When the Columbus Center was built at the Old Port, a pedestrian connection to the open-air museum was also created. It consists of three parts: A ramp crosses Columbusstraße and a staircase leads to the level of a drawbridge over the museum harbour. The drawbridge, a steel construction, was built according to the Dutch model in 1977/78. It spans a passage of 13.50 metres, a width sufficient for the largest museum ships of the German Maritime Museum when they have to leave the museum harbour for docking.