The Strépy-Thieu boat lift (French: L'ascenseur funiculaire de Strépy-Thieu) lies on a branch of the Canal du Centre in the municipality of Le Rœulx, Hainaut, Belgium. With a height difference of 73.15 metres (240.0 ft) between the upstream and downstream reaches, it is the tallest boat lift in the world, and will remain so until the Three Gorges dam boat lift in China is finished.
The boat lift was designed during the Canal du Centre's modernisation program in order to replace a system of two locks and four 16-metre lifts dating from 1888 to 1919.[1] The canal itself began operations in 1879 and its locks and lifts were able to accommodate vessels of up to 300 tonnes. By the 1960s, this was no longer adequate for the new European standard of 1350 tonnes for barge traffic, and a replacement was sought.
Construction of the lift commenced in 1982 and was not completed until 2002 at an estimated cost of € 160 million (then 6.4 billion BEF), but once operational, permitted river traffic of up to the new 1350-tonne standard to pass between the waterways of the Meuse and Scheldt rivers. The lift increased river traffic from 256 kT in 2001 to 2,295 kT in 2006.
The four older lifts, now bypassed on the original line of the Canal du Centre to the south, are still in use, but are limited to recreational traffic only. Their architectural and historical value has led them to be placed on the UNESCO World Heritage list.
I have a version from the side too but in this image I love the scene, the symmetry and I really like the treatment I gave it :))
17 Jun 05:32
sanz3jo
Excellent
17 Jun 09:57
rrr
Very interesting story, I like the composition.
17 Jun 09:59
rrr
Sorry that was intended to be ten.
17 Jun 11:46
paul_mack
This is really good :-)
17 Jun 12:01
adrianay
No worries! Thank you All! It is a very interesting thing to visit. I am hoping we can go all the way to the top
17 Jun 12:15
flipd1
I like it, but I keep on trying to adjust my monitor for brightness. It seems a tad dark just over all. Giving a 10 due to I could be wrong.
17 Jun 12:29
rcuello
Impressive piece of engineering, in contrast to a beautiful landscape.
The composition and symmetry are very good, the process is not far behind.
17 Jun 13:53
pandarino
sorry for my 9, around the building there is dirt in the sky
17 Jun 16:01
dirk
I like it. Very impressive building.
17 Jun 17:21
adrianay
The photo was done at sunset and it was intentionally darkened a bit.
17 Jun 17:22
adrianay
@pandarino, can you please explain what "dirt in the sky" means so I can correct it? Thank you!
The Strépy-Thieu boat lift (French: L'ascenseur funiculaire de Strépy-Thieu) lies on a branch of the Canal du Centre in the municipality of Le Rœulx, Hainaut, Belgium. With a height difference of 73.15 metres (240.0 ft) between the upstream and downstream reaches, it is the tallest boat lift in the world, and will remain so until the Three Gorges dam boat lift in China is finished. The boat lift was designed during the Canal du Centre's modernisation program in order to replace a system of two locks and four 16-metre lifts dating from 1888 to 1919.[1] The canal itself began operations in 1879 and its locks and lifts were able to accommodate vessels of up to 300 tonnes. By the 1960s, this was no longer adequate for the new European standard of 1350 tonnes for barge traffic, and a replacement was sought. Construction of the lift commenced in 1982 and was not completed until 2002 at an estimated cost of € 160 million (then 6.4 billion BEF), but once operational, permitted river traffic of up to the new 1350-tonne standard to pass between the waterways of the Meuse and Scheldt rivers. The lift increased river traffic from 256 kT in 2001 to 2,295 kT in 2006. The four older lifts, now bypassed on the original line of the Canal du Centre to the south, are still in use, but are limited to recreational traffic only. Their architectural and historical value has led them to be placed on the UNESCO World Heritage list. I have a version from the side too but in this image I love the scene, the symmetry and I really like the treatment I gave it :))
Excellent
Very interesting story, I like the composition.
Sorry that was intended to be ten.
This is really good :-)
No worries! Thank you All! It is a very interesting thing to visit. I am hoping we can go all the way to the top
I like it, but I keep on trying to adjust my monitor for brightness. It seems a tad dark just over all. Giving a 10 due to I could be wrong.
Impressive piece of engineering, in contrast to a beautiful landscape. The composition and symmetry are very good, the process is not far behind.
sorry for my 9, around the building there is dirt in the sky
I like it. Very impressive building.
The photo was done at sunset and it was intentionally darkened a bit.
@pandarino, can you please explain what "dirt in the sky" means so I can correct it? Thank you!
Nice work