Boat Elevator - Saint-Louis-Arzviller inclined plane
The structure opened in 1969, replacing 17 locks to provide for a change in level of 44.55 metres (approximately 138 feet). The inclined plane comprises a single chamber, reminiscent of a giant bath tub, which is called a caisson and slides laterally up or down the hillside on rails set at an angle of 41 degrees. The caisson is counter-balanced by two weights each of 450 metric tons, and the length of the lifting ramp is 108.65 metres (about 335 feet). The design is believed to be unique in Europe.
Prior to the construction of the incline, barges needed 8 to 13 hours to traverse the 17 locks and 10,200 cubic metres of water was needed to operate the series of locks. The incline can be traversed in 4 minutes and requires only 40 cubic metres of water. Because the design uses counterweights to balance the weight of the caisson being moved, the entire operation can be run by two 120 horsepower electric motors, which causes a surprisingly small energy consumption.
official site: plan-incline.com
November 6th, 2007 at 9:30 am
Man, that is just amazing. Sometimes I’m proud to be a human. …sometimes.
November 6th, 2007 at 8:03 pm
totally agree webnician. humans can be absolutely amazing… and then follow it up with something astoundingly stupid. i guess we’re still young.
December 8th, 2007 at 11:30 am
I was lucky enough to ride on the Arzviller Inclined plane, in 1995 in my own boat on a trip from UK to Switzerland, you can read about it on our site. I have also ridden the hugee inclined plane at Roquieres near Charloi in Belgium, that too can be seen on our site. I am interested in canal engineering, and can also recommend the giant boat lift at MOns.