Overbraided non-metallic tension members

A belt for suspending and/or driving an elevator car, comprising:

• a plurality of tension members extending along a length of the belt, each tension member including:
• a core including a plurality of individual load carrying fibers arranged unidirectionally, substantially in a direction parallel to a tension member length and impregnated with a first matrix material;
• and
• an outer layer secured to the core including a plurality of outer fibers arranged around a perimeter of the core, the outer layer including one or more outer fibers arranged off-axis relative to the load carrying fibers of the core;
• and
• a jacket at least partially encapsulating the plurality of tension members to retain the plurality of tension members;
• wherein the plurality of outer fibers are braided around the core to form the outer layer;
• wherein the plurality of load carrying fibers comprise one or more of glass, nylon, and polymer fibers;
• wherein the core has a cross-sectional thickness in the range of 0.5 millimeters to 1.0 millimeters;
• and
• wherein the plurality of outer fibers are impregnated with a second matrix material after forming of the core but prior to the plurality of outer fibers being braided around the core.