Interesting Reading

[GRUMPY PIRATE]

Yeah I don't think it has to do with the ride getting stuck so much as the entire power grid going down. Not good if you are in Tower... I think what happens with the rides that get stuck is that something jams the wheels and they happen to stop upside down...Anyone ever see Final Destination 3? *shivers*

I did, kind of liked the ride incident, good effects!!!

[Switchbeam 9]

Monorail Ops & Maintenance is very safety-oriented as well. Most of the time, when a train has issues which require a restart, trip to shop, or a tow to shop, it's usually because of a very sensitive safety device.

I will not go into any detail as operating procedures tend to be internal in nature, but here are the basics:

-Trains undergo rigorous checks by maintenance.
-Pilots check a number of systems when bringing trains out of shop and the MAPO (clearance system) is checked twice daily per train (I have never seen it fail).
-Each station has a sizable safety checklist. Some stations (Base and MK) have two opening checklists.
-A live station (powered) must be manned. There must always be at least 1 CM on the platform where the station console is located.
-The trough is heavily guarded by CMs who are trigger happy on dropping power.
-Recently a wall was installed around low sections of the buss bar at TTC.
-Each train has 14 top hatches, "firewalled" cars, 14 extinguishers, Alison heat detection system, run-flat load tires, side tires filled with nitrogen (inert gas), sensors that detect contact between chassis and the beam, load tire temperature and pressure monitoring, and a very long string.

[Randy B]

And hopefully someone doesn't leave their baby sling in the flume...

(visualizes a slingshot that flings babys "far, far away") :twisted: :D:

Randy

[Cranbiz]

-Trains undergo rigorous checks by maintenance.

I wish we could be able to say that for buses..........sigh

[Kwahati]

I don't see how that would stop Coaster from getting stuck though as once it is launched it is the momentum of the train that keeps it going, there are no motors on the train at all nor on the tracks except at the beginning and ending of the ride to move the train from the stop to unload, from unload to load, and from there to the launcher. That's how pretty much all coasters work.

Sorry, I didn't quite say what I meant there. What I meant was that Disney thinks all these things out to prevent bad things from happening. I think that the other part of that coaster getting stuck upside down is terrible ride design. You can see in the picture that the coaster is probably pulled up that vertical section, and when the power went out, it looks like it just hadn't quite made it off of the chain and into the drop, hence, stuck upside down for a half hour. Disney's rollercoasters run the way a coaster is supposed to: momentum all the time (except on certain uphills of some coasters, of course, but disney had the foresight to have evac stairs near all of those as far as I know!)

The other half of what I was thinking was: if power goes out on Tower while a car is in the drop shaft, what happens? My guess is that something kicks in and stops it, but you could still be trapped in a box for a while [insert your own mime joke here]... Disney building extra power stations and running separately from city power probably prevents many uncomfortable situations.

[CMGUY89]

The other half of what I was thinking was: if power goes out on Tower while a car is in the drop shaft, what happens? My guess is that something kicks in and stops it, but you could still be trapped in a box for a while [insert your own mime joke here]... Disney building extra power stations and running separately from city power probably prevents many uncomfortable situations.

There are multiple ways to be evaced out of tower. They have front of shaft (the most common), side of shaft (not that common), and top of shaft (extremely rare). There are panels through which you can exit the AGV/VVC.

[GRUMPY PIRATE]

It seems to me that when they design the attractions, they take into account being able to evac from any part of the ride portion! It just makes sense!

[ktulu]

I was getting on Indy, someone left a cell phone. The CM on one side was handing it over to the other CM by just tossing it on the hood. The other CM wouldn't leave his control box until the other CM got to his. I was impressed. One guy sticking to policy, the other guy gave him the look of "just get the f'n cell phone".

Personally, I think they should have left it on the front so I could see how long it'll stay.

[GRUMPY PIRATE]

That would be "added value" ...Lest see how high the cell phone will sail...

(course it will hit an SG in the eye, causing it to ..wait for it.......Ruin his magic!!

[CMGUY89]

Yeah, we have to have our hand on the Station Stop button at all times. Not doing so can lead to a reprimand.