No it’s not by elevator or escalator, book cart or bus. It’s by book train! But this is no Hogwarts Express…
The New York Public Library’s “book train” is really a nickname given to the underground conveyor belt system used to carry books from the Milstein Research Stacks beneath Bryant Park all the way up to the Rose Main Reading Room at their Stephen A. Schwarzman Building location in Midtown.
So how does it work? When patrons request a specific book, it is found by library staff members in the Stacks on the lower floors, and simply popped into a cart and sent on its way to its requested location in the building.
With up to 50 individual red “carts” — that look something like metal file or magazine boxes, complete with the classic NYPL lion logo — the book train traverses across 950 feet of track through the building.
Another fun tidbit? Thanks to their pendulum-like design, the train carts can easily pivot to ride vertically or horizontally without the precious cargo tipping out!
A typical journey can take as little as five minutes to travel up the 11 floors, and each cart can carry up to 30 lbs. of materials.
The book train first went into service back in 2016, and since then has become a fascinating staple of the location, with many patrons not even realize it is moving right beneath their feet.
Can’t imagine what it would look like in person? Just watch the NYPL book train in action below!