The perfect solution in the past was to skip the paid performers and go with audio-animatronic performers. That way massive shows could be run cheaply and with no labor disputes, 24/7 if they wanted, and only having to pay a CM or two to push buttons to start them and usher people in and out.
But it's been a long time since Hall of Presidents and the American Adventure show in EPCOT attracted large numbers of people like in the 80's and 90's. Last time I saw Hall of Presidents in late 2020, in a still crowded MK despite capacity restrictions, there were about 15 other people in there, while the popular rides were still crowded. American Adventure was similar, though the capacity restrictions seemed to be tighter in EPCOT than MK (or the crowd was just smaller).
The Tiki Room is often at capacity, but it's capacity is nowhere near the other 2 attractions and not much of a people eater.
With AI becoming more prevalent in everyday life, I just don't think most people are as thrilled with clunky 1960's AA figures for entertainment, but
@drizgirl is right: Disney does not want to hire more paid performers, or even CMs. The result will probably be fewer shows and parades in the future.
For the same reason they want to pay CMs less, I doubt Disney will ever bring back the old hours, except for paid events.
I'm all about omnimover-style loading wherever possible, which is why I love the Skyliner compared to all other forms of WDW transportation. Unfortunately, the more efficient that is, the more the crowding inside the served parks worsens. Modern younger crowds, however, seem to want more thrilling stuff than Haunted Mansion, etc. It's not feasible to have high thrills combined with omnimover loading.
Agreed on single rider lines. That seems like a win-win every time I see one.
Disney's "solution" (and it's not much of one IMO) seems to have been to raise prices on everything, or charge for what was previously included (like Fastpass and, for a while, even resort parking). But even though many middle class people are now priced out of a weeklong WDW vacation, there still seem to be enough upper income people willing to pay the extra costs and keep it crowded.
I don't think Disney places a high priority on guest satisfaction like they used to. If they did, we'd see better capacity throughout WDW. Until poor guest satisfaction impacts the bottom line, I expect that won't improve. Unfortunately, many of the current WDW vacationers don't remember just how much more efficient WDW used to be, and are fine with the current reality.
Sorry to be a downer. I actually agree with all OP's ways to improve crowd flow, but if it can't be shown to directly increase Disney's profits by bringing those measures back, I doubt they will happen.
