly accident happened because at the time it was the only paternoster in The Hague still in operation. I guess it was closed down after the accident. In the early 90s I also used the paternoster in the former city hall of The Hague (which has long since been demolished) when I worked there. Paul Verhoeven once said that as a kid he got stuck in it and it inspired the elevator scene in Total Recall, which ends with the bad guy losing his arms and falling to his death.
It looks like a crash stop bar with switches and a light beam could be fitted in the top to stop the elevator. Also light beams to slow elevator or provide an entry door.
Although I've never heard of or seen a paternoster lift before, I had recurring nightmares about them when I was very young, so this is quite surreal. The most memorable was set at a swimming pool and the floor of the lift was one of those adjustable circular stools that you find in photo booths. Very claustrophobic.
Found this video by accident. There was a Paternoster Lift in the Roger Stevens Building at Leeds University when I was a student there in the late 80s. It was both fun and scary at the same time. Of course we eventually plucked up courage to go over the top and under the bottom. Your video has made me want to ride a Paternoster again. I guess I’ll have to go to Sheffield, Prague or Germany! 😀
I used to use one of these about 45 years ago in a BEA building at Heathrow and thought it was called a Paternoster because you said your prayers before getting in to it!
LOL!
SHITE joke!
Yes I think I would be saying a few Our Fathers and Hail Marys before getting into one of those. That looks like one of those things that if it was invented today people would say you were crazy and too dangerous, like aircraft propellors or third rail power conductors at ground level on some electrified railways.
@@jslonisch Totally agree with you regarding 3rd rail electrification, it has been fatal to many animals and a few, usually drunk humans in the UK over time.
Whoever thought of mounting a completely uninsulated busbar energized with 750 V DC at ground level needs their heads examining. The 3rd rail looks so innocent as well, until you touch it. I expect that the EU thought of making the UK convert the entire Southern system to Overhead but knew that the upheaval and cost would be prohibitive.
The insulated 3rd rail system seems better, where the train picks up the current from underneath the rail as in the Docklands Light Railway and continental Metro systems.
😂
I rode one of these once in Belgrade and honestly it was TERRIFYING.
I looked it up and its terrifying 😱
It's not terrifying, you've just become a fearful person.
@uni blab If you fear me that's your problem a silly one, but yours nevertheless.
While interesting, in the US this would be a lawsuit generator.
Anywhere really, It's not too hard to imagine how someone would lose their limbs.
some country are allow since it was old law and you know the risk before getting on one... i would never used them.. more for throwing shit on it and it someoneelse problem...
They needs more of these things in low IQ countries where they dont know how to press buttons for the elevator.
@@rustystove8410 Where does one find a high IQ country? Only ones I can think of are being overrun by the stupid at the invitation of the left.
@@RS-ls7mm The left/right axis is purely an economic one, you gotta be more specific bud.
It's what you get when you combine the elevator and the escalator in such a way as to prevent the safety features of either of them from being implemented.
Exactly
Installing standard elevators disables the main feature of paternoster lifts: Darwin's Natural Selection.
@@BWolf00 A designer with that level of disregard for the well-being of others deserves to get sued at the very least.
@@guidestone1392 Meanwhile our "designers" have yet to make a vehicle that won't kill the occupant(s)/participant(s) nor pedestrians...
"with that level of disregard..." they must be "inconsiderate psychos who think IQ is more important than the capacity for Empathy." lol
The same for streets, guns, knives and bubblegum. Spare me the empathic fake outrage.
@@BWolf00There was one of these in Salford University. I last rode it at some point in the early 1980s. It's a bit freakish when you first used it but after a while you get the idea and everything is fine. The issue is that you begin to calm down once you get to use it.
I first encountered these lifts when I was studying at the London School of Economics in the early 1980s. I was convinced that there were two separate lifts and if I didn't get off at the top floor in time, the lift car would flip upside down into the dark before it started over again. My husband, who knew how they worked, came with me one day and made me take it to the top floor with him and NOT get off. That's when I found out that the lift just moved laterally. V anticlimactic.
Thank you for sharing that with all of us that were too scared to try it ourselves!
haha that's a lot of trust to put in your husband! was it spooky, that moment of truth?
