Disneyland Monorail Rebuild

[cloudboy]

I was just reading on mouseinfo that they took one of the monorails and are tearing it apart to reverse engineer it. So they can rebuild them.

Is this true? And if so, why? I mean, there are pleanty of other companies that can build these things - they already do - so why go through all that trouble? Heck, it's not complicated, so even if that is the idea why not just design a new one?

 

[ToTBellHop]

Designing a new one is very expensive (it really should happen, but it won't yet), and if WDI can redesign it to not break down as much, it will be cheaper and WDI will know how to fix it in the future without having to send it off property for fixes. It is always preferred that WDI know how to make fixes on attractions. Imagine if every time they wanted to fix something, they had to either mail it off or get an outside contractor to fix it. Stuff would be closed for days.

 

[cloudboy]

But this is a train. It's not like every time a light rail car breaks down the city has to send it back to the manufacturer - thye know how to fix it themselves. For that matter, I am really, really surprised that they do not already have the blueprints.

Which is why I wonder if this is actually true. Perhaps they are just going to remodel the cars?

 

[ToTBellHop]

the monorail trains at Disneyland need a LOT of work. A complete rebuild would not surprise me at all...now if we can just get them to rebuild the California Screamin' trains!

 

[netenyahoo]

I thought the monorails at DL were unique to the aprk too. They are different from the WDW ones. I don't think anyone makes the same kind of monorail anymore and parts are hard to impossible to find.

 

[DarkMeasures]

The Disneyland system has only 1 rail supplying power while the WDW version has 2 rails. And I don't know how the Tokyo version works. (though they are also mark VI's, they look and are comlpetly different than the WDW version)

However, I believe Imagineering covered 90% of the design and construction of the monorail because Alweg was really suprised at how well done the DL version was. (first monorail to change elevation, first monorail to cross a street, and I think it was the longest monorail even when it just had the Tommorowland portion)

But I heard the trains were going to be refurbed.

 

[ToTBellHop]

DL's monorails are older than WDW's. DL has Mark V's while WDW has Mark VIs. The biggest noticeable difference is that DL's monorails are smaller with no standing room, the windows open, and it doesn't have the same type of doors as WDW. Because of their age, it is hard to find parts.

 

[Monorail Lime]

Originally posted by DarkMeasures
The Disneyland system has only 1 rail supplying power while the WDW version has 2 rails.

That's a fascinating feat of electrical engineering...

 

[cloudboy]

The DisneyLand and WDW monorails are now under the company of Bombardier. The Disneyland ones were actually Alweg, while the WDW ones were built by Bombardier. Disney and Bombardier are NOT getting along, so I think that is why they are not going to them to do it. I think that they don't have to reverse engineer anything - they are just taking it apart in order to rebuild it, from what I have picked up so far.

The Tokyo monorail is built by Hitachi. That particular one would not be able to run on the tracks over here, as it is much larger. But they DO make a smaller guage one, which could be easily modified. I guess the big concern would be height restrictions. In WDW you are limited in height by the Contemporary, but I am not sure what in all is limiting at Disneyland.

 

[ToTBellHop]

Originally posted by cloudboy
The Tokyo monorail is built by Hitachi. That particular one would not be able to run on the tracks over here, as it is much larger. But they DO make a smaller guage one, which could be easily modified. I guess the big concern would be height restrictions. In WDW you are limited in height by the Contemporary, but I am not sure what in all is limiting at Disneyland.

There are restrictions in Tomorrowland, where the monorail crosses over itself a couple times, and it also passes through the Grand Californian Hotel with tunnels. I'm guessing that is the reason that the monorails at DL don't have standing room like WDW. It hurts the capacity, so I don't know why they would do it otherwise...that the the Disneyland monorail lines have banked turns (far more banked than at wdw, and they don't go as fast!)--that would make standing tough.