The ArcelorMittal Orbit in the London Olympic Park wowed the world during the London 2012 games. After the games, no one has really visited it much.
So, in an effort to boost visitors, planners have approved building a 178 meter (583 feet), 12 loop slide. It will start and the top and go all the way to the bottom.
From London’s Evening Standard:
A 178-metre helter-skelter will be built around the Olympic Park’s ArcelorMittal Orbit sculpture after getting the thumbs-up from planning bosses.
Visitors will hit speeds of 15mph on the giant 12-loop slide, which will begin from a height of 74m above ground and is expected to last about 40 seconds per ride.
The slide, whose plans were revealed by the Standard earlier this year, was signed off by the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park last night, and will be built in time for spring 2016, according to director of visitor services Peter Tudor.
Will you be more likely to visit now that there will be a giant slide? I still think I’ll pass, I’m not a big fan of huge slides!
Author: Jonathan Thomas
Jonathan is a consummate Anglophile who launched Anglotopia.net in 2007 to channel his passion for Britain. Londontopia is its sister publication dedicated to everything London.
I can’t believe it took this long. It should have been part of the original design! I think it’s a great addition. London loves quirky things – we put the London Eye up and now you can’t go to any city worth a dime without seeing a copycat version. Maybe this will start a craze for cities opening giant helter skelters 🙂
No, thank you! I would visit the park certainly but I will leave the slide to the them park enthusiasts.
I love the idea, but not sure how many others will be of the same mind.
Hmmm. I lived in the area as the park was being built, specifically to see it come to life in time for the games. I always wondered about the Orbit. As an amateur enthusiast of art and architectural form it always struck me that it didn’t quite jive with me. Following the games I’ve been away until very recently but had an opportunity to stop by the new park just a few weeks ago. As I sat looking at the orbit on that visit two things struck me. 1. More generally how underutilized the park was. It felt almost lonely. Something odd for what should be a huge tourist attraction. 2. How under impressive the Orbit itself is when considered alongside say the Eiffel Tower or the Statue of Liberty. Often renderings of the sculpture make it look more interesting than the sculpture itself. Much like the one above. I wonder about whether the giant slide will make this a more visitable attraction. I think I’ll leave my opinion on that for my next visit in a few more years, when the building in the area is due to conclude.