A continuously moving loop of open compartments without doors, widely used in European public buildings from the 1920s to the 1970s.
Full Definition
A paternoster is a passenger conveyor consisting of a closed loop of open compartments — typically two per level — moving continuously at ~0.3 m/s on a chain. Passengers step in and out without the elevator stopping. Named for its resemblance to rosary beads in continuous circular motion. Once common in Germany, the Netherlands, and the UK, paternosters were largely phased out from the 1990s due to entrapment risk. New installations are prohibited under most national safety regulations. Surviving units in heritage buildings (e.g., German government offices) are maintained under special exemptions.
