Improved Transportation?

[Ringo8n24]

We just returned from our first trip to London. Our first thought when we saw the double-decker buses was how great those would be at WDW if only the overpasses, etc., were tall enough to handle them passing underneath. They could hold twice as many people on each trip.

 

[cloudboy]

THEY ARE FREE FLOATING VESSELS, SUPRISINGLY ENOUGH, WE CAN RUN 3 AT A TIME!

Geez, next you will be telling us that you can control their direction and even send them to different places.

I honestly only thought they had two of the ferries.

Our first thought when we saw the double-decker buses was how great those would be at WDW if only the overpasses, etc., were tall enough to handle them passing underneath.

That would be cool. You couldn't use them to the Magic Kingdom, nor to the Yacht and Beach club, but elsewhere they would work. They would have problems with the load time, but I think you could put in two stairs.

I would love to see a PRT system in place there. Done right with a good staging area, you could really eliminate any long waits. But I realistically don't think that we have quite advanced the control software enough to make it work, and I would expect there to be a lot of problems with security - both vandalism and personal security. Not to mention safety.

 

[garyhoov]

I would love to see a PRT system in place there. Done right with a good staging area, you could really eliminate any long waits. But I realistically don't think that we have quite advanced the control software enough to make it work, and I would expect there to be a lot of problems with security - both vandalism and personal security. Not to mention safety.

Yep, those are problems. I'm also very concerned with vehicle reliability and breakdown resolution. Consider "Test Track" as an example. We have to be sure that breakdowns will be infrequent and quickly resolved, but the Catch 22 is we can't really evaluate software, hardware or other logistical issues until we've got a system up and running. If anyone is able to get something started to evaluate and fix those issues, it's Disney, but they've got to take the leap. If I was in a Disney board meeting, I'd push for a loop between EPCOT and MGM. There's not much risk in that because even if it turns out not to be an effective transportation system, it would be a great attraction and help spread some traffic between parks.

As for security. One possible solution is to post security guards at each station. That seems a bit labor intensive, but I'd guess there would be fewer security guards than current bus drivers.

 

[HennieBogan1966]

Okay. Let me ask some questions here.

(1) How many of you out there wait more than 20-30 minutes for dinner? Or for a movie, as you sit eating popcorn, and answering your cell phone. (which you shouldn't do in the first place).

(2) How many of you out there are willing to pay even more for tickets and resorts when they build/add more monorail lines to all parts Disney?

(3) Why is waiting 20 minutes for a bus so bad? How quickly should they be there? 10 minutes? If so, what is so important about that 10 minutes?

I say, just enjoy your vacation. Lighten up and quit worrying about that 10 minutes.

This isn't always about Disney coming up with some cutting edge technology, but the fact that as more guests visit the parks, it takes longer for transportation to move those guests. Be glad that there is a wait. It means business is good!!!

 

[Dayma]

I love Disney transportation. It is nice not to have to rent a car.

The ONLY thing I wish they would do is to add more buses at night for the shows.

 

[StevenT]

By the way, according to a driver I spoke to, Disney has bought or is buying more busses :wave:

 

[cloudboy]

I would think a better route as a first one would be the EPCOT resorts. IT would help in justifying the costs, too. And if there was some kind of catastrophic breakdown, it could be compensated for easilly.

They do have a unique GRT system at some college - Morgantown, I believe. I think that may be adaptable. And some school (I can't find that link right now) is putting in a MAg LEv people mover. So there is some hope yet.

 

[Invero]

We just returned from our first trip to London. Our first thought when we saw the double-decker buses was how great those would be at WDW if only the overpasses, etc., were tall enough to handle them passing underneath. They could hold twice as many people on each trip.

Double-deckers wouldn't work for Disney. As it stands now, 3 steps is a big deal for a lot of our guests. The low-floor buses with zero steps are a big hit for this reason.

While they might work great in London, Disney caters to a different crowd, where unfortunetly, they wouldn't be so great.

 

[Invero]

By the way, according to a driver I spoke to, Disney has bought or is buying more busses :wave:

Yes. There are 24 Gillig Advantages arriving by the end of the year, with another 21 on order for next year.

