Stupid Guest Tricks

susislicker wrote:Unlike other Disney resorts that have multiple bus stops, Old Key West has a very convoluted layout. The bus must make numerous twists and turns as it snakes its way through the resort. So much so that by the time I returned to Hospitality House I was actually starting to get motion sickness.

crystal_crtr wrote:I hate the voice over the monorail system.

CelebrationNM wrote:Now let's not talk too badly about the dead! Jack Wagner is a bit of a Disney Legend, after alll!

As a bus driver for Disney, I found Jack Spence's article from October 20, 2007 to be quite disappointing. As someone who moved across the country to drive Disney buses specifically for the interaction with guests and to be a mobile entertainer, I have to take issue with Mr. Spence's view of the computer system having been implemented in the buses. Mr. Spence gains his viewpoint after riding a bus only once; but I would like to invite him to stay on property at Disney World for at least four days, using the bus as his only form of transportation, and see what he thinks of the system after that.

You see, as someone who works with (read: around) the system on a daily basis, I have found that when I am driving from a park that people generally visit after a week at Walt Disney World, I am the first driver that has given them any attention. Many drivers have seen this system as a communication from Disney that we are not supposed to talk to the guests, and they are fine with that. As someone who is here for the interaction with Disney guests, I have taken a completely different approach and do not let the computer do its normal program, much to the relief of most of my guests.

You see, the announcer (not Jack Wagner, by the way) is a very homogenizing force on Disney buses, and many guests are sick of it after about the second day. They come to Disney World and many look forward to riding the buses because the interaction with drivers in the past has made a bus trip at Disney World somewhat famous. Unfortunately, there are quite a few drivers now who are difficult to understand because of their lacking English skills, and there are others who just don't like to be friendly. For the people like that (and I have a difficult time calling them Cast Members, as they do not act very cast-like, either due to language barrier or choice) the system is great. It gets them out of the best part of the job.

But for people like me, who thrive on the guest interaction, this is about the worst system Disney could have put in place. In fact, my feeling is that if they are going to continue with the computer system, they should put some sort of physical barrier between the driver and guests.

I have so many people who have told me after riding with me that a ride on my bus was refreshing, because their time on my bus seemed like the shortest trip they've had all week, because I kept them entertained. I tell jokes, I play trivia, I give them information about attractions and other things they see along the way. I have them "ooh" and "ah" and "wow" and "aargh" like a pirate. Try getting a computer system to do that. What I see this computer system doing is depersonalizing the Disney bus ride experience. Many drivers who used to interact with their guests no longer do. I have become a dying breed among driver as a direct result of this computer system. Often times, because of the computer system, my microphone doesn't work or is so quiet I might as well not have it. On these buses, I have no choice but to provide the homogenized experience. This has actually disappointed guests who had been aboard my bus before and heard my schtick, and when they saw they would be riding with me again, they were disappointed that I had not performed like the previous trip.

From what guests have told me, after about the third day of riding buses and hearing the same departure and arrival spiels over, and over, and over, and over, and over, and over, and over, and over, and over, and over (that the fifth day if they ride one time in the morning and one in the evening, going to only one park a day and not ever returning to their resort room), the automated system has more than just begun to sound lifeless. They have heard the same resort music five times. That's right, at Pop Century they've heard Austin Powers and the Partridge Family theme song five times, and if they're lucky they've got up to Frank Sinatra's "New York, New York" a few times, but every bus ride is the exact same experience, with exception to how jerky the driver is.

Speaking of that, when Mr. Spence mentioned motion sickness in his article, my first thought was that I would have complained about it. Sounds to me like that driver is in too much of a hurry anyway. While the roads do in fact wind around Old Key West, there's no reason anyone should feel queasy if the driver just takes it easy around the curves and turns.

Now, I believe Disney put the automated spiels in as a result of drivers not talking to the guests, but had it been me making the decision, I would have taken the course of action to either encourage the drivers to interact (or at least be friendly) or drive them out of the company. In my opinion, Disney should not have room for unfriendly people, but with the new computer system (known as MiMs for Magic in Motion System) in place, it now doesn't matter if the driver is friendly.

Now, unless the driver fully overrides the system (which in a couple months will not be an option), interaction with the guests aboard the bus is a clunky and cumbersome activity at best. In order to use the public address system, the driver would have to press the microphone a whole eight seconds before the microphone is live. If the driver needs to make a safety announcement, that is a very long time to wait to tell a child to sit dow--- Oops, too late. Or perhaps there's a deer off to the right side of the bus as we're travelling down World Drive and the people might like to know. 1... 2... 3... 4... 5... 6... 7... 8... Too late.

Just as on Kilimanjaro Safaris at Animal Kingdom the drivers need to be friendly and understandable in the English language, I also believe bus drivers should be. Of course, by making that comment, I realize I am being discriminatory against those who can't or won't speak English. But in a position where so many lives are in your hands, you need to be able to tell people - clearly - how to remain safe. I don't believe it should be a computer.

Another issue I see all the time on the buses in which I can't use the microphone, after the first day no one listens to the automated announcements, and just talk over it. That's great if everyone's already heard it, but what if there's someone on the bus that hasn't and they miss something? Meanwhile, when I make the announcements myself, I keep everyone laughing and hanging on my every word because they want to hear the next cue to laugh.

A grouping of words cannot express the viewpoint from which I am speaking so well as a ride with me on my bus. So I would like to invite Mr. Spence to come along with me sometime on my bus. I will override the system and show him what Disney guests are about to lose forever with this computer system. I will be what I believe the Disney bus driver should be.

Thank you for taking the time to read this response.

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Big Wallaby wrote: I instantly wonder if writing all that was for naught.

Big Wallaby wrote:And here's my response:

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