- via BBC News
People living in the Comuna 13 district – which clings to a steep hillside – previously had to climb hundreds of steps to get home from the city centre.
The escalator is divided into six sections and ascends nearly 384m (1,260ft).
The mayor of Medellin says it is the first project of its kind in the world aimed specifically at the poor.
In the 1980s Medellin was known as the murder capital of the world and a major drug-trafficking center, but in recent years it has undergone a renaissance.
The $7m (£4.5m) escalator is the latest in a series of transport infrastructure projects that are helping to transform the city.
It has a modern metro system, and some other hillside neighborhoods are served by cable cars.
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