@@SpaceMissile Fortunately for me, I'm married to the best husband in the world and it's easy to trust him! 😉
@@NicknameOnly 🤢
Haha I kid. 👍
We had one at university... I had never seen one before, so, went to the top to have a look... My mates had a laugh when I came back down the other side doing a handstand! 😏😏
I never heard of these until this video! Seeing them in action, I can understand why they never were approved in America.
They were: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paternoster_lift#USA
I can see why it was a common thing beside that garage in San Fran, it looks real unsafe, that is a lawsuit waiting to happen especially here in America
The 450 Sutter in SF is a "manlift" not a paternoster. It's a vertical conveyor belt used by parking valets to quickly move between floors -- it's not for public use.
There's one used in the beginning of the film The Driver.
I've heard of "Shabbat Elevators" in which a standard elevator would be switched to a mode that the car would automatically stop at each floor and open and close it's doors without the rider touching a single button in concurrence with Rabbinical interpretations of the Jewish laws involving the Sabbath. (Much like an Eruv acts as the extension of the doorposts and walls, allowing observant Jews to carry items or push baby strollers to and from the synagogue.)
We had something where I worked called a man-lift. It was like a conveyor belt, going straight up and down. There were foot pads to stand on, and a hand grip to hold onto. You had better get off at the top, or it would carry you right over to the down side, only standing on your head. Scary thing, it was.
I rode one of these in the middle of the night at an industrial plant that I was guarding alone years ago and got out on a pitch-black floor. I was afraid to get back on with almost no light coming thru the floor shaft but more afraid to stay. It was a great relief to reach the ground safely, and based on what you said, I was probably close to being dragged over the top in the dark.
I worked for a few months in a place that had one of those, years ago. I used it once and then took the extra time to use the stairs every time I had change floors after that.
I saw such a thing on a video where they went to an abandoned sugar beet mill, or whatever it was. I thought they were kidding around!
I remember using those in a huge pulp mill when I had to to go to various factories to work on programming PLC's. I never liked it, but the place was so huge you could easily get lost and I had to use it to get to the machine I was fixing or I couldn't find it. I tried avoiding it by taking a staircase once and ended up wandering around for an hour totally lost so I was basically forced to use the man lift to not get lost. It was kind of fun to use I suppose but it went up 6 floors so it was pretty scary looking down when you only had a tiny platform just barely big enough to stand on.
My brother and I delivered phone books in the '70s here in the Twin Cities, and saw a lot of cool things not generally open to the citizenry. One was an old flour mill on the Mississippi near downtown Minneapolis. Pretty much the whole place was run by a series of belts, snaking up and around the entire plant. There were two paternosters that we saw (still operating!). Not as fancy as the ones pictured here, these were basically steps bolted to a wide canvas belt that slowly moved through four floors. We spent a fair amount of time just joy-riding! Really clever how the whole mill used one giant engine to power all these belts and pulleys that ran the whole place!
@blinkvideo Your comment brings back fond memories of Minneapolis where I grew up in the '50s. My dad worked for "General Mills" flour division, which was located near St Anthony Falls, between 1st S. & Washington ave S. on the East side of 3rd Ave. Pillsbury flour mills also were located in that section of the city. Back then Minneapolis was known as the "Mill City". When the flour mills left the city, the grain elevators were converted to expensive apartments, which had a beautiful view of the downtown river front!
🍺 I miss Grain Belt Beer, the real stuff, the recipe used before Irwin Jacobs bought it. For Minnesota, that was pretty good beer! 🍻
looks like a good way to lose a limb.
Or, in my experience your head and your life.
I'LL BE BACK ! I cared at the time.
There are safety switches everywhere so it's very difficult to actually get harmed by a modern paternoster.
Is the head counted as a limb? Bend over = no more head.
@I'LL BE BACK ! Sure, it would at least reintroduce evolutionary pressure in favour of higher IQ.
Yeah, they are almost perfectly designed to make a fire go quickly through the entire building.
