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February 22, 2006
The
Scots have re-invented the wheel for the twenty-first century, the boat lift Ferris
Wheel that is
By
P/Cdr Herman Kuipers, JN
 In February 2006, we took a one hour boat
ride transiting on the giant
rotating boat lift at Falkirk Scotland. With Scotland being so far
north, we were surprised that the wheel was operational in mid
winter. The Falkirk Wheel is the
only construction of its kind in the world, scooping boats out of the
water and depositing them either up or down the historic waterway between
Glasgow and Edinburgh. Begun in 1999, the two year restoration
project made the 200 year old Forth & Clyde and Union canals navigable
once again. The
dimensions of the wheel are staggering. It is 35 meters high, 30
meters long, and carries eight or more boats at a time. A single trip takes about
15 minutes. Until recently, the canal provided a grim reminder of a
bygone era, winding its way through vast tracts of land polluted by mining
and heavy industry. The wheel
has replaced a series of nineteenth century stepped locks which closed in
the 1960s While the Wheel is the showpiece of the project, it
includes a new section of canal, two aqueducts, three locks and a tunnel
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FACTS
First
structure of its kind in the world.
Design
life of at least 120 years.
35
metres high.
35
metres wide.
30
metres long.
Each
gondola contains at least 250,000 litres of water.
Capable
of carrying eight boats at a time.
A
single trip takes 15 minutes |
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Embarkation Point in the Lower Basin |
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The 100 meter long aqueduct
extends from the Falkirk Wheel to the Tunnel and towers 35
meters above. |
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Entering the Tunnel under the Edinburgh & Glasgow railway
and the Antonine wall |
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Upper Turning Basin |
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Up in the Gondola 35 meters above the lower
basin |
Falkirk Wheel - Official Homepage
The Falkirk Wheel and Millennium Link - A guide to the world's ...
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Falkirk Wheel