News New Gondola Transportation - Disney Skyliner -

[Creathir]

The gondolas should definitely help with this. The three resorts it will service account for 7000 rooms which is almost 1/4 of the rooms on property.

It's a shame they are not sending it up to the Epcot monorail station as well.

 

[FigmentFan3]

It's a shame they are not sending it up to the Epcot monorail station as well.

Hypothetically as long as one has a park hopper ticket, one could board the gondola at pop/AoA, ride to gateway, walk to the monorail, and monorail to MK while having only gone through security once at Pop/AoA.

 

[Creathir]

Hypothetically as long as one has a park hopper ticket, one could board the gondola at pop/AoA, ride to gateway, walk to the monorail, and monorail to MK while having only gone through security once at Pop/AoA.

True, but if there was a true intermodal station it would allow for those not wishing to hike thru Epcot or who don't have a hopper to use the gondola/monorail to get to the MK.

 

[TiggerDad]

A bit off topic, but I don't know where else to ask this. At what point does WDW reach saturation with the buses with their current infrastructure? At some point, adding more buses and putting more traffic on the roads no longer nets moving more people per hour. Are they close to hitting that number now? Would one or two more resorts put them over the top? Are the gondolas a way of getting out ahead of that? I'm just asking random questions here that cross my mind, but understanding how they make a place the size of WDW work has always fascinated me.

This may actually be one of the least off-topic questions from the past 100 pages or so.

 

[truecoat]

A bit off topic, but I don't know where else to ask this. At what point does WDW reach saturation with the buses with their current infrastructure? At some point, adding more buses and putting more traffic on the roads no longer nets moving more people per hour. Are they close to hitting that number now? Would one or two more resorts put them over the top? Are the gondolas a way of getting out ahead of that? I'm just asking random questions here that cross my mind, but understanding how they make a place the size of WDW work has always fascinated me.

They have a job posting for a Transportation Master Planner. This line in the job description stood out to me... its stated mission is to integrate transportation into a seamless, immersive resort experience for resort guests while still delivering a fiscally responsible and sustainable system.

This sounds like something more than buses but I guess we'll see.

 

[JoeCamel]

They have a job posting for a Transportation Master Planner. This line in the job description stood out to me... its stated mission is to integrate transportation into a seamless, immersive resort experience for resort guests while still delivering a fiscally responsible and sustainable system.

This sounds like something more than buses but I guess we'll see.

The best laid plans of mice and men.......

 

[lazyboy97o]

They have a job posting for a Transportation Master Planner. This line in the job description stood out to me... its stated mission is to integrate transportation into a seamless, immersive resort experience for resort guests while still delivering a fiscally responsible and sustainable system.

This sounds like something more than buses but I guess we'll see.

That sounds like the sort of fluff that is in all of Disney's job postings.

 

[rle4lunch]

LOL!

I'm sure they can modify them just like they modified the IASW boats to accommodate larger people from bottoming out the boats, err, I mean, so they'd be safer.

 

[Cesar R M]

But... but... what if I have a broken leg in a straight cast, and I'm riding an ECV with my leg out to the side and my crutches sticking straight up on the back...?

You scream in agony, call an ambulance and get your merry way to the hospital!

 

[Cesar R M]

The gondolas should definitely help with this. The three resorts it will service account for 7000 rooms which is almost 1/4 of the rooms on property.

What is the next biggest hotel? Coronado?

 

[jaklgreen]

You would need to dig back through all the pages to find the insider posts. But, I'm sure it was said that buses from those hotels to the same resorts as the gondolas will be eliminated. That's the entire point of the project, to provide a more efficient higher capacity transit from those resorts and at the same time eliminate traffic from the roads.

The gondola's will easily hold 1 ECV or 1 wheelchair. Maybe even 2 wheelchairs depending on size. Same for strollers, easily 2 small strollers, maybe just 1 of the huge double jogger models. No folding, roll right on.

Just look at some of the videos above or the Doppelmayr website at the 10 or 15 passenger cars. I think it was said they would be 10 passenger cars, but don't quote me on that (it's in the prior pages somewhere). A 10 passenger car is 2 benches, front and back for 5 people each, with space in the middle between them. Plenty easy to fit strollers, ECV, wheelchairs in that space. If they can flip up a bench on one side, that creates even more space, at the reduction in seating. Of course, that person has a seat already and doesn't need the bench.

