Poelaert Elevators
Public elevator at Marolles, Brussels, Belgium From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Poelaert Elevators (French: Ascenseurs Poelaert, Dutch: Poelaertliften),[1][2] in popular language Elevators of the Marolles (French: Ascenseurs des Marolles,[3][4] Dutch: Liften van de Marollen[5]) is a public elevator in the Marolles/Marollen district of Brussels, Belgium. It connects the lower and upper town at the Square Breughel l'Ancien/Breughel de Oudeplein with the Place Poelaert/Poelaertplein,[1] in the vicinity of the Palace of Justice. The elevator consists of two independent elevators, hence the plural elevators (French: ascenseurs, Dutch: liften) sometimes used for its name.
| Poelaert Elevators | |
|---|---|
 View of the lift from the Square Breughel l'Ancien/Breughel de Oudeplein | |
 | |
| Alternative names | Ascenseurs des Marolles (French) Liften van de Marollen (Dutch) |
| General information | |
| Location | Marollen |
| Town or city | City of Brussels |
| Country | Belgium |
| Coordinates | 50°50′16.9″N 4°21′04″E |
| Inaugurated | June 2002 |
| Renovated | 2021 |
| Cost | 78 million Belgian francs |
| Owner | STIB/MIVB |
| Height | 27.7 m (91 ft) |
| Technical details | |
| Lifts/elevators | 2 |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect(s) | Patrice Neirinck |
| Architecture firm | AVA Architects |
| Main contractor | CFE |
| Renovating team | |
| Structural engineer | Van Eycken Metal Construction |
| Other information | |
| Seating capacity | 32 |
The idea of building a means of transport connecting the Marolles/Marollen neighbourhood and the Place Poelaert/Poelaertplein is much older; in the 19th century, it was proposed to build a funicular for this purpose.[3] In the early 1990s, the architect Patrice Neirinck of AVA Architects promoted the concept of building a vertical elevator.[6] The proposal sought to "open up the Marolles district" and "revitalise the Square Breughel l'Ancien/Breughel de Oudeplein",[7] located at the bottom, making it a crossing point.[6]
CFE was appointed as the general contractor, and the supply of the two elevators and the electromechanical systems were provided by Schindler Group.[1] The architectural project was executed by the AVA Architects office, under the coordination of the architect Patrice Neirinck, while the Verdeyen & Moenaert took care of the stability study.[3]
The construction cost about 78 million Belgian francs (equivalent to about €2 million),[6] of which 51 million francs (about €1.25 million) for the bulk of the investment, and 27 million francs (about €676,000) for the elevators. Funding was provided by the Brussels-Capital Region and the Belgian Federal Government under a cooperation agreement. The Ministry of Communications and Infrastructure was in charge of the project management, receiving technical assistance from the Directorate of Electromechanical Constructions.[3]
After the construction of the tower, the future metal walkway was installed between the upper part and the Place Poelaert. The 36-metre-long (118 ft) walkway was made at Geel, Antwerp, and transported to Brussels by a special convoy, arriving on the esplanade at the Palace of Justice around 10:00 on 13 October 2001.[3] The entire lift was inaugurated in June 2002[6] and became one of the area's most popular tourist attractions.[8] Its administration and operation was entrusted by the municipality to the Brussels Intercommunal Transport Company (STIB/MIVB).[4][3]
The operation of the new elevator was marked by numerous technical problems,[9] the first being reported only one month after the inauguration, on 21 July 2002.[10] In 2019, for example, STIB/MIVB had to intervene a total of 131 times to remedy the faults that occurred at the two elevators: 43 wedges in one of them, 88 wedges in the other. The main reasons that led to the shutdown of the elevators were the unfavorable weather conditions and vandalism.[4]
In April 2018, 1,300 colored T-shirts were hung from the structure of the elevator, as part of the work entitled If I Had Wings, a cultural experiment by Finnish artist Kaarina Kaikkonen.[5]
In July 2020, the Minister for Mobility and Public Works of the Brussels-Capital Region, Elke Van den Brandt, confirmed that the lift would be rehabilitated in the first quarter of 2021.[4]
About a million people use the elevator every year.[6]
View from the base of the elevator
The metal walkway leading to the elevator
View from the Place Poelaert/Poelaertplein
The Poelaert Elevators have the following specifications:[6]
| Specifications | |
|---|---|
| Characteristics | Value |
| Number of elevators | 2 |
| Height | 27.70 m |
| Walkway length | 35.50 m |
| Total weight | 100 t |
| Max load | 1,250 kg (16 people per cabin) |
| Speed | 1 m/s |
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