Is it possible to do elevators as BIG linear motors?
I did see a demonstration of an elevator that had the ability to move up and down and left and right by riding rails. So it is technically feasible to have elevators that don’t need cables.
Being a demonstration, I don’t know how close to commercialization it was.
Star Trek—-“The turbolift, or turbo-elevator, was a device that provided rapid transport with both vertical and horizontal transportation for personnel through a system of turboshafts between key sections of starships and space stations.”—Memory Alpha
The Germans are already working upon implementing this for real transport about a building.
https://www.asme.org/topics-resources/content/elevating-the-future
https://www.thyssenkrupp-elevator.com/en/products-and-service/multi/