That's something that can be solved. Basically ensure that each floor has a foyer with a door that shuts in case of fire and most of that trouble is fixed. The other issues are harder to resolve and even in the case of adding the fire door, you're stuck with a bunch of extra firewall that wouldn't otherwise be needed.
all you need it fire doors to close off the shaft during fires. doesn't take much design changes.
and a stairway is not????
@@owlsayssouth 2nd genius.
@@SmallSpoonBrigade It can be solved by using lifts with doors too, but the point is this is faster.....BECAUSE THERE ARE NOT DOORS....oh, just simply solve the issue basically with some doors......automatic fire sensing doors even, genius.
At the ripe old age of 4 or 5 I was on one of these in the early 50s in Germany. As I grew older, I was always confused as to why elevators had doors. It wasn't until I was in my 60s that I read an article about the paternoster elevator and finally realized where my confusion had originated. One of the many grand and glorious memories of my childhood that I still cherish to this day in my 70s. Never forget the past; it is the pathway to the future.
Brilliant! I only heard about these elevators from my father, who thought they were a very good idea. Now I feel like an expert! :-)
When used properly, I'm sure the are a good idea. But, there's numerous issues including the fact that people in wheelchairs, walkers and those carrying large boxes aren't able to use them.
Years ago, I worked at a warehouse where we used a horizontal version of these things to move boxes around and you had to be careful as getting a finger stuck between the cages could result in it being lost. Very efficient for moving things around, but not terribly safe.
These are shown in use in the 1920s film Metropolis.
That's an amazing film.
My first thought was it was called paternoster because you said a prayer for your safety right before trying to get on or off the thing.
I remember first seeing this type of lift in a movie when I was a kid. Scared me then, scares me now. :)
I see this as a great idea that’s still functional today. As the narrator said it takes a bit of concentration, but it’s an elevator you’re not waiting for. “Crush” bars and other safety mechanisms can easily be retrofitted into the them.
Same here, i think the movie i saw it in was one of the Omen movies.
Something very similar is used in American industrial facilities somewhat often. No cars, just a little platform to stand on and a rail to grab, the belt or chain is sometimes surrounded by a cage or shaft, but you just step on or off at whatever level you choose. They can be a little scary. They're mostly being phased out by now, but I've been in places that still use them recently.
Imax Junior yes, it was in the first Omen movie.
Lul, same here. I thought you would get smooshed at the top. I thought the compartments got folded at the top and bottom.
Feel sorry for the person that sees a headless body going by.
Or the headless person itself
We all know it's going to happen someday
@@ticktockbam 😂😂
If you let a few of those go by, you’ll still be waiting less than for an elevator.
Similar, yet still better than the Hogwarts stairs...
There's one of these in Northwick Park Hospital in Harrow, London. Used to be fascinated by it as a kid.
You see, kids are small enough to get into them.
How would wheelchair people ride then?
Cool - the Paternoster in the opening shots is in a building I worked in for 5 years. I used this thing multiple times daily and loved it! Memories :)
Very cool!
Stop lying! I believe you used it, but you didn't love it!🤔🤨😂
Cç CNN b.c CV ft. tu UFC cpo crook dro. Njiiiijjhvvfgy78uhhvggu899ijbbhi
@@rhuttrho88 - You do know people who worked and used these things in the past also watch RUclips.
I rode one as a student at the U. of Vienna in the 1970s. I just looked it up and as of 2015, still going. That surprised me. My first impression of it was that if you weren't careful, you could lose a limb or be decapitated. But you get used to it. It was more convenient not having to wait long, and open feeling compared to a regular elevator.
I saw one of these in the 1962 movie The Counterfeit Traitor. I wondered how such a thing could exist without the occasional person stumbling and having their head taken off.
Wonderful spy film.
This kind is also seen in the original "the Omen" film.
I like how you didn'T share the mystery of the turning points... That is a secret only to be uncovered by the ones brave enough!
irgendwieanders1 Or , like me , a bit hesitant in stepping off at the top floor at Aston University , so finding out by accident that it doesn’t tip over !
ruclips.net/video/YgJBD1wf-YQ/видео.html
I do t like regular elevators. This one is nope. Nope. Nopity nope.
