How could Disney Enhance the Bus Ride experience

[IWantACoolHat]

I rode a bus one time and the bus driver interacted with us. He played trivia games with us and it was great. I knew all the answers so thats probably why I liked it so much

This would make the bus rides a lot better. I was staying at All-Stars and we were coming back from EPCOT and it was pouring rain and cold. All I wanted to do was get back to my room and we had a really energetic bus driver. He told a bunch of jokes and they were pretty good ones too. By the time the bus ride was over I wasn't in a bad mood anymore and I kinda wanted to ride again.

I'd take an interactive bus driver over a recording any day.

 

[durhay]

I just close my eyes and try to wind down from all the stimulation at the parks. I can tell where I am by the change in music.

If anyone comes across the steel drum cover of "I'll Be There" used in the OKW resort loop, message me please. Thanks.

 

[diddy_mouse]

One thing I really like is the music that plays on the buses. For me there was nothing better than hearing the EPCOT loop when we approached the park.

Also the best thing at the end of the night was listening to the resort-themed music as the bus made it's way back. My favorites? Wilderness Lodge and Port Orleans. Least favorite? DTD. If I had to keep hearing the remixed version of "One" I was going to scream.

 

[juniorthomas]

One thing I really like is the music that plays on the buses. For me there was nothing better than hearing the EPCOT loop when we approached the park.

Also the best thing at the end of the night was listening to the resort-themed music as the bus made it's way back. My favorites? Wilderness Lodge and Port Orleans. Least favorite? DTD. If I had to keep hearing the remixed version of "One" I was going to scream.

Haha, I'm sure they could find a way to add it to your hotel lobby or maybe even pipe it into the rooms!

 

[juniorthomas]

This would make the bus rides a lot better. I was staying at All-Stars and we were coming back from EPCOT and it was pouring rain and cold. All I wanted to do was get back to my room and we had a really energetic bus driver. He told a bunch of jokes and they were pretty good ones too. By the time the bus ride was over I wasn't in a bad mood anymore and I kinda wanted to ride again.

I'd take an interactive bus driver over a recording any day.

I think it seems perfectly reasonable. It would be a low cost solution to an unaddressed Disney property.

 

[DVCOwner]

I am going to jump on several post and put some things together.

First – all bus stop would have a touch screen monitor where one person from each party would enter where they want to go and how many people are traveling with them. No key or ticket needed.

Second – Disney bus control center would have cameras at each stop to visual check to verify if someone enter large numbers into the system.

Third – Using the existing GPS systems on the buses, Disney would track and update estimated arrival times for the next bus to each location served by that bus stop and display this on a screen at the bus stop. Time would be worst case so that times would usually improve as the buses went on the given routes. If buses were delayed, than the time could be adjusted and reason for delay could be posted.

Last – All the data collect above could be used to make better dispatches of buses and even modify routes on the fly.

Example – No one is waiting at Boardwalk to go to Magic Kingdom, the bus could by pass that stop and continue saving time for everyone on board.

 

[acishere]

Posting the estimated time of arrival for the next bus would be a great idea, and not that hard to implement. Most of the subway stations here in NY have that now, and it's incredibly helpful.

This right here.

The college I went to, Rutgers, had a large bus system pretty much like WDW (in fact I think they both use the exact same bus model) and every bus stop has a digital display stating the estimated arrival times of each bus line. Were the arrival times always accurate? God, no! If you were at a stop after a student center the display would say the bus is arriving in 1 min and 20 minutes later it shows up, but that issue was because the drivers would take giants breaks at every student center everytime. Disney would probably have less of an issue with this considering I don't think would have tolerance for a driver to take a 20 minute smoke break every single time he pulled into Epcot. Rush hour also effected the times, but not as much as the drivers themselves. Overall though the system was a Godsend because you knew whether or not you had time to run and grab food at a Grease Truck next to the stop. There was also NextBus.com which you just can just log onto on your laptop or smart phone and check the arrival times as well as bring up a map that displays a selected route and the location of all the buses on that particular route. There was a way to get the times by text too.

This would be the best way imo to improve the system. No more not knowing if you have time to use the bathroom before the bus shows up. Taking care of that alone can make the bus trips a lot more bearable.

Here is the online bus locator for Rutgers if anyone wants to look: http://www.nextbus.com/predictor/stopSelector.jsp?a=rutgers
Just keep in mind that its summer right now so its running very infrequently. Usually the buses run about 10 min apart from each other.

 

[juniorthomas]

i am going to jump on several post and put some things together.

First – all bus stop would have a touch screen monitor where one person from each party would enter where they want to go and how many people are traveling with them. No key or ticket needed.

Second – disney bus control center would have cameras at each stop to visual check to verify if someone enter large numbers into the system.

Third – using the existing gps systems on the buses, disney would track and update estimated arrival times for the next bus to each location served by that bus stop and display this on a screen at the bus stop. Time would be worst case so that times would usually improve as the buses went on the given routes. If buses were delayed, than the time could be adjusted and reason for delay could be posted.

Last – all the data collect above could be used to make better dispatches of buses and even modify routes on the fly.

Example – no one is waiting at boardwalk to go to magic kingdom, the bus could by pass that stop and continue saving time for everyone on board.

legendary

 

[puntagordabob]

More busses in the rotation.... no having to stand because the next bus is less than 10 minutes behind or less ..... but with operational costs I would say this would be unrealistic.

