Fix or replace the monorail

[HauntedPirate]

I don't know how they'd market the MK area resorts as any kind of "premium" resort without the monorail. "Take a MAGICAL!!! Disney watercraft or MAGICAL!!! Disney bus to Magic Kingdom!" doesn't have the same pull.

#TLCForTheMonorail

 

[HauntedPirate]

And it only took how many years for not one but two hidden Mickey's to surpass the one they built at TPFKADMGMS? :-D That's a hidden Mickey for the ages!

 

[IanDLBZF]

And it only took how many years for not one but two hidden Mickey's to surpass the one they built at TPFKADMGMS?

I'd like to know what "TPFKADMGMS" means?

 

[HauntedPirate]

I'd like to know what "TPFKADMGMS" means?

The Park Formerly Known As Disney MGM Studios

 

[ItlngrlBella]

So I was going to the Magic Kingdom from the TTC and we took monorail lime I think and we sat in the 2nd car... First off, The A/C was broken the whole ride but not only that the car kept making these cracking sounds and was dirty as hell! Someone needs to do something about the monorails... I also heard there was a monorail beam crack somewhere by the Grand Floridan... Is there any news or rumors if they are fixing or replacing the monorails and tracks anytime soon? (They are in very poor conditions and are in need of being replaced)

Amen for this thread's existence!
Every few years when we head to WDW the highlight for most of us is the monorail and every five or so years we get a bit more depressed about how more decrepit the monorails ride/feel/look.

 

[ford91exploder]

The Park Formerly Known As Disney MGM Studios

It works better as 'The corpse of park formerly known as Disney MGM Studios'. Or TCOPFKADMS

 

[ford91exploder]

I don't know how they'd market the MK area resorts as any kind of "premium" resort without the monorail. "Take a MAGICAL!!! Disney watercraft or MAGICAL!!! Disney bus to Magic Kingdom!" doesn't have the same pull.

#TLCForTheMonorail

You can see the castle that alone nakes the property deluxe, The lobby and garden of the Poly was wrecked so you could see the bloody castle when you walked into the ground floor lobby. But its 'The Castle' so its all good...

 

[roj2323]

At some point Disney will have to make a decision as the beams are degrading and will at some point need to be replaced. Fortunately disney has the original diagrams so they could in theory make an entire set of replacement beams before they start swapping them out and do the swap in segments limiting the down time. The other perk would be to take advantage of the advances in Concrete technology which would potentially make the beams Lighter, Stronger and more Resilient to weather and stresses. The replacement would also afford them the opportunity to make the small little changes that would prevent the chip out that is becoming more common on the beam way now.

 

[hpyhnt 1000]

At some point Disney will have to make a decision as the beams are degrading and will at some point need to be replaced. Fortunately disney has the original diagrams so they could in theory make an entire set of replacement beams before they start swapping them out and do the swap in segments limiting the down time. The other perk would be to take advantage of the advances in Concrete technology which would potentially make the beams Lighter, Stronger and more Resilient to weather and stresses. The replacement would also afford them the opportunity to make the small little changes that would prevent the chip out that is becoming more common on the beam way now.

Curious about the whole "replacement" idea as well. The original beams around SSL are approaching 50 years old (installation circa 1970). And even though the Epcot beam is newer by about 10 years, from what I read they're deteriorating even more rapidly because they're of slightly lower quality compared to the original beams.

I'm not sure the 50 year mark is necessarily a "replacement deadline" if you will (look at Disneyland's system, which was built in the late 1950s and is still operating on original beams) but surely it's a topic that's cropped up at some point in the halls of Disney Transport.

 

[LAKid53]

I don't think you understand what the term reliability means in this context.

Regardless the point is that the magic kingdom can function just fine without the monorail. The ferry boat and buses when fully operational can accommodate the demand to and from the magic kingdom.

I have to ask, why would you have chosen to wait nearly two hours to ride the ferry boat?

But during times of bad weather, especially with lightening, don't they stop the TTC ferry? I know they do the resort boats.

Losing one method of transportation is a nightmare, especially if it's the monorail. They don't always get buses to those resorts promptly - I've been in that situation.

 

[DisneyCane]

Abandoned monorail beams would be an eyesore - and hazard - no one would miss.

I just don't get it. Everyone's trying to reduce their carbon footprint. Disney built a small solar farm, for goodness sakes. Why not upgrade the monorail, expanding it through the property and reduce the number of desiel exhaust genetating buses on the roads?

Electricity is not magic. There is exhaust at the power plant where the electricity is produced unless it is nuclear, hydroelectric, solar or wind. To power an expanded monorail system would require a quantity of solar panels that would make the whole property a giant eyesore (and likely require cutting down a lot of trees to fit them). Diesel busses (especially modern ones) are very efficient.

If monorails were that much more energy efficient and put out that much less emissions (when considering the whole energy chain) than dirty diesel busses, cities would be building monorail systems instead of having busses. This would be especially true in cities like San Francisco.

 

[monothingie]

Curious about the whole "replacement" idea as well. The original beams around SSL are approaching 50 years old (installation circa 1970). And even though the Epcot beam is newer by about 10 years, from what I read they're deteriorating even more rapidly because they're of slightly lower quality compared to the original beams.