 

[figmentmom]

Yes. There are 24 Gillig Advantages arriving by the end of the year, with another 21 on order for next year.

Welcome news! Although, as I've said before, I think Disney does a great job transporting huge numbers of people as it is.

 

[ToTBellHop]

Any notable changes with those new busses, Tyler?

 

[Invero]

Any notable changes with those new busses, Tyler?

They will be low-floors just like the Nova LFS. The Gilligs have a higher quality to them than the Novas. They are also going to have Cummins ISL engines, instead of the usual Detroit Diesel. These engines should prove to be far more reliable.

 

[Woody13]

They will be low-floors just like the Nova LFS. The Gilligs have a higher quality to them than the Novas. They are also going to have Cummins ISL engines, instead of the usual Detroit Diesel. These engines should prove to be far more reliable.

Gillig Phantoms and Advantages comprise the entire fleet where I live. They are surely a step up in quality! :wave:

 

[Bill]

Do they have carpeted floors and heated seats for the winter?

 

[cloudboy]

Isn't the Dennis Trident III a low floor model? I am not to up on my busses. Of course, I think that the new double-decker busses don't have as much appeal as the old ones.

 

[niteobsrvr]

Just for laughs....

In the first post the author stated that busses were too much like the real world but I beg to differ. I am really curious how many people get up in the morning and use a bus for all of their transportation needs.

If my memory serves me correctly, when I drive to work in the morning most of the cars on the road including mine are rather large and contain one adult.

I would say Disney Transport is a world of difference for most folks and not very much like the "real" world at all.

 

[scottnj1966]

This subject has been talked about alot

This has been a very hot topic in the last couple years.

Alot of people has said the monorails are too expensive to add too.
Guess what, they were extremely expensive when built for the 71 opening and the opening of epcot also.
That did not stop them. Disney loved the future and knew this was a great way to show it.
Epcot got there monorail system because there were still many people with Walts ideas.
Those days have changed, just look around at all the Disney parks.
Cost was never an issue. People that say it is does not know what a Disney park really means to people.
And another fact, Disney makes more profit then anyone will ever really know.
The monorails would save money in the long run no matter what anyone says to the contrary. There are so many reasons why I will not explain.

The bus system ruins the idea of Disney. It looks like a dirty city with them driving around. Anyone that does not think that really has not watched close enough.

Disney will change there views and ideas again one day to reflect what Walt wanted. It has too or it will become another Universal Studios type park with rude unpleasant people and a dirty park.

I think I have said enough about that. Have fun yelling at each other.

 

[CSOM]

Just for laughs....

In the first post the author stated that busses were too much like the real world but I beg to differ. I am really curious how many people get up in the morning and use a bus for all of their transportation needs.

If my memory serves me correctly, when I drive to work in the morning most of the cars on the road including mine are rather large and contain one adult.

I would say Disney Transport is a world of difference for most folks and not very much like the "real" world at all.

I rely on the bus soley for transportation, unless I have to go somewhere right from work (i.e. airport). Most of the people I work with do as well. It depends on where you work. In the majority of large cities, if you work in or near downtown (NYC, CHI, LA, Bos, Phil, Hou, etc.) you rely on public transportation, busses or trains. So for a large, large number of folks, transportation at WDW is just that, transportation. .... the scenery is just better

 

[Invero]

Isn't the Dennis Trident III a low floor model? I am not to up on my busses. Of course, I think that the new double-decker busses don't have as much appeal as the old ones.

Yes... it is... the first floor at least is. The problem though, would lie in the many steps required to get to the top floor.

 

[cloudboy]

In the first post the author stated that busses were too much like the real world but I beg to differ. I am really curious how many people get up in the morning and use a bus for all of their transportation needs.

When I worled downtown Boston, out of about 100 people in our company there were less than a dozen who would drive all the way in on any one day. And out of that a good three quarters would take the bus as a least part of their route. Even out here in the central part of the state we still have a pretty active (albeit terrible) bus system, as do most places in the north east.

I have noticed when travelling that a lot of the citys west and south tend to have a lot less transit available - Orlando only has that little bit of bus service and that is it - so some of those people may see busses as exciting.

Then again, maybe that a better reason for better Monorail service - as a showcase.