How about a conveyor belt eighteen inches wide, going up, up up?
Linda Terrell HOW IS THIS ALLOWED?!? There’s just no way.
Don't be such wusses.
James Faulkner II I've used man-belts, they actually are a little unnerving, haha!
@@The_sinner_Jim_Whitney That's what they are called! I couldn't remember for my other post, we called them 'man-lifts'. Fun, but just scary enough at times to give tingles. One guy said that he would sometimes carry a fifty pound /22.5kg bag on them. Nutters!
There have been one too many fatalities in them. We had a paternoster lift at Leeds University and I used it a few times but it never really floated my boat. I believe it was decommissioned after a fatal accident.
Tim Hancock. One fatality in the UK and one in the Nederland's. That's it for Europe. They removed them because of the POTENTIAL for accidents. In fact they are far more serious accidents and fatalities recorded in conventional lifts but of course there are far more of them. However it was the HSE concern for potential accidents the caused many of them to be removed but they are still legal. As with all lift accidents the human element is crucial. Not sure about the UK one but the Dutch one was caused by corrosion of the bearing plate from too much water when cleaning and lack of preventative maintenance. The actual function of the lift was not the primary cause. Every lift incident I attempted as a fire officer involved human error be it on the part of the lift passenger (they do some very strange things like riding beneath the cage on a rope and standing on top of the cage) or lack of maintenance by the engineering company. Many are badly abused in council tower blocks and quite frankly they were used more as urinals that a useful function in the building, not that a urinal is not useful, but urine splashed all over the operating panel is not desirable maintenance. We had one Paternoster Lift in a bank building on King St in Manchester but I am not aware if it's still there. I am not aware of any serious incidents with it but I could be wrong as I didn't spend too much of my service in or around Manchester City centre.
indeed the fun of the interchange in the Roger Stevens block brings back many happy memories
@@Biffo1262 It always amazes me that here in the UK we always (well sometimes) seem to wait for a fatality before we take action to improve a potentially dangerous situation. I live in Basingstoke, Hampshire and as an example the A33 to Reading has a dual carriageway section with a 70 mph speed limit (same as a motorway) but features no crash barriers in the central reservation so there's potential every day for a 150 + mph (being realistic) head on crash. But it's been like that for as long as the dual carriageway has been open (more than 35 years).
Yes remember them at Leeds University back in 1980
SAFETY is better than convenience.
I worked in Warrington briefly and a building we used had a Paternoster. Great fun. Wikipedia says it's now sealed up though.
For those who never used one, it was perfectly safe to go over the top or under the bottom - the actual ‘cage’ moved sideways and across and they had a light in the area for those frightened of the dark 😀
TBH, I'm not sure why that wouldn't be safe. They'd have to go out of their way to make it unsafe as the box itself has walls on 5 sides making it difficult for objects to penetrate the car. At least, not any more so than the other areas between floors.
RICHARD WILSON Thank you. I always wondered what happened but was too scared to try it!
My company has a building where there's still a paternoster working tirelessly. The maintenance people love that thing as it nearly never fails since the motors are constantly running at the same speed. Very very low-maintenance and employees love them to easily switch between floors.
There's also an industrial version where there's only steps (and a handle) on a rubber band going up and down - called a "belt manlift". This is used to get workers quickly to different floors.
That must be the US then. The EU banned these years ago.
@ The belt manlift is not in my company, I just wanted to mention this special form. Never seen one in real life either.
They used to be in the University of Aston in Birmingham, UK in the late 1960's. they took a little getting used to. A couple of us stayed in as it went 'over the top' just for the experience. The things you do as a student...
Likewise. However they were very slow going down. I could get down 10 floors quicker than the lift. Sometimes the same going up.
Love it 😻
They were popular at Universities, Salford had one too. If you were going to the top floor and missed getting off you always had the bonus of going over the top. They were great fun over normal lifts and no waiting too.
Leicester University has one of these.
There was also one at Birmingham Poly at Perry Barr.
