Tallest Ride

Every human endeavor has its superlatives: the best, the fastest, the strongest. Whether we’re talking about athletic competition, academic achievement or technological advancement, somebody always seeks to hold up an accomplishment as an aspirational example. This is no less true of the vertical-transportation industry. To wit: The Minneapolis-St. Paul Airport recently completed work on what it says is the new tallest escalator in Minnesota. City Pages notes that it was built over the summer of 2020, along with a new parking ramp at the airport’s Terminal 1. Some facts:

Length: 118 ft

Height: 55 ft, 2 in, or about five stories

Speed: 100 ft/min

Capacity: 9,000 passengers/h

Travel time: 75 s

The airport says its new escalator surpasses the state’s previous record holder, the 47-ft-tall moving stairs at the Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis. While the new parking ramp and escalator were not immediately needed, thanks to the pandemic-related travel slowdown, this new machine stands ready for large crowds as passenger traffic rebounds.

You can watch a video of the installation and use below: