If you suffer from a fear of heights, perhaps this
one's not for you.
The Bailong Elevator, also known as the Hundred Dragons Elevator,
carries tourists 1,070ft (330m) up the side of a massive sandstone
column in a mountain range in China's Hunan Province.
|
 |
Riding the glass lift, which carries up to 50 people at a time or 1,380
an hour, offers jaw-dropping, not to say vertiginous, views down to the
bottom of the rocky mountain range in the Wulingyuan area of
Zhangijiajie.
Work began on the lift, which cost 120m yuan, or around £12m, in 1999
and finished in 2002.
The project met with fierce criticism from environmentalists who were
angry that it was sited in the middle of a World Heritage Site.
|
 |
Lift shafts and tunnels had to be dug into the quartz sandstone column
chosen from thousands in the area, and earthquake detectors installed so
that the lifts (there are three of them) could be evacuated quickly in
case of disaster.
Those in favour of the project said that the elevators, which are said
to boast the biggest passenger capacity in the world, saved the mountain
trails from excess traffic.
But protestors said the area, which attracts 5m visitors each year, was
already saturated with tourists and did not need another attraction to
boost that number further.
After it was built, the lift was said to be the world's tallest
full-exposure outdoor lift, tallest double-deck sightseeing elevator,
and the fastest passenger elevator with the biggest capacity, according
to Industrytap.com.
|
 |
After the project was opened to the public in 2002 it was quickly shut
down temporarily because of safety, rather than environmental concerns.
It reopened in 2003 and now has a cult following from tourists keen to
ride a lift known as one of the most terrifying in the world for its
sheer drop views down to the bottom of the valley.
Those whose fear of heights prohibits them from taking the lift can
instead take a two-and-a-half hour walk up the valley.
The lift ride takes around a minute to reach the top, from where
tourists can see breath-taking views of the area's quartzite sandstone
pillars. |