Thrill-seekers looking to take their fear of heights to a new level can go to downtown Los Angeles and careen down a clear glass slide atop the tallest building west of the Mississippi.
The "Skyslide" is scheduled to begin sending urban adventurers down the relatively brief ride 300m above the ground in June.
It will span 14m from the 70th to the 69th floor of the US Bank Tower.
Nothing but 3cm glass separates riders from the ground, promising to provide a thrill and quite the view for anyone willing to open their eyes along the way.
On a clear day, the 72-storey tower provides panoramic views that extend to Catalina Island off the Pacific coast and over the Santa Monica Mountains to the city's sprawling San Fernando Valley.
"There will be nothing like it in the US," said Lucy Rumantir, head of American operations for the building owner OUE Limited of Singapore.
And that was just the reason for building a giant slide in the sky, Rumantir said.
Skyslide is part of a $US50 million ($A68.50 million) renovation that will also put an open-air observation deck and bar on the tower's top floors.
Asked if she'll actually slide down the thing when it opens, Rumantir laughed: "Oh yeah, of course. We're going to be the ones who actually test the whole thing before it goes public. The risk is on us."
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