Commencement of works

1903 by hotel proprietor Franz Josef Bucher-Durrer. It was commissioned in 1905 as Europe’s tallest outdoor lift.

1^st lift

Eight passengers / 600 kg. Spruce cabin clad in zinc. Speed approx. 1 m/s. Power sourced from the Bürgenstock and Stanserhorn run-of-river power generator. Inconsistent speeds due to voltage fluctuations.

1^st overhaul

1936 by Schindler AG and hotel staff. Cabin now made of a light metal and capable of carrying ten passengers. Speed increased to 4 m/s. Anti-corrosion treatment. Partial overhaul in 1981.

Costs

The Rock-face Path and Hammetschwand Lift cost CHF 500,000 to build, while the overhauls cost around CHF 2.4 million. The base terminus and lift facility were extended between 1990 and April 1992.

Passenger numbers

From the lift’s opening in 1905 to the break in service in 1990, the lift had carried some four million passengers.

Heights/altitudes

• Surface of Lake Lucerne: alt. 433.60 m
• Base terminus: alt. 961.60 m
• Summit terminus: alt. 1114.41 m
• Height of base terminus to start of tower metalwork: 44.93 m
• Vertical distance from base terminus to summit terminus: 152.81 m
• Vertical distance from base terminus to top of lift tower: 164.12 m

New lift

Panoramic cabin with condensation-proof glazing on three sides. Carrying capacity 900 kg (max. 12 passengers). Schindler Miconic V microprocessor control. Transitronic direct-drive system, nominal velocity 3.15 m/s. Automatically adjusts to changes in payload. Voltage 3 x 500 V.

Tower

Weight approx. 23 tonnes (computed) or 30 tonnes including corrosion protection. Grit plus 2.5 tonnes of primer/undercoat and top coat paint.
The tower is illuminated using 16 floodlights.