Perhaps phase in some bigger busses with better seats.....also not probably feasible since some of the bus turns are super tight now...


Otherwise not sure what they could do realisticly...... it is just not the funnest way to travel and there is not likely much to do to avoid this perception.... not really something Disney could realisticly change.

 

[rsoxguy]

I have heard tell of a certain professional called a Foot Masseuse...

 

[jjharvpro]

This is a tough one...

I don't know why I love the speaker saying your next destination. I think it's just something I remember and it takes me to WDW. Sometimes, the bus drivers are great(we got a recording of our bus driver during our past trip and he was crazy! just saying a bunch of silly stuff, and it was late at night, so of course everything is funnier).

But we also had a jerk driver.. Sometimes I feel like this is the only non-Disney thing in WDW...

 

[Greenkai3000]

A big improvement ...

For me it'd be awesome if they played classic Disney Cartoons...Admit it, EVERYONE likes to watch them, don't care how young or old you are.

Also, it'd be great if they added direct routes from DHS to DD, as well as from Resort to Resort. So tired of having to transfer . The last 2 times I had to go from DHS to DD to see La Nouba I nearly missed the beginning of the show because of the transfer and long wait at Pop Century. :brick:

 

[BigRedDad]

They could create an actual bus logistic system that works. It is too simple and cost-effective to implement that they won't.

At each bus stop at the resort and bus area of the parks, have a kiosk to slide your room key and select the park you are going to. This signals the servers to use logic and algorithms to determine how many buses are required and route the necessary vehicles appropriately.

I love sitting at Pop waiting for a bus to say MK with 100 people in line and there are 3 buses for Epcot with 10 people in line. The system is too passive to move 2 of those Epcot buses to MK buses. Computers and servers are here for a reason. WDW has far more computing power available in their current system to be able to implement this service.

As for on the bus, they can add an animatronic to talk with the guests using a similar technology as Laugh Floor or Turtle Talk.

 

[Disneykidder]

Having been on the Disney buses many times, I can say the most memorable of rides was whe we had an amazing bus driver. He started sing alongs and asked trivia questions and gave some interesting facts that many people would not have known. I remember this ride very well...it was most enjoyable. I have yet to have to same experience and also the same driver. Maybe he was a hitchhiking ghost because I have never seen him again.

 

[juniorthomas]

More busses in the rotation.... no having to stand because the next bus is less than 10 minutes behind or less ..... but with operational costs I would say this would be unrealistic.

Perhaps phase in some bigger busses with better seats.....also not probably feasible since some of the bus turns are super tight now...


Otherwise not sure what they could do realisticly...... it is just not the funnest way to travel and there is not likely much to do to avoid this perception.... not really something Disney could realisticly change.

There are lots of great suggestions on this board though. Scroll back and read some. There are always ways to enhance things that are relatively flat. Maybe some of these ideas will catch the eye of someone from TDO and make their way into the parks!

 

[juniorthomas]

For me it'd be awesome if they played classic Disney Cartoons...Admit it, EVERYONE likes to watch them, don't care how young or old you are.

Also, it'd be great if they added direct routes from DHS to DD, as well as from Resort to Resort. So tired of having to transfer . The last 2 times I had to go from DHS to DD to see La Nouba I nearly missed the beginning of the show because of the transfer and long wait at Pop Century. :brick:

Both perfectly reasonable suggestions. The cartoons would be particularly enjoyable additions to those long rides

 

[juniorthomas]

Having been on the Disney buses many times, I can say the most memorable of rides was whe we had an amazing bus driver. He started sing alongs and asked trivia questions and gave some interesting facts that many people would not have known. I remember this ride very well...it was most enjoyable. I have yet to have to same experience and also the same driver. Maybe he was a hitchhiking ghost because I have never seen him again.

My bus drivers have all been of the silent denomination. Sign me up for that hitchhiking ghost!

 

[El Topo]

My Cologne- I think complimentary food vouchers would make the bus riding experience even better. I have never gone as of yet, as I dont have the funds to go but will in the future, but the idea that I could get a nice hot plate of cheese curly fries for riding on the bus would make the trip even that much better. And for somebody such as me who does have limited funds, I could feed my children with the vouchers and order myself a steak dinner with the saved money.

It helps, and the one thing I love about Disney is that they do care.


Carlos

 

[KingdomofDreams]

I may be in the minority, but I'd rather not be entertained by the bus driver. It seems like a big distraction for someone who is behind the wheel of a bus full of people. I would prefer the driver be completely focused on driving the bus safely.

Theming the buses and installing video screens would be a nice addition. Videos shown might focus on all WDW has to offer - the various resort properties, DTD, water parks, theme parks, all the shows. No matter how much I know about WDW, I still enjoy watching these types of things and for a lot of guests it might be a good opportunity to introduce and entice them to something they didn't know about. Perhaps they might also change the mood of things depending on time of day, i.e. late at night at park closing maybe just show a goodnight kiss kind of thing or play the classic Disney music to soothe and de-stress weary guests.

 

[cymbaldiva]

I have always thought Disney has missed a golden opportunity on their transit system. Why are there not monitors telling guests about event schedules or ride closures or an advertisement about Disney restaurants. Something that would make visitors want to eat at a higher end place rather than a grab and go burger shack. When it come to sales, a captive audience is a precious thing.
It just surprises me they have never done things like this.

Couldn't do it as far as restaurants - the bulk of TS inside the parks are generally already filled because of the way too out of hand ADR system.