Double-deck elevator

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Double-deck elevators at Midland Square, Nagoya, Japan

Double-deck elevators are designed with two elevator cars which are attached one on top of the other. This allows passengers on two consecutive floors to be able to use the elevator simultaneously, significantly increasing the passenger capacity of an elevator shaft. Such a scheme can prove efficient in buildings where the volume of traffic would normally have a single elevator stopping at every floor. As an example, a single double-deck elevator will allow passengers to board from the ground floor and the parking floor below it simultaneously. Typically, each deck will be assigned to either odd or even floors.

Architecturally, this is important as double-deck elevators occupy less building core space than traditional single-deck elevators do for the same level of traffic. In skyscrapers, this allows for much more efficient use of space, as the floor area required by elevators tends to be quite significant.

[edit] Double-deck goods/passenger elevators

Not all double-deck elevators are used to transport passengers simultaneously in both decks. Sometimes one or more elevators in a building has a double-deck car, where the second deck is used for transportation of goods, typically outside of peak traffic periods. This technique has the advantages of preventing damage to interior fixtures due to impact from trolleys, and does not require a dedicated shaft solely devoted to a goods-only elevator car. During peak periods, the car is switched back to passenger mode where it can expedite passenger movement into or out of the building.