WDW Monorail Hours of Operation to be Cut

[February]

Wow.

Just...wow.

I haven't checked this Daily Disney blog in ages- but I am very mindful of where I was standing exactly two years ago tonight, and so being in a very contemplative state of mind, I decided to see what was news.

I can't believe they posted this story less than an hour ago...

Disney To Cut Monorail Hours

I really wish they'd just start replacing them with new trains. If someone would start a petition asking WDW to stop adding new stuff to the parks until the monorails are replaced, I'd have my pen at the ready to sign. Enough is enough. People are going to freak out if they pay to stay at a Monorail hotel then can't get a monorail back after EMH's. But what they don't realize is that those trains just can't keep going like they used to.

Very mindful of where I was two years ago tonight. Very.

Hey Wallaby, remember when I saw the stars that night for the first time in two years after my first two eye surgeries?

I won't ever forget that, or that I got to share that moment with you and two other fine gentleman CMs.

Wherever you are, guys, I'm thinking of you tonight. And, of course and most of all, of Austin.

love to all...
~bru

PS what I meant to say when I said 'people will freak out' is that I feel bad already for the poor CMs who are going to get yelled at when someone has to take a bus back to the Grand/Poly/Toaster after a very long night at EMH with the kids. . .*sigh*

[hobie16]

If new trains are in the planning stages they hopefully will measure the old ones so they'll actually make it around the tracks without either getting hung up or hitting something next the the tracks. Does WDW learn from DLR?

And then there's the question of ventilation and air conditioning in the cars.

[February]

Oh man, you are not kidding there.

Last time I spent a great deal of time riding the trains (two years ago, on my last trip I didn't stay at a monorail hotel) they really, really needed some help in the 'fresh as a daisy' department. Of course, we are talking about July in Florida here...I think they could create a super fabric made entirely of Baking Soda and Pixie Dust and it would still smell like a cattle car at the end of the day...just no Febreze, please, god, that stuff should be classified as a lethel weapon (to those of us with Asthma, it just about IS!)

(an aside, hope the eye is doing better hobie! Give us an update somewhere, will ya, please and thank you?!)

hugs
bru

[hobie16]

(an aside, hope the eye is doing better hobie! Give us an update somewhere, will ya, please and thank you?!

The eye is doing better. The big floater is pretty much gone. The itty bitty translucent dots have greatly diminished and a solid dots have reduced in number and have gotten smaller.

I talked to my friend the Beverly Hills eye ball doc yesterday. He said my progress is good but because it happened once there a chance it can happen again. I have to watch out for fog and flashing lights.

Ain't gettin' old grand? At least my PSA is way low.

[Freak]

The Mark VI's have been in service for over near 20 years now. With the fact in mind that the Monorails @ WDW are actually used for real transportation and constantly hit 40 MPH, I'm sure 20 years of wear and tear on them is equal to 40 years of DLR operations (max speed 35 mph, rarely hits that speed it seems anyways).

The reason I say 40 years is (I believe) the Mark III trains at DLR were stripped down to their cores, and rebuilt to Mark V's, which operated till 2008. I'm pretty sure that's the longest run one set of Monorails ever did. 69-2008? Nearly 40 years. Recent rumors circulate that even though these Mark VII Monorails DLR currently operates still uses repurposed shell parts and internals from the Mark V's, which means in theory, these parts might have even come from the Mark III models...which means these trains are still spanning as the longest Monorail Trains in operation in Disney history.

[February]

The eye is doing better. The big floater is pretty much gone. The itty bitty translucent dots have greatly diminished and a solid dots have reduced in number and have gotten smaller.

I talked to my friend the Beverly Hills eye ball doc yesterday. He said my progress is good but because it happened once there a chance it can happen again. I have to watch out for fog and flashing lights.

Ain't gettin' old grand? At least my PSA is way low.

It takes a maddeningly long time for those floaters to resolve...and yeah, don't you love that 'it can happen again' thing? Only if the vitreous detaches completely then they say it can't- and my doc told me that once a tear is healed if it heals well the first time a repeat in the same place at least is very unlikely. Of course if the vitreous is floating loose then you have the big blob of Vaseline moving through your field of vision all the time (which I still cannot believe is gone- as bad as that last op was, it was definitely the right decision even for the trade offs I made)

I have a new email addy- if you ever want to talk about this more send me a message and I'll send it to you again- I can't for the life of me find yours :/

Freak, that is just crazy the idea of the DL trains running that long.

