Magic Kingdom Monorails at Reduced Capacity Due to Beam Damage

[monorailguy1987]

since the hours have changed the monorails have had more time to get the preventive work done on them that is needed every night. If you look at the problems before the time change they were long and frequent... Now they are just simple things that can be fixed in a few mins. To see this in reality look at the way trains are running now and compare them to holiday weeks when they operate of there old time schedule its a huge difference.

 

[ScoutN]

Simply put... weight. A heavy train system weighs orders of magnitude more then a simple ride vehicle. While coasters go fast which increases their load on things, its something that can be planned for. Trains are always heavy, and get heavier with more passengers.

Concrete is better at taking compression loads. Concrete also wears and weathers very well.

Steel is good for lightweight strength that is flexible. It bends without deforming, etc.

Train tracks are made from steel, but they are supported by sturdy railbeds.

Concrete beams probably aren't as sexy as they were 40 years ago due to the rising cost of concrete.. but concrete is still the material of choice in elevated platforms in most places.

Ahh you left out another important factor. Steel fracture points.

 

[Jim Handy]

That's quite a conclusion to jump to.

It may not be as much of a jump as you think.

 

[Tom]

since the hours have changed the monorails have had more time to get the preventive work done on them that is needed every night. If you look at the problems before the time change they were long and frequent... Now they are just simple things that can be fixed in a few mins. To see this in reality look at the way trains are running now and compare them to holiday weeks when they operate of there old time schedule its a huge difference.

Do you know of specific improvements/repairs they've made? Or is it simply that they just have time to tighten bolts and re-terminate wires these days?

 

[MaryJaneP]

Would it be possible to have something, like they use to heat sidewalks to prevent freezing, placed under the monorail beams to prevent joint concracture?. It would only need to turn on when the temperature goes below some threshold, say like 35 degrees F. Would such a system be cheaper than new tires or is it just easier to run at reduced capacity during cold weather and live with the problem.

 

[PhilharMagician]

Don't get me wrong - I've stayed at all three and really like them, especially Grand Floridian. They all have a unique theme, spacious rooms, solid restaurants, and the beautiful Seven Seas Lagoon area. And that's ignoring the convenience to MK and magical Castle views.

But with huge new DVC buildings being constructed on the shore (taking away from that secluded feeling), and the monorail's reliability in question recently, I don't think these resorts are worth the current prices (even factoring in AP and other discounts). The Epcot resorts (including Swan and Dolphin) offer a great location, restaurants, pools, etc, and typically cost less.

I think the adding of the GF itself took away from the secluded feeling specifcally at the Poly. Adding one new building is not really going to make that much of a differance.

 

[Tom]

Would it be possible to have something, like they use to heat sidewalks to prevent freezing, placed under the monorail beams to prevent joint concracture?. It would only need to turn on when the temperature goes below some threshold, say like 35 degrees F. Would such a system be cheaper than new tires or is it just easier to run at reduced capacity during cold weather and live with the problem.

Good idea, but it likely would be an exercise in futility. Sidewalks are only 4-6" thick, and often the ice-melt system is installed within the concrete itself (sometimes below). To heat the portions of the track system that are contracting would take a significant apparatus.

I wish someone had photos of the culprit expansion joint, so we could all stop guessing.

 

[Master Yoda]

Good idea, but it likely would be an exercise in futility. Sidewalks are only 4-6" thick, and often the ice-melt system is installed within the concrete itself (sometimes below). To heat the portions of the track system that are contracting would take a significant apparatus.

I wish someone had photos of the culprit expansion joint, so we could all stop guessing.

I was wondering if a solution might be as simple as a couple of properly placed halogen lights. With the typical weather in WDW you would only need to raise the temperature of the joint a few degrees to get it back into a nominal range.

 

[DonaldDoleWhip]

I think the adding of the GF itself took away from the secluded feeling specifcally at the Poly. Adding one new building is not really going to make that much of a differance.

You also forgot about BLT, and the fact that the new GF wing is going to be taller than the other buildings and will mess up the view from Poly looking towards GF (and vice-versa), as well as largely taking away one of the longest stretches of accessible beach in WDW (rocks =/= beach).

The original plan for the whole resort area had 4 resorts on the Seven Seas Lagoon, including CR since it's basically between the Lagoon and Bay Lake (but the resorts were relatively spaced out and thus secluded from each other, and CR was the only super tall one). For me, GF never messed that up - it was just a more elegant replacement concept for the Asian Resort pad (with seemed similar to the Poly in some design elements). The DVC wings have changed that dynamic, as the separation between GF and Poly feels much less significant than before, and BLT added a very large, generic high rise to the horizon.

Combine that with the monorail issues, and the Seven Seas Lagoon area has lost a lot of its appeal compared to Wilderness Lodge or the Epcot area. And since the monorail resorts are typically the most expensive, we perceive them to be relatively worse values now (since the feeling we enjoyed is largely gone). It might not be everyone's opinion, but it's ours.

 

[googilycub]

I don't want to get stuck on a monorail for an hour and miss my dining reservation (for which I'll now receive a hefty charge)

You would not receive a "hefty" charge. Disney is aware when the monorail goes down, and makes exceptions to the rules at monorail resorts when it does go down. When we were there 2 weeks ago they were having problems with the monorail, so we did not go to our dinner reservation. We called the dinning number, and were not charged for the miss. The person that we talked to was well aware of the monorail being down at the time.

 

[disney fan 13]

You would not receive a "hefty" charge. Disney is aware when the monorail goes down, and makes exceptions to the rules at monorail resorts when it does go down. When we were there 2 weeks ago they were having problems with the monorail, so we did not go to our dinner reservation. We called the dinning number, and were not charged for the miss. The person that we talked to was well aware of the monorail being down at the time.

nuff said...

 

[DonaldDoleWhip]

You would not receive a "hefty" charge. Disney is aware when the monorail goes down, and makes exceptions to the rules at monorail resorts when it does go down. When we were there 2 weeks ago they were having problems with the monorail, so we did not go to our dinner reservation. We called the dinning number, and were not charged for the miss. The person that we talked to was well aware of the monorail being down at the time.

I've heard numerous horror stories about this new charge, such as the charge going through even when people showed up on time or early (but were checked in late due to a long line of people). I don't want to risk either being late, missing the meal completely, or having to deal with Disney billing for hours on the phone because of a Disney technology error (as has been reported).

Plus, with the fastpass policy change as well, I don't want to increase my chance of being late for reasons other than my own mistake. Sorry, but the monorail is a liability now, and in combination with Disney's recent policies (fastpass, dining, etc) are driving us more and more to Swan (a non-Disney resort with all the benefits, except DME and the DDP which we barely use).

 

[googilycub]

nuff said...

Yep, things break down. Please show me a form of mass transit that has a 100% availability rate.

 

[DonaldDoleWhip]

Yep, things break down. Please show me a form of mass transit that has a 100% availability rate.

It's not mass transit, but from Swan you can walk to 2 parks with nobody to blame but yourself if you're late for an ADR. Love walking to both Epcot and DHS

 

[Tom]

I was wondering if a solution might be as simple as a couple of properly placed halogen lights. With the typical weather in WDW you would only need to raise the temperature of the joint a few degrees to get it back into a nominal range.

Hmmm. Maybe. I guess I'm just pulling things out of thin air since I don't know exactly where/what we're discussing. I mean, I know it's one of the steel toothed expansion joints, but I don't know what it looked like in it's hazardous state.

 

[Master Yoda]

Hmmm. Maybe. I guess I'm just pulling things out of thin air since I don't know exactly where/what we're discussing. I mean, I know it's one of the steel toothed expansion joints, but I don't know what it looked like in it's hazardous state.

We are all doing the same. It would be nice to see a clear picture of the offending joint.

 

[wdw71fan]

The misconception here is that this was a safety or hazard issue..


It's neither.. it's an issue of protecting the trains, the traction control system is designed to ride a linear piece of concrete.. there was an expasion beyond standard operating tolerance, so they reduced speed for 2 days..


The trains are back to full operation now.

 

[flynnibus]

The original source of this story seems to have a serious bone to pick over Disney in the monorails. Doesn't seem beyond him at all to play up the choice of words here for maximum impact. I doubt we'll be seeing a follow-up story from him about the monorails returning to normal operation...

 

[Jim Handy]

Yep, things break down. Please show me a form of mass transit that has a 100% availability rate.

True. No system is perfect.But the Walt Disney World Monorail System was once close.

I'm happy the issue with the beam was corrected. Now the monorails can go back to normal operation.

 

[monothingie]

Hmmm. Maybe. I guess I'm just pulling things out of thin air since I don't know exactly where/what we're discussing. I mean, I know it's one of the steel toothed expansion joints, but I don't know what it looked like in it's hazardous state.

Picture this gap, except bigger

Interestingly enough the LV Monorail beam has improved the design dramatically to deal with the extreme temperatures that are present there.