Head of Walt Disney World Resort Operations and Transportation Tom Wolber leaving Walt Disney World

[Bryan W]

Interesting that he has been the master planner for Disney Springs. You'd think TDO would want him to stay in Orlando until that project is done. I wonder if he'll remotely see everything through, or if he's even involved in day-to-day movement on that project. Pardon my ignorance, but what exactly does a "Master Planner" do on a project like that?

 

[wdwmagic]

Interesting that he has been the master planner for Disney Springs. You'd think TDO would want him to stay in Orlando until that project is done. I wonder if he'll remotely see everything through, or if he's even involved in day-to-day movement on that project. Pardon my ignorance, but what exactly does a "Master Planner" do on a project like that?

He was involved, but the design and planning is WDI.

 

[dreamfinder]

Pardon my ignorance, but what exactly does a "Master Planner" do on a project like that?

I'd wager in this case it means they had their admin assistant schedule weekly meetings where everyone doing all the work would brief him, and he could then report upstream on the astonishing rate of progress currently going underway to radically transform the shopping and dining experience known as Disney Springs.

 

[wdwmagic]

Tom Wolber is now heading back to the USA with Disney Cruise Line overseeing the expansion of the fleet.

Catherine Powell is the new Euro Disney S.A.S. president.

 

[ford91exploder]

I know WDC is terrified to hire upper-level executives with actual experience or expertise in whatever field the job opening requires but this would be a good opportunity to split the position in two and hire someone with public transit or urban planning experience to oversee all intra-resort transportation. Bring in someone like Jay Walder or Steve Norvick and those monorails and buses will be running like a well-oiled machine before you know it. The company can't keep hiring restaurant managers and asking them to bake the cakes.

They actually DID hire Sam Lau who spent his career running urban transit systems to run Disney Transportation but when he actually TRIED to fix stuff a bunch of transport managers got their feewings hurt and they moved him to EPCOT.

 

[PhotoDave219]

http://www.wdwmagic.com/other/walt-...ng-walt-disney-world-for-disneyland-paris.htm

So this is at least two transportation executives whom have come and gone during the monorail automation project and its still not working.....

 

[PhotoDave219]

They actually DID hire Sam Lau who spent his career running urban transit systems to run Disney Transportation but when he actually TRIED to fix stuff a bunch of transport managers got their feewings hurt and they moved him to EPCOT.

Thats my understanding of what went down, yes....

 

[Gabe1]

Tom Wolber is now heading back to the USA with Disney Cruise Line overseeing the expansion of the fleet.

Catherine Powell is the new Euro Disney S.A.S. president.

I'm glad someone tagged a very old post of mine. The strange shuffling continues.

 

[Gabe1]

So this is at least two transportation executives whom have come and gone during the monorail automation project and its still not working.....

Thats my understanding of what went down, yes....

My point 2 years ago. The vicious cycle continues. Shuffle and the problem remains unresolved. Their business model is their own failure.
Good Catch.

 

[Cmdr_Crimson]

Dem super white teef.

Reminds me of this guy

I would have also gone with Fred from Courage..

 

[mj2v]

They actually DID hire Sam Lau who spent his career running urban transit systems to run Disney Transportation but when he actually TRIED to fix stuff a bunch of transport managers got their feewings hurt and they moved him to EPCOT.

No surprise to anyone. As any big bureaucratic organization, inaction is preferable to action. There is little to no risk in doing it the way we always have vs. stepping up and rocking the boat.

 

[djkidkaz]

They actually DID hire Sam Lau who spent his career running urban transit systems to run Disney Transportation but when he actually TRIED to fix stuff a bunch of transport managers got their feewings hurt and they moved him to EPCOT.

He was only at EPCOT for a year, if even that before Melissa took over.

 

[PhotoDave219]

Wait, if this thread is from 2014..... that means we have at least three, maybe four heads of transportation that have been unable to automate the monorail.

Goodness.

 

[Mike S]

I would have also gone with Fred from Courage..

Disney's been very... naughty.

 

[MerlinTheGoat]

Wait, if this thread is from 2014..... that means we have at least three, maybe four heads of transportation that have been unable to automate the monorail.