I was wondering if the extra traffic from BLT is putting more of a strain on the resort line? Those units hold more people than the old North Wing used to (I think, Zazu, a ruling?) and that has to ripple...

Last time I was on certain WDW monorails I had the same feeling I get flying in the Delta DC9's that are literally as old as I am...

Nervous.

~bru

[Big Wallaby]

In the case of airplanes, I have a saying: There's a reason they get to be old."

In the case of the Monorails, I don't know when they'll upgrade to the Mk VIII trains... or even if ever, as crazy as that sounds.

As far as the Mk VII's, yes. They were built from the Mk V trains. Many things upgraded, so really, the frames are the same and that should be about it. The control systems are completely different. I know I wouldn't care to drive them.

The Mk VI trains have been running consistently, 12/10/11 trains, day in and day out, 18-23.5 hours a day, for that 20 years. Sometimes when you drive them you can feel that they're tired. They talk constantly as they go. Each one has a character all its own.

While I would like to take Green when they finally retire them, and I will be sad to see them go, it will have been a good, long run, and they will deserve the rest.

As far as cutting hours... I am not really sure how they intend to do that. Buses that run the same route take an hour to get around the lagoon with all the stops... and if you add a wheelchair to the mix, double that. The Monorails take 20, and that's on the long trip on Resorts. Also, what does that mean for the buses? I assume they intend to have them pick up the slack. Or maybe this is just a step in the direction of Eisner finally getting his way, thanks to innovation, Walt's dream in the Monorails and truly better efficiency being cut down for the sake of dollars.

I think it's high time to upgrade to a hybrid system of the Monorails and PRT. I have the routes for that laid out in my mind, and if any place was going to be a showcase that it can work, Walt Disney World would be that place.

[Zazu]

Ain't gettin' old grand?

Sure beats the alternative!

At least my PSA is way low.

Yeah, I found a way to zero that out....

[Zazu]

I was wondering if the extra traffic from BLT is putting more of a strain on the resort line? Those units hold more people than the old North Wing used to (I think, Zazu, a ruling?) and that has to ripple...

Nope. The new Bay Lake Tower holds fewer guests than the old North Garden Wing it replaced. I seriously doubt that has much impact on the issue.

I think there are two things going on. First, is that we are (sadly) down by one train from our peak of 12. Word is that there is trouble finding a vendor to fabricate the replacement nosecones, but that they are on their way. Add to this taking Coral offline for a month-long repaint and we just don't have enough trains to go around (and around).

The second issue is that park attendance is up compared to previous years, and this results in later park hours, and thus more monorail hours. A lot of the maintenance is dictated by hours of service, so the longer they are in service the more often maintenance will be needed (not to mention any increase due to age).

The result of these two is that there simply aren't enough train-hours available from this fleet to cover the extended park hours. The alternative would be to run the trains to failure, with consequent entrapment issues and hours-long delays for thousands of guests. Not a good option.

So until there's a reduction in park hours, or another train is added, I expect this situation will continue. Not permanent, perhaps, but certainly true for the foreseeable future.

Last time I was on certain WDW monorails I had the same feeling I get flying in the Delta DC9's that are literally as old as I am...

Nervous.

I know what you mean, but the potential for getting squished is a lot less when the vehicle remains in contact with the ground!

[Freak]

Last time I was on certain WDW monorails I had the same feeling I get flying in the Delta DC9's that are literally as old as I am...

Nervous.

Hey, at least your trains don't "gallop" down portions of the track. Our track is so old, it has "dips" in the track that make the train sort of bounce/gallop. We need to TLC our track someday...You can see the difference in terms of track age. Some of the oldest track still has corrugated fiberglass overhangs under the track, and the beam is painted white..well.. some of it is. The tires have rubbed off quite a bit of the paint. =P I heard the beams going down main gate/harbor point are sagging due to age. Yeesh. Doesn't matter how new your trains are if the track they run on is old and worn. =\