Loved messing around on the one in the Arts Tower at Sheffield Uni as a school kid
When the new Civic Centre in Southend-of-Sea opened, back in the early 60s, it had a paternoster lift for papers. If you wanted to send documents to another floor you pressed the button on the next available carrier to select the floor and put your papers on the carrier. When the carrier reached the selected floor it would tip up and the papers would be ejected into a receiving container.
Alejandra y Alan Bowman
They had something similar in Bart's Hospital, London, for medical records; Always jamming because people would put x-ray films in then, and these were too big/heavy for the system.
I remember the paternoster in Claremont Tower - I'd never seen one before and it took me a few attempts before I plucked up the courage to step into the moving lift. Once you'd done that you realised it was easy peasy. A unique experience. I was saddened to learn, years later, that it had been removed.
I can remember as a kid getting on one of these in the netherlands in the seventies in a department store either C&A (clothes) or V&D( household) cant remember which one but never forgot it, it scared the crap out of me when my father told me that if you got your head stuck it would be ripped off 😬
The Finnish Parliament House has these. It's really weird.
And only MPs are allowed to use it.
Its Finland.... there's nothing strange about it
They need to install these things everywhere in the country of Turkey.
how many has it killed?
NwO 4LiFE Happiest country on earth.
I never knew about this type of elevator before this video. It really doesn’t look safe.
_Finally the mystery is solved!_ In the film *The Omen,* there is a scene at
about 1 hour and 6 minutes in where Gregory Peck's character is talking
to a nun at a hospital & she got on one of those contraptions... well now
I know the name of it: *Paternoster Lift!* *Thanks* for posting this clip! ⭐
Very interesting. I only heard of these because I saw a documentary , think it was Stephen Fry demonstrating one still in use in Britain. Love these videos 👍
The University of Salford (UK) had Paternoster lifts in the Chemistry Tower in the '70s. I believe they lasted up until the building was demolished in (I think) the '80s. They were very popular and no injuries occurred as far as I know. I seem to remember that if someone's body wasn't fully in the car an automatic sensor immediately halted the motion for maybe 5 seconds to give someone time to get their leg or whatever out of the way. Many people happily travelled "over the top" beyond the 12th floor through the winding compartment and back down the other side just for a laugh, and similarly at the bottom end under the basement. No real danger at all. Happy days! :)
I remember using one during an interview/open day at Salford Uni in 1983.
Thank you. A very quirky topic.
Used them in Berlin for 6 months in the 70's. Really efficient and no problem using them.
These would really have a positive impact on my health.
I'd be using the stairs.
This brought back fond memories from both Birmingham University and Birmingham Poly - Long story. Once you get used hopping in and out of the cars, they're quite convenient.
I remember them at Manchester Uni, but was at Birmingham Poly in 1989 and don't recall seeing them there. Had they been removed by then?
That is one very dodgy idea. Talk about an accident waiting to happen!
They were pretty much banned in the EU by 1995 and completely shut down and banned in 2014.
Ngl I would rather use the stairs than to ride this death machines
I absolutely loved the paternoster lift at the University of Leicester , UK. It sadly shut down very recently as replacement parts could not be found. Many a student had great fun terrifying themselves by going complete circle in the iconic lift.
I remember the one at Leicester Uni - wasn’t a good idea after a few drinks in the union bar 😂
This looks incredibly dangerous. You'd never see this in the U.S., Land of the litigious
Land of the litigious! 🤣🤣🤣
I was fascinated to see this type of lift in the early 90s when I worked as a temp at Unipart Oxford. Always volunteered to take papers so I could have a go.
It clearly stated not to stay on above the top floor or the bottom one, but one lunch break I did the whole round. Honestly wasn't convinced I wouldn't be tipped upside down but I can confirm that it didn't and it was just a bit dark with lots of bricks
Ahh yes, someone took my nightmares and made them into reality.
I used one when I worked at a public hospital in Sweden. That was the fastest way to get from floor to floor and department to department; used by staff and usually not patients..keeping it safer for the public and quicker for staff when in a hurry to an emergency I imagine.
A fascinating technology none the less.
I love these. The Stuttgart townhall still has one in service and it has become kind of a tourist attraction. It is fun to ride. Similar to the old London buses where you could get on and off while driving.
