According to a comprehensive new elevator report published by the city’s Department of Buildings, New York City is home to 63,000 passenger elevators completing 35 million passenger trips each and every day. Largely presented in the form of maps, the report provides all of the information about NYC elevators that you could ever want to know, and possibly even things that you never even thought to ask.
Exploring NYCs Many Elevators
The first report of its kind, the elevator report includes information about all types of elevators found in the city. This includes passenger elevators, escalators, freight elevators, wheelchair lifts, dumbwaiters, personnel hoists, private elevators, sidewalk elevators and even permanent amusement rides. The report goes on to define each of these types of elevators as the following:
- Passenger Elevator: Elevator that is specifically designed to carry passengers between the floors of a building.
- Escalator: An inclined, continuous stairway that is used to raise and lower passengers.
- Freight Elevator: An elevator designed to carry goods, not passengers.
- Wheelchair Lift: A lift designed to provide building access to people in wheelchairs.
- Dumbwaiter: Device used to move small loads between floors, such as those found in hotels, hospitals, restaurants and apartment buildings.
- Personnel Hoist: A temporary device used to life personnel, materials and equipment at a construction site.
- Private Elevator: A device installed in a private residence or within a multiple dwelling but used to reach a private residence.
- Sidewalk Elevator: A device used to transport goods and materials from the street to the basement or cellar of a building.
- Permanent Amusement Rides: A recreational attraction used to carry passengers, such as a roller coaster.
The interactive online report makes it possible to view the types of elevators and the amount of devices that are present in each community district. The report also provides information about the number of devices found in each of the buildings within each district.
Doing Your Research
When looking at buying real estate or renting in a building in NYC, this new report has some potential benefits. For example, one of the maps within the report allows the user to examine information regarding elevator violations and complaints throughout the city. By examining these violations and complaints, you can get a better idea of whether or not the property will be well-suited to you and your needs. It also gives you a potential area for negotiation if the building where you are considering buying or renting has a history of elevator issues.
The report also gives information about upcoming elevator additions to the city. By viewing the report, you can not only discover whether or not elevators are planned for new developments, but you can also learn more about the types of elevators that are to be included.
Of course, the report can also be viewed as a way to simply take an interesting stroll through NYC’s history. According to the report, the first freight elevator was installed in the city in 1850. The first private elevator didn’t come to the city until the 1930s when a private elevator entrance was installed in a penthouse. The number of elevators in the city has grown significantly since then, with a total of 84,000 elevator devices located within the Department of Building’s jurisdiction. 63,000 of these are passenger elevators, a number that is greater than the total number of passenger elevators found in Chicago, Los Angeles, Miami and Washington D.C. combined.