Monorail Automation Testing

lazyboy97o

lazyboy97o

Well-Known Member
ford91exploder said:
That was the maintenance guy, Ever since then I've avoided sitting on the window ledges in the front direction of travel at MCO.
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ford91exploder said:
He was supposed to be there, He was the maintenance guy for the tram I believe they were testing the e-stop system (as they are required to do) The OS article has the details and I believe so does the NTSB database
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He was not maintenance personnel. He was apparently friends with one of the technicians on the train.
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news...dead-orlando-ariport-tram-20150509-story.html
 
larryz

larryz

I'm Just A Tourist!
Premium Member
monothingie said:
The switching and spacing "advantages" brought about by the automation system seem dubious.

First you will still have a temporary shutdown of the beam while trains are added and removed from service. The automation system only eliminates/minimizes the human component that led to the accident. It may not drastically improve the cycle time to complete a switch operation.

Train spacing improvement is a misnomer because there is a maximum efficient number of trains per beam, and you can not predict guest behavior in loading and unloading. All this means is that you will experience more traffic holds because the trains will be closer together. So on the resort line, instead of all trains leaving stations and cycling at the same time, they will leave when needed and queue more often when they don't have clearance. On the express beam it just means more queuing at the TTC or MK. Maybe minor improvements in cycle time because the trains know when to advance faster than a human can get clearance to.

Trains got new carpets the a couple years back. That's probably the extent of updates you will get for a while. It's unfortunate that when the last couple of trains were out for extended periods because of accidents (teal/pink, peach/purple, coral, lime) no effort was made to fix/improve the interiors and on board systems like AC and communications. That's 1/3 the fleet that could have been updated right there.
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Makes one wonder why they just don't replace the monorail with a peoplemover...
 
Brad Bishop

Brad Bishop

Well-Known Member
larryz said:
Makes one wonder why they just don't replace the monorail with a peoplemover...
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I really wish that they had implemented the People mover more. At Epcot, where it was initially planned, would have been great. A "jungle themed" version at AK would have worked. DHS may actually be big enough to warrant one when they're done expanding.

Even in the parking lots as a replacement for the trams would have been neat. Granted, the trams move their stops down to match the cars/people arriving.

Of course, it would have been nice to have a site-wide Monorail but that's never going to happen. It's all pie-in-the-sky stuff.
 
Monorail_Red

Monorail_Red

Well-Known Member
Thelazer said:
Honestly it's time guys, automate them fully, remove the drivers, staff the platforms with a few extra folks and spend the money to expand it out to service a few more resorts and parks.
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ford91exploder said:
You still need the pilot for evacuations and as the 'eyes and ears' of the controllers. The MCO shuttle has a platform along the full length of its track for evacuations. The monorail does not
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For this reason, even some day when the MVI's are replaced, I'm guessing there will always be a CM aboard since WDW is an open beamway without evac walkways.

ford91exploder said:
A drive motor installed in the '00s is worn out mechanically the coils are still good but bearings etc are now at the end of their useful life.

Its why the trains are expensive to maintain now - because you are constantly needing to remove components which are meant to be removed only during full overhauls.
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I hear what you're saying but whether the trains are 5 or 50 years old items like bearings, bushings, and other various components will always need replacing every so often. It's just the nature of these things because of the service demands.
 
ford91exploder

ford91exploder

Resident Curmudgeon
Monorail_Red said:
For this reason, even some day when the MVI's are replaced, I'm guessing there will always be a CM aboard since WDW is an open beamway without evac walkways.



I hear what you're saying but whether the trains are 5 or 50 years old items like bearings, bushings, and other various components will always need replacing every so often. It's just the nature of these things because of the service demands.
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I do restoration work as a hobby, Did a fair amount of farm tractors now doing performance diesel stuff, When you overhaul someting you frequently notice other components are worn on the way in, In a proper restoration you replace ALL the worn bits so you will not be in there constantly,

That's why a FULL ground up overhaul is needed so everything wears at about the same rate, Diesel engine for example if you replace the injectors you should replace the glow plugs because even if the glow plugs still test good and individually they are inexpensive the real expense is GETTING TO THEM and that work is the same for fuel injectors. Yes injectors are a couple thousand and glow plugs are a couple hundred but the 6-8 hours of shop labor to disassemble the top of the engine for access is the same for both. So you do both at the same time and you don't have a repeat labor bill.
 
Figment2005

Figment2005

Well-Known Member
Thelazer said:
I'm all for nostalgia and keeping people employed... but you know how many of you arrived at the Orlando Airport, and took the driver-less shuttle from one terminal to the other...without issue. Same tech, same thing as a monorail, just one less beam.

Honestly it's time guys, automate them fully, remove the drivers, staff the platforms with a few extra folks and spend the money to expand it out to service a few more resorts and parks.

Or do we just let Uber bring in the driver-less shuttles around the resorts, because that tech is already outpacing this old junk..
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I understand what you're saying, but the problem is that there is not evacuation route if a train were need an evacuation. The cast members are there to organize the guests and help them exit the train in an emergency. The airport trams, if needed evacuation, the guests can just walk next to the tram to the terminal. This is not possible with the monorail. Also, many of the smaller problems can be remedied with a physical bypass that the drivers are sometimes instructed to use. This could be automated as well, but not with the current fleet.
 
T

Thelazer

Well-Known Member
I wonder if it's possible, to install a "emergency" walkway in the space "Between" both beams?

Seems like there is room there.. that could solve a few issues, let alone at least even "IF" there was a driver, make it way
easier to get out of there if you had to..

Just food for thought...
 
Figment2005

Figment2005

Well-Known Member
Thelazer said:
I wonder if it's possible, to install a "emergency" walkway in the space "Between" both beams?

Seems like there is room there.. that could solve a few issues, let alone at least even "IF" there was a driver, make it way
easier to get out of there if you had to..

Just food for thought...
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Could be possible, but the catwalk would have to be on both sides. One side will not be enough because the emergency release handles only open one door per side. Front of the car evacuates to the left, back half evacuates to the right.
 
Monorail_Red

Monorail_Red

Well-Known Member
Figment2005 said:
Just an update. No more than 2 weeks after going live with the automation, monorail blue is now back in shop getting a full nose to nose repaint that includes interior refreshing. One car has been completed and she looks brand new.
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Good to hear, maybe now with that big project out of the way the others will get some TLC. I wonder if they're putting the D's back on cabs?
 
P_Radden

P_Radden

Well-Known Member
Figment2005 said:
Just an update. No more than 2 weeks after going live with the automation, monorail blue is now back in shop getting a full nose to nose repaint that includes interior refreshing. One car has been completed and she looks brand new.
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Do you have any pictures?
 
ChrisM

ChrisM

Well-Known Member
Figment2005 said:
Just an update. No more than 2 weeks after going live with the automation, monorail blue is now back in shop getting a full nose to nose repaint that includes interior refreshing. One car has been completed and she looks brand new.
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Looks brand new on the outside but still has interior carpet from the 80's and smells like on the inside?
 

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