Inclined elevator project in Provincetown takes shape with arrival of steel tracks and emergency staircase, with a May completion date set
January 12, 2021 | Alex Darus, Banner Correspondent | WebsitePROVINCETOWN — The steel tracks for the outdoor inclined elevator have been laid up the hill to the Pilgrim Monument, which will connect a new elevator pavilion on the top of the hill to the base behind Town Hall.
The rails arrived Jan. 4 and have been installed along with an emergency staircase, according to K. David Weidner, executive director of the Pilgrim Monument and Provincetown Museum. The tracks were made in Switzerland by Inauen-Schätti AG out of galvanized steel and connect the two elevator pavilions together.
The outdoor elevator, formally named the Bradford Access Project, will use the rails to take riders to the height of roughly 80 feet. The goal of the project is to encourage tourism and strengthen the connection between the Pilgrim Monument and Provincetown Museum on High Pole Hill and downtown. By extending the monument’s “front door” directly down the hill to Bradford Street, the elevator is intended to increase foot traffic between the locations.
The elevator will run from an area near the intersection of Ryder and Bradford streets, up a slope, on a two-minute ride, to the top of High Point Hill and the monument grounds.
The $5 million project broke ground in May last year and is expected to be completed this May, pending state certification and approval.
The Cape Cod Pilgrim Memorial Association, the nonprofit that owns the land, is paying for the project. Construction will require no public funds and the inclined elevator will operate on hillside land on Bradford Street owned by the association.