Saw one of those in use on _The Prisoner_ when Number Six escapes The Village and reports to his superiors in the _Many Happy Returns_ episode.
This was in the (now demolished) GEC building in Borehamwood, just a short walk from Elstree Studios, and the Prisoner Appreciation Society occasionally came for a visit to see it. I used to work there in the late 90s and rode the paternoster most days. It was a rite of passage to do a full circuit, going over the top and round the bottom. Shortly before I left to work elsewhere the paternoster broke down and it wasn't allowed to be repaired.
@@JohnMonsteur I "rode" on that during a training course there back in the 90's. Quite an experience. If I remember, there was a wooden flap on the floor which had a one way hinge such that if you leaned too far forward on the way up, the flap would hinge so the worst you would get was a smack on the top of your head (rather than having your head taken off!)
I used to work there in the sixties and used it a lot. Once saw a chap get on carrying a long florescent tube - Too late he realised it didn't fit
Still in use in a few places in the US. One of them is in a parking deck where the valets use this lift to go from floor to floor. It's very efficient and takes little space they could use for parking cars.
Can't even imagine the terror one must feel trying to use one of these as an older person with limited mobility.
As a kid I used to dream of elevators without doors, shallow compartments, nightmares usually. Years later I went to a Museum in Berlin (the Stasi-museum) and found out these things really exist.
I wonder how many still exist. I had never heard of paternoster lifts before
Only a couple sadly. :(
Nolanevator - As he says in the video, there’s quite a few scattered across Europe and the U.K.
Atheist Orphan Yeah I know that’s why I said only a couple
I don't recall hearing about more than one paternoster in Finland. But, there is that one, in eduskuntatalo, and I think it is still kept running.
In Czech Republic we have few running left, feel free to test them. :)
Great vlog as always! In Oslo there were a Max of four lifts, all privat companies. One in a bank, one at a hangar at FBU, the former airport in Oslo. Now none are left.
The Netflix show "Babylon Berlin" features one of these....
Steven! That's where I saw it, Thanks, it was driving me nuts trying to remember. How could anyone not take one look at the design and think, "yep, folks will lose arms, toes and the occasional pecker" ?
Great show!
Probably inspired by Fritz Lang's Metropolis
We used to have two in our office. As far as i can remember though, they went about twice the speed of the one in the video. Scary at first but you got the hang of it. Seemed safe enough until more than one tries to get in at once. They were removed eventually probably around 1988.
I see the logo sign "Hitachi" on the side of the paternoster. Wow, I am a Japanese, but I've never seen it before. Is there still demand? Is there any self stopping mechanism or any on it? I don't see any different to a guillotine.
Had one of these in the Seven-storey block at Rolls-Royce. We used to love riding over the top or round the bottom. If someone was watching, stand on your head as you go over and see their reaction.
I remember using these in Czechoslovakia back in the 1980s. I'll say this, if you are a cellphone zombie or a text message zombie, I suggest taking the stairs. 😉😉😉
The life you save may be your own.
We had one in the police headoffice in Rotterdam up till the 90s. As long as grease them well they are very low energy and practically without maintanance. Very funny to ride.
The former headquarters of Stasi in former East Berlin has one of these.
Also Rathaus Schöneberg has one of the few publicly accessible ones.
I wonder how many prisoners suffered unfortunate but convenient accidents on it?
"Too Far Afield," a novel by Günter Grass, is about two old guys who used to work in Berlin for the Stasi, set after the end of East Germany, and mentions the paternoster many times. I thought it was maybe a metaphor (probably was, also) and not real until I found out they really exist!
LOL! Still a shocker! I remember being totally blown away when I saw one in the movie "Ruby Cairo" with Andie MacDowell & Liam Neeson. To this day, it still seems so strange to me that there are technologies out there being used quite nonchalantly by swathes of people and I've never even heard of or seen them. Thank you for the name "Paternoster", would never have imagined :)
Imma call it the “natural selector”
Rode my first paternoster in 1949 at Tempelhof in Berlin when I was eleven. Fascinating devices.
