The Lift

Running down the center of Fellport, The Lift provides transport for cargo and people up and down the levels of the city, from Dockside to Topside. It also acts as the dividing line between the Lakeside and Cliffside halves of the city. This gnomish engineering marvel has been running for over a hundred years, moving thirty by twenty foot stone platforms up on Lakeside and down on Cliffside like literal clockwork every 6 minutes. Conductors take tickets and direct people and carts, while the Liftwardens stationed at every level provide the organization and muscle to move everything onto or off of the platform within the 4-minute loading window.

At terminus stations (Topside and Dockside), the platforms drop slightly and pivot under the ground, appearing on the other side and start their return trip. The platforms are automatically cleaned at this point, with any larger items swept into a bucket for delivery to the Lost & Found Office. Any item not claimed within one year get sold at public auctions held monthly.

A trip will cost a few coppers per person per level traveled, so a full ride from one end to the other will cost a few gold and take 90 minutes. Riders feel a rumble through the platform and hear the squeak of gears turning for the 100-second ride through the tunnels before emerging onto the next level. Tourists love the Lift, but locals without cargo to move usually walk one of the two systems of Ramps open to the public (Cliffside and Lakeside).

An emergency stop lever exists at every level in case of dire emergency, but the Liftwardens' Guild will dock the pay of any crew who uses one. A pedestrian stairway provides emergency access to all levels for Liftwardens and Conductors, especially if the platforms get stuck underground between levels. Maintenance happens continuously while the platforms wait for loading and unloading.

The Liftwardens' Guild boasts that no unscheduled stops have occurred in the past 97 days.

Part of T.W.Wombat's #City23 project. See the Fellport Index for all entries.