alphac2005
Well-Known Member
We were walking from The Magic Kingdom to The Contemporary last week and there is extensive cracking throughout several of the support beams as you go along the pathway. It was a bit distressing to say the least.
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Monorail Support beams needing repair!
- Thread starter GrumpyFan
- Start date
Fido Chuckwagon
Well-Known Member
Under Chapek I would have answered that it would get fixed shortly after a monorail crashed killing several passengers. Under Iger, not so sure.
MerlinTheGoat
Well-Known Member
Same under both. Except that in the scenario where a monorail crashes and kills a bunch of people as a result of the concrete track structure collapsing, i'd bet it's more likely they would simply dismantle the monorail system entirely.
DisneyCane
Well-Known Member
Cracks in concrete do not necessarily mean the beams lack the strength they need. I'm certain that these are inspected by engineers who know what they are doing and they would shut down the monorail immediately if there was a danger.
Disneyhead'71
Well-Known Member
Experimental Prototype Community Of Tomorrow 40 years later. The hub is in the process of being gentrified and "Green Spaced", all we need is some studios and lofts.
That said, that particular problem will be patched asap, it was social media flagged.
That said, that particular problem will be patched asap, it was social media flagged.
DisneyCane
Well-Known Member
It also needs an apartment complex that looks exactly like every other complex built in the last 5 years in every city across the USA!
John park hopper
Well-Known Member
If rebar was used in the concrete which it probably was for strength over time the rebar corrodes and weakens the concrete. Many bridges have had this problem and have had to have major repairs. I would imagine after 50 yrs the monorails are experiencing the same corrosion especially it the hot humid weather of FL
vikescaper
Well-Known Member
That and a bit of go away green will make this issue disappear!
Andrew M
Well-Known Member
Precisely. All concrete cracks over time, and some are completely harmless. Nothing in OP's photo suggests the monorail beam or column is in danger of failure. Let it go on like that for 10-15 more years with zero maintenance and there might be an issue, but I highly doubt Disney would ever let it get to that point.
Goofyernmost
Well-Known Member
You know the way people are when it comes to things like that. If they see a leaf on the ground they immediately decide that the tree is about to fall. Cosmetic problems are a pretty natural thing on something as old as that is. In many ways it is good. Yes, there was some rust and if that piece hadn't fallen the rebar might have continued to rust, but it didn't and it allowed Disney to know that there was water leaking in to the structure and can repair it. It is good that happened, well I wouldn't go so far as to say that but, it really might have prevented a much bigger problem later. Without xray vision it is hard to tell what is going on behind the outside for show surface. I can assure you that that outside covering is not holding the monorails up. It might be a good idea to inspect all of the units and make sure that other cracks are patched over. Those structures have seen a lot of weather over the last 40 to 50 years and this was a statement that they needed to make that a project. Concrete gets brittle when exposed to ultra violet rays so it needs a careful going over. Not time to panic yet, I'm sure the new board at RCID will get right on it. That would be their job I would think.
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networkpro
Well-Known Member
- In the Parks
- Yes
Now that's a surface observation of modern concrete. Roman concrete actually gets harder over time as it's made with quicklime and forms lime clasts while settling. Any water intrusion activates it to self-heal.
James Alucobond
Well-Known Member
At least superficially patched today, it seems.
flynnibus
Premium Member
The exposed rebar is not good - because that allows it to corrode and generally a bad thing for intrusion. Surface cracks are nothing... nor are chips... but cracks that are structural and exposing the rebar are all material significant issues that would draw attention for repair. The growth or direction of cracks can also be tells if they are active due to issues with supporting the load.
The kind of big chunk we see in this image I would expect to be patched and not let be forever.
Different mixture was used for cement/concrete. This is why it has aged much faster. It never sat as well.
roj2323
Well-Known Member
At some point Disney is going to have to deeply invest in rebuilding the monorail lines or plan for their alternative. On the plus side there's been a lot of advancement in concrete formulation which should result in monorail beams that hold up better / longer to weather and vibration over time but this will still likely be close to a billion dollar investment just for the "track" replacement and would likely take years to complete. They could also go with steel instead of concrete but I'm not sure how that would work long term or functionally given traction requirements.
roj2323
Well-Known Member
Yeah this is the type of thing they media blast and then fill with a high psi repair. That said, it's a temporary fix and they are going to have to start thinking long term about replacement.