Paternoster:
Final Destination: Hi there!
final destination 6: AHHHHHHHHH IT WONT STOP HELP *gets Crushed*
Used one for 3+years at Birmingham Dental School. Worked well no injuries in my time there. Good fun at times.
I recall once riding one at Birmingham polytechnic in the 80s
Yes, I was there in the early 70s and we had them then. Never thought they were dangerous at the time. Oh the ignorance of youth!
As someone with a mild case of claustrophobia, I see these as a valid alternative to the existential terror I feel when I get into a windowless metal coffin that can snap and pulverize me at any time.
I'm just a bit scared of the warp gate at the end that teleports the elevator back to its starting position.
Great new channel, looks like there'll be endless material here in the future. Never seen this lift/elevator before, fascinating.
Were you able to go around all the way at top and bottom?
Generally it's unsafe to go all the way over or under. It's possible to destabilize the thing because of the angles, or something to that effect. But there are plenty of 'up and over' videos out there which show what's up and down there - a big old slab of wall, usually.
I did it on my first ever trip in one: missed my exit on the ground floor and was taken down into total darkness where I then lost all sense of direction, due to the movement of the car at the bottom of the loop, until daylight reappeared at the top of the lift as it rose back to the ground floor. I didn’t miss my exit a second time - quite unnerving!
Yes
These lifts were in Claremont Tower at Newcastle University in 1970s. Never particularly efficient when a lot of students trying to get to 10th floor lecture theatre.
There is one in Sheffield in one of the University buildings
The Arts Tower, at any rate in the Sixties where I used it for 4 years (not continuously). 19 floors!
@@bobdoney2963 it was still there in 2012, at least.
I’ve only seen and used this once when visiting a friend in Hamburg Germany. He was a lawyer so must have been working in legal offices or something like that. We both got in for a laugh and I had no idea what would happen once the lift got to the top.
I remember travelling in one ,it was in St Thomas's hospital, very handy in case of accidents! I was about ten at the time went right round full circle ,fancy being more sensible 58 yrs ago than people today.
The old Grenada head office in Bedford had one. It's walled up now. Used to be great fun for a kid
The legend says if you stay inside over the turning point you can cross to a parallel universe.
I've never seen a video before who's comment section I disagreed 99% with. Nice work.
Interesting. Watch the series "Babylon Berlin" to see the characters getting on and off these lifts.
Thanks for the facts and data. I missed a video showing how it looks if you stay inside and make the u-Turn on top floor. I did once. It makes scary noise but is safe.
Hi, I enjoyed the presentation. Hope it's OK if I add another dimension to what you have here. My father was a millwright during the interwar years here in Southern Ontario, Canada. He told us of using a simpler version within the flour mills. It was simply a flat belt running between floors with small foot pads projecting from the belt. Someone wanting to change floors would simply step on one of the pads and grab onto the belt. In his version of the story the Paternoster title came from the fact everyone stepping on to the lift (lower) always gave a little prayer in hopes it would secure a safe trip. :-)
Thanks for sharing Ronald!
There was one I used daily in the Abrams Complex (the IG Farbin Bldg) in Frankfurt when I was assigned to the V Corps Headquarters. It really worked quite well.
There's one in one of the Uni buildings in Sheffield.
Yes, the arts tower
@@andreasphotiou1886 Is that one still going?
@@paulmagpie7601 yep it is
Memories of growing up in 1970's Bristol; there was a big CRS ( co-op) store called Fairfax House with these lifts installed. Always thought they were potentially pretty dangerous but fun at the same time being a child. The building itself had a short life, opened in 1962 and demolished in 1988 to make way for the redevelopment of the Broadmead shopping area.
That looks like the sort of device that would eventually gain the nickname "The Decapitator".
When commonsense where still a thing.
I worked for a time in the IG Farben Building in Frankfurt very late 1969, before I was transferred to Berlin in the Army. I rode one in that building for about a month. It took some practice to get on and off for a while, but it worked well. I certainly beat climbing several flights of stairs.
In my country they call that "Snipthose Naughtykids Fingers Lift".