Goodness.

Wouldn't it have been much simpler and less expensive to just provide adequate training for the cast member pilots (i mention this because it was rumored the accidents were due to improper training) and let them do the work? Sounds like Disney ended up spending far more money and introduced a lot more problems and potential safety risks by automating instead of just doing it the traditional way. If that wasn't something they considered before they started this process, it certain should be on their minds now...

 

[Mike S]

Wouldn't it have been much simpler and less expensive to just provide adequate training for the cast member pilots (i mention this because it was rumored the accidents were due to improper training) and let them do the work? Sounds like Disney ended up spending far more money and introduced a lot more problems and potential safety risks by automating instead of just doing it the traditional way. If that wasn't something they considered before they started this process, it certain should be on their minds now...

That's modern Disney for ya. Cheap on the parks but completely willing to waste money on other pointless projects.

 

[ford91exploder]

Wait, if this thread is from 2014..... that means we have at least three, maybe four heads of transportation that have been unable to automate the monorail.

Goodness.

Of course the point may be that upper management DOES NOT WANT to successfully automate the monorail, Remember that 20KLeagues was killed because 'it was impossible to fix'. So no one will be allowed to succeed for anything monorail related.

The automation is NOT rocket science as automated trams exist in some form at most large airports these days.

 

[MonorailCoral]

The automation is NOT rocket science as automated trams exist in some form at most large airports these days.

In fairness, the automation that exists at airports and other large transportation systems were largely planned, designed, and built that way from the onset...a relatively far simpler task than trying to shoehorn it into a 45 year old system never designed for it.

Those who we've seen try that came and went were probably in over their heads and didn't even realize it until it was too late.

 

[ford91exploder]

In fairness, the automation that exists at airports and other large transportation systems were largely planned, designed, and built that way from the onset...a relatively far simpler task than trying to shoehorn it into a 45 year old system never designed for it.

Those who we've seen try that came and went were probably in over their heads and didn't even realize it until it was too late.

There is NOTHING UNIQUE about the Disney monorail system, The Las Vegas monorail was built around retired Mark IV Disney Monorails and it has been automated since day ONE. So there is no magic in automating an Alweg monorail system.

The only reason it's not done is because 'The Powers That Be' do not WANT it done. But they want to look like there is a real project so when they need to 'save' a bunch of money the Monorails will be on the chopping block 'Because it's impossible to bring them up to modern standards' will be the excuse used.

 

[MonorailCoral]

In fairness, the automation that exists at airports and other large transportation systems were largely planned, designed, and built that way from the onset...a relatively far simpler task than trying to shoehorn it into a 45 year old system never designed for it.

Those who we've seen try that came and went were probably in over their heads and didn't even realize it until it was too late.

There is NOTHING UNIQUE about the Disney monorail system, The Las Vegas monorail was built around retired Mark IV Disney Monorails and it has been automated since day ONE.

That's not entirely correct...The predecessor system (MGM-Bally's monorail) to today's Las Vegas monorail was designed and constructed in conjunction with manned Mark IV Disney trainsets, and remained manned until the day they ceased operations in 2003 to make way for the new Las Vegas system...including the new Mark VI trains which were designed and built by Bombardier to an automated spec right from the factory.

So while it's true that the MGM and Bally's stations and the beamways between the two were successfully upgraded with the necessary sensors and data transmissions to accept the new automation standard of the larger Las Vegas system, the key difference between the Vegas and WDW Alweg systems as we know today is that they didn't attempt to "shoehorn" new automation into the old the trains in Vegas.

Clearly Disney is taking the hard route by doing so instead of ponying up for new trains, but we all know that somewhere, on someone's desk, a cost-benefit analysis of each alternative passed and they opted for the one which seemed to make the most financial sense at that time. But as for conspiring to get rid of the entire monorail system on an "impossible to bring them up to modern standards" technicality under financial motives, I just don't see it because 1) They wouldn't have then bothered to spend the money to upgrade the platform egresses, and 2) There is no "modern standard" they could point to which dictates that mass-transit systems must be automated. Either way, I expect the Mark VIs will be running until either the wheels start falling off, or the beams start falling down.