I'm not sure the 50 year mark is necessarily a "replacement deadline" if you will (look at Disneyland's system, which was built in the late 1950s and is still operating on original beams) but surely it's a topic that's cropped up at some point in the halls of Disney Transport.

WDW does not experience much freezing (<32) weather. This can greatly extend the lifespan of concrete.

Additionally the beamway is made from pre-tensioned concrete members. (Google this for further information). In essence the internal steel tendons within the concrete which are used to accomplish structural integrity of the beam are designed for maximum durability, corrosion resistance and lifespan. These beams are most likely over-engineered and with proper maintenance can have an indefinite lifespan.

I know the picture on the first page was dramatic, there was not penetration to the internal structure of the beam, it was a pothole on the beam. I know still traveling today, if you keep a lookout for it, you can see patch jobs done many years ago and ones done more recent. It's something that has been going on for a while and will continue to do so.

I think I remember the most recent major structural issue with the beamway was an expansion joint on the high portion of the beamway between the GF and MK which over extended. The problem was resolved by placing stiffening braces between the support columns which made up the expansion joint.

Just remember the NYC subway system is running on an infrastructure that dates back to the beginning of the 20th century, and it is a much bigger and less maintained system than WDW. There's no reason why these beam ways can go another 50 years.

 

[Figment2005]

Electricity is not magic. There is exhaust at the power plant where the electricity is produced unless it is nuclear, hydroelectric, solar or wind. To power an expanded monorail system would require a quantity of solar panels that would make the whole property a giant eyesore (and likely require cutting down a lot of trees to fit them). Diesel busses (especially modern ones) are very efficient.

If monorails were that much more energy efficient and put out that much less emissions (when considering the whole energy chain) than dirty diesel busses, cities would be building monorail systems instead of having busses. This would be especially true in cities like San Francisco.

Someone please correct me, but I believe the plants at Disney are all natural gas. If that is the case then, yes, they burn more efficiently than the diesel buses. This would make the monorail more efficient.

 

[Driver]

Electricity is not magic. There is exhaust at the power plant where the electricity is produced unless it is nuclear, hydroelectric, solar or wind. To power an expanded monorail system would require a quantity of solar panels that would make the whole property a giant eyesore (and likely require cutting down a lot of trees to fit them). Diesel busses (especially modern ones) are very efficient.

If monorails were that much more energy efficient and put out that much less emissions (when considering the whole energy chain) than dirty diesel busses, cities would be building monorail systems instead of having busses. This would be especially true in cities like San Francisco.

So true this has annoyed me in the past. Many people say that more elec. transportation should be used to reduce carbon footprint. But as you said ...." how do you think the elec. is produced!" Most of it by burning fuel!!

 

[ChrisFL]

It works better as 'The corpse of park formerly known as Disney MGM Studios'. Or TCOPFKADMS

or what will soon be called TPFKADMGMSAFKADHS The Park Formerly Known as Disney MGM Studios and Formerly Known as Disney's Hollywood Studios

 

[Driver]

Someone please correct me, but I believe the plants at Disney are all natural gas. If that is the case then, yes, they burn more efficiently than the diesel buses. This would make the monorail more efficient.

But also consider the busses run on a blend of biodiesel produced by the used cooking oil produced on property. Which has been proven to burn cleaner and gives the used oil one last use.

 

[Figment2005]

But also consider the busses run on a blend of biodiesel produced by the used cooking oil produced on property. Which has been proven to burn cleaner and gives the used oil one last use.

Yes that is also true. Now, this is just for conversation, but it takes roughly 10 buses to pick up the slack of the express beam being closed vs 2 train operation. The express runs with 3 or 4 trains normally, and they don't have the room in the Mousehouse to operate enough buses to replace that. I would love to see the energy difference if anyone was crazy enough to do the math.

 

[networkpro]

You can see the castle that alone nakes the property deluxe, The lobby and garden of the Poly was wrecked so you could see the bloody castle when you walked into the ground floor lobby. But its 'The Castle' so its all good...

Wrecked ? You mean the removal of the moldy smell and increasing the amount of usable seating on the first floor ?

Wonderful for fireworks viewing....

 

[ABQ]

But also consider the busses run on a blend of biodiesel produced by the used cooking oil produced on property. Which has been proven to burn cleaner and gives the used oil one last use.

R50, I believe is the term for the renewable diesel they use. Half bio, half ultra low sulfur.

 

[Driver]

Yes that is also true. Now, this is just for conversation, but it takes roughly 10 buses to pick up the slack of the express beam being closed vs 2 train operation. The express runs with 3 or 4 trains normally, and they don't have the room in the Mousehouse to operate enough buses to replace that. I would love to see the energy difference if anyone was crazy enough to do the math.

Your figures are almost spot on ... good job!. But I wasn't looking at it from a " which is more efficient " My line of thinking is how they both serve a valuable role. Hands down the train is more efficient, but it has limits. Like if it stops " you got a problem" and it can only go where there is a beam. A bus can go anywhere but cannot carry as many guest. As already mentioned you have to look at transportation as a whole, when it's all up, it's good. And as I said earlier what do they do when things go wrong?..., call in the busses they are the quick fix! In the end I love the trains, I truly enjoy just going for a ride I can't imagine WDW without them it's an icon.