If you want to talk about space utilization per car, then you also have to talk about how they'll likely load them for normal operation and at busy times. At a non busy time, I can see them just putting one guest group in each car. Just 4 people in your group, you get a car, plus empty space. With 8 people, you get a car and less empty space. At a busy time, 2 groups of 4 have to share car, or 2 groups of 5, or a 4 and 6 group. That group of 8 might still get it's own car, unless there is a group of 2 relatively near the front of the line. Or, they never merge groups even in busy times. It's packing problem, and there will be empty space that's underutilized. If groups of 8, 4, and 8 show up in that order, they're not going to make the group of 4 split up to fill 2 with each of the 8 cars, that's just poor customer service to force a group to break up across cars that are larger than the group size.

I don't care how they load them, if they accommodate strollers/wheelchairs/ECVs, etc. None of that matters. They are going to lose plenty of business to those resorts. I think you underestimate how many people will NOT use a gondola because of the heights.

 

[Creathir]

I don't care how they load them, if they accommodate strollers/wheelchairs/ECVs, etc. None of that matters. They are going to loose plenty of business to those resorts. I think you underestimate how many people will NOT use a gondola because of the heights.

I personally have no problem, my wife though says she will not ever ride in one.

The heights and stories of people falling out of them (I know, these are nothing like those of yesteryear) means she flat out will not get on it.

Soooo, those resorts will be out for us.

 

[danlb_2000]

What is the next biggest hotel? Coronado?

Port Orleans Riverside is a little bigger then the pre-renovation Coronado, but I assume Coronado will end up with more rooms when the expansion is done.

 

[lazyboy97o]

I don't care how they load them, if they accommodate strollers/wheelchairs/ECVs, etc. None of that matters. They are going to loose plenty of business to those resorts. I think you underestimate how many people will NOT use a gondola because of the heights.

There are plenty of people who do not have issues.

 

[GCTales]

I don't care how they load them, if they accommodate strollers/wheelchairs/ECVs, etc. None of that matters. They are going to loose plenty of business to those resorts. I think you underestimate how many people will NOT use a gondola because of the heights.

When you say "because of the heights" are you thinking that these will be way up in the sky like the old skyway (tallest tower was 60 feet)?

Insider posts from previously in the thread have suggested that these will, in general be kept much lower and closer to the ground - say ~20 between the bottom of the cabin and the ground. I think that is close to the height or the TTA People Mover.

 

[Kamikaze]

I personally have no problem, my wife though says she will not ever ride in one.

The heights and stories of people falling out of them (I know, these are nothing like those of yesteryear) means she flat out will not get on it.

Soooo, those resorts will be out for us.

Both of these are NOT issues. These are not chairlifts. And the height will only be enough to clear things with a little room. This isn't going to be way up in the air. Why build it higher than they have to?

 

[jaklgreen]

I personally do not have any issues with heights. Heck, I lean forward on Soarin. But my husband and brother both have big issues with heights. To the point where they will not go 3 rungs on a ladder. There are a lot of people who are like this. So to say "it's not that high" is well and good for those who do not have issues with the heights, but it is too high for many, even in an enclosed gondola. Not to mention all of those with the fear of them "crashing". You can't fix irrational fears in people no matter how much you want to beat them with your logic. I think it is a big mistake to take away the buses to these resorts even with the gondolas.

 

[Daveeeeed]

I personally do not have any issues with heights. Heck, I lean forward on Soarin. But my husband and brother both have big issues with heights. To the point where they will not go 3 rungs on a ladder. There are a lot of people who are like this. So to say "it's not that high" is well and good for those who do not have issues with the heights, but it is too high for many, even in an enclosed gondola. Not to mention all of those with the fear of them "crashing". You can't fix irrational fears in people no matter how much you want to beat them with your logic. I think it is a big mistake to take away the buses to these resorts even with the gondolas.

The Monorail goes up very very high when approaching the Contemporary. They will be enclosed and very sturdy. They also will not have glass floors, and will never go up too high.

Coming from someone who does have a fear of heights the gondola system still sounds very promising.

 

[Kamikaze]

I personally do not have any issues with heights. Heck, I lean forward on Soarin. But my husband and brother both have big issues with heights. To the point where they will not go 3 rungs on a ladder. There are a lot of people who are like this. So to say "it's not that high" is well and good for those who do not have issues with the heights, but it is too high for many, even in an enclosed gondola. Not to mention all of those with the fear of them "crashing". You can't fix irrational fears in people no matter how much you want to beat them with your logic. I think it is a big mistake to take away the buses to these resorts even with the gondolas.

Do they ride any attractions at the parks? Many, many of them go much higher than this will.

 

[Creathir]

The Monorail goes up very very high when approaching the Contemporary. They will be enclosed and very sturdy. They also will not have glass floors, and will never go up too high.

Coming from someone who does have a fear of heights the gondola system still sounds very promising.

The monorail doesn't sway in the wind like these will.

That along with "just a single cable" (I know, it's a thick steel cable, but it's a perception thing) holding you in the air freaks her out.