I rode a tiny, claustrophobic, coffin-like one of these lifts some 25 years ago or so. Somewhere in Germany in a public building (think it was Cologne). At the time, I remember being freaked out about how dangerous it seemed. I had even begun to wonder if I'd simply imagined it. At least now, after two decades, your explanation has finally ended my late night anxiety about what would happen if you made a mistake and stayed on one of these lifts thinking there was another floor still to go! I had been filled with dread that a horrible end befell one or two unfortunate souls each day... and that a special workman was on call to do the grizzly daily clean up around the back! (These lifts must have become even more dangerous since the advent of smart phones!)
That looks WAY too easy to cut yourself in half. Or lose a foot. You've got what, a 3 second window? What if someone is drunk?
Being drunk is dangerous. Everywhere. Just don't drink and drive or use a paternoster.
Friends don’t let friends use paternosters drunk. 😂
Don't drink and walk. You'll get your walking license taken away anyway.
when I was a kid, I took a tour of Quaker Oats factory. They had freight elevators(which the tour group took) and this other type for employees to hop on or off
1 death a year: GOTTA SHUT IT DOWN
cars: 1.3 million people die a year. Yeah they're alright
have you ever beaten with a hair dryer ?? well you about to be if you trynna take away my miata
Paternoster are sooo cool! My office building has one and we all love it!! :-)
This is an amusement ride, not a practicality elevator.
That's not true. They are practical, because they don't have time stopping or opening or closing doors, for journeys of just one or two floors they are faster than a normal lift. People didn't instal them in many buildings just for fun, but because they are practical.
A very interesting concept and arguably more efficient than conventional lifts. It’s easy to see how accidents could happen though, especially when departing the carriage.
The 'obvious' accident potential is all catered for - by hinged floors and stop mechanisms. Real accidents are where the thing has failed for some reason.
@@millomweb having watched more videos about these I see what you mean by the hinged floors, the one at Sheffield Uni also seems to have several trip wires, buttons and laser beams to stop it in an emergency. I am of course going to actively seek out these lifts next time I go traveling in Europe so I can have a go on one!
@@GPOTOM you can do that in Prague: www.prague.eu/en/object/places/3400/lucerna-rooftop
@@GPOTOM The size of the hinged portion ought to be 'man size' so as the machine keeps running, a flap should open to avoid trapping anyone - meanwhile the motor should also be stopped. There was one about 40 mins drive from me at a works - dunno if it's still there - but I got a job on the same site and a school-friend worked in the building with it in. So, on the eve of my first anniversary of that job I arranged to go and see him - just as an excuse to ride it ! They take a bit of learning to transfer smoothly on and off them !
I'd be interested in the fatalities as I'm sure they're far more complex than simple trappings !
Interesting. Could see these making a comeback in these socially distant times!
I used the paternoster in the former Ziggo building in The Hague when I worked there more than a decade ago. That is where the deadly accident happened because at the time it was the only paternoster in The Hague still in operation. I guess it was closed down after the accident. In the early 90s I also used the paternoster in the former city hall of The Hague (which has long since been demolished) when I worked there. Paul Verhoeven once said that as a kid he got stuck in it and it inspired the elevator scene in Total Recall, which ends with the bad guy losing his arms and falling to his death.
Great now I'll have nothing but elevator videos in my recommended again.
You're welcome Colton!
Oh no what a terrible thought!
When I clicked on this I thought it was going to be called a Paternoster because you said a prayer that you wouldn't slip just as you stepped on it.
It looks like a crash stop bar with switches and a light beam could be fitted in the top to stop the elevator. Also light beams to slow elevator or provide an entry door.
Although I've never heard of or seen a paternoster lift before, I had recurring nightmares about them when I was very young, so this is quite surreal. The most memorable was set at a swimming pool and the floor of the lift was one of those adjustable circular stools that you find in photo booths. Very claustrophobic.
Thank you for reading the Wikipedia page on paternosters out loud
Found this video by accident. There was a Paternoster Lift in the Roger Stevens Building at Leeds University when I was a student there in the late 80s. It was both fun and scary at the same time. Of course we eventually plucked up courage to go over the top and under the bottom. Your video has made me want to ride a Paternoster again. I guess I’ll have to go to Sheffield, Prague or Germany! 😀