Otis Traction Scenic Elevator at Marriott Marquis Atlanta

These elevators are famous for being some of the most thrilling in the world. This building, completed in 1985, was designed by Atlanta Architect John Portman, who designed the Westin Peachtree Plaza, SunTrust Plaza, Peachtree Center, Marriott Marquis New York, and America's Mart Atlanta. The Atrium runs the length of the building, and was the tallest (and by some conflicting accounts with the Luxor Hotel in Las Vegas, the largest) in the world until the Burj Al-Arab was completed in Dubai. There is nothing like going 5 m/s while flying by floor landings. This is really an impressive show of Otis's engineering, even by today's standards. They were some of the first elevators in the world to be installed with weight sensors, which would put an elevator in express mode if it were full (since it's dumb for it to stop for others just to start up again with the same amount of passengers). These were also some of the first with voice announcements, a feature introduced with the Elevonic 401 back in 1981. This building has recently undergone, along with the other Marriott Marquis in New York, many renovations. Nevertheless, this building's interior is still astounding, despite it being almost 25 years old. The interior, along with the elevators, is a true masterpiece.

Building Information:
http://www.emporis.com/en/wm/bu/?id=m...
http://skyscraperpage.com/cities/?bui...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atlanta_...
http://www.rediscovermarquis.com/
http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Revi...
http://www.nfb.org/Images/nfb/Publica...
http://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel...

Elevator Manufacture: Otis Elevator Company
Elevator Model: Otis Elevonic 401
Capacity: 3500 lbs (1600 kg)
Floors Served: ML, LL, Al, 10, 42-47
Year Installed: 1985, modernized 2007-2008
Distance Travelled: 160-165m (Building is 168m tall)
Elevator Speed: 4-5 m/s (800-1000 FPM)