News New Gondola Transportation - Disney Skyliner -

[peter11435]

Except it won't be limited single 203 foot train length, but a mile or two length of gondola cabs. That is the difference.

Monorail evacuations are not always limited to a single train.

Even a mile or two of gondola cable will impact less guests then a single monorail train.

You are only seeing a difference because you want there to be one.

 

[ChrisFL]

I think it is because you are over-thinking just how high up the Gondolas will be. For the most part you could probably jump from then with no worse then a broken leg. (not that anyone wants a broken leg, but, compared to the alternative, I'd take it)

Actually I was thinking it was a funny image in my head, but point taken

 

[kainsel]

There is no need to panic since all the gondolas will be equipped with an emergency phone just like this

 

[danlb_2000]

Emergency drive systems

Yes, we are all aware of the emergency drive systems, doesn't change the fact that they must be prepared for a scenario where the line cannot be moved and the cars have to be directly evacuated.

 

[larryz]

Emergency drive systems

...do absolutely no good when cable or gondola grip integrity is the issue...

 

[HiJe]

...do absolutely no good when cable or gondola grip integrity is the issue...

Just to make it a more interesting rescue, I think they should just cut the line and let all of the gondolas swing down like Tarzan swinging from a tree. Who needs a rescue vehicle when you can claim that its just another attraction?

 

[larryz]

Just to make it a more interesting rescue, I think they should just cut the line and let all of the gondolas swing down like Tarzan swinging from a tree. Who needs a rescue vehicle when you can claim that its just another attraction?

And then hit each party for that Disney's Skyliner Swinging From The Heights Experience upcharge... that's got to be worth at least $129.95 per person, especially considering there's no theme park admission required.

 

[monothingie]

Monorail evacuations are not always limited to a single train.

There has not been a case where two monorails have had to be manually evacuated via the ground simultaneously.

Even a mile or two of gondola cable will impact less guests then a single monorail train.

You're intentionally being obtuse with that assessment. If that specific scenario presents itself there is no way to assess the number of affected guests until it happens. If the line can not be restarted you are potentially looking at an indeterminate amount of guests (because every car needs to be checked, even the ones which may be unoccupied) being stranded for a significant amount of time.

You are only seeing a difference because you want there to be one.

Conversely you are choosing to ignore the difference because you don't want there to be one.

 

[peter11435]

Conversely you are choosing to ignore the difference because you don't want there to be one.

I’m not ignoring anything. The systems are different. The results and consequences of their evacuations from a PR and optics standpoint are not.

 

[ParksAndPixels]

Mayor Vaughan in JAWS: "Listen Martin, it's all psychological... " "You yell Barracuda, people go- huh? What?"
"You yell Shark!" "And we've got a panic on our hands on the 4th of July"
There is a different psychological effect to being stuck in a gondola and stuck on a monorail.
Both to the people stuck in the respective cabins, and the public hearing the news.
A stuck monorail is a stationary train. A train sitting on a concrete structure.
A stuck gondola is a cabin dangling on a wire.
I like the gondola's and support them, but they are different.

You get points for the movie reference.

 

[GoofGoof]

What if there were a bus accident and people were killed? I bet no one would ever ride a bus again...

The dead people won’t

 

[GoofGoof]

I agree, evacuation of an entire line will not be trivial. There could be some challenges based on where the gondola cars actually stop...

- Over a road would require shutting down the traffic on the road.
- Over a parking lot. Would rescue equipment be able to access a gondola from the aisles between parked cars or would cars have to be moved?
- What happens when a car stops directly over a building at CBR?
- Hourglass lake, we know they are building a special boat launch, but having to evacuate a couple cars over water will complicate things.

I am not trying to play the doom and gloom game, but there are definitely some challenges to an evacuation.

The buildings over CBR seem to be the biggest problem. They have the lake covered with a specialized boat and closing roads should be of little concern in an emergency (which will also be exceptionally rare). For the parking lot they could even tow a few cars if need be, but most likely they would use a bucket type truck with an arm that can move up and then over parked cars.

For the section over CBR is there a roadway close to the path of the gondolas? They may need to drive a truck up onto the grass or landscaping to get close enough. I’m sure they have a plan.

 

[GoofGoof]

Except it won't be limited single 203 foot train length, but a mile or two length of gondola cabs. That is the difference.

The monorail is a single train, but wouldn’t the cars get evacuated individually? Is there a way to have all guests on a 203 foot train exit from the same spot? Unless they exited via the roof and walked across the cars which I would think would be a last resort in the event of a fire or something that forces people to leave the cars I can’t see how it would be possible to get from car to car. So you would still have to use multiple pieces of equipment and/or setup and take down equipment multiple times to get to each car of the monorail. It’s still easier and faster than a bunch of separated gondola cabins over various surfaces but it’s not a quick process either.

@Lift Blog or someone with some knowledge of gondolas, how often do these systems shut down completely and force a manual evacuation of the cabins?

 

[JoeCamel]

The buildings over CBR seem to be the biggest problem. They have the lake covered with a specialized boat and closing roads should be of little concern in an emergency (which will also be exceptionally rare). For the parking lot they could even tow a few cars if need be, but most likely they would use a bucket type truck with an arm that can move up and then over parked cars.

For the section over CBR is there a roadway close to the path of the gondolas? They may need to drive a truck up onto the grass or landscaping to get close enough. I’m sure they have a plan.

Wow, so many posts. CBR will be covered by cherry pickers, the extending bed trucks will be for the rest of the line. This is not rocket science. The line can be run to evac unless extreme things happen which are not likely.

 

[Club34]

The monorail is a single train, but wouldn’t the cars get evacuated individually? Is there a way to have all guests on a 203 foot train exit from the same spot? Unless they exited via the roof and walked across the cars which I would think would be a last resort in the event of a fire or something that forces people to leave the cars I can’t see how it would be possible to get from car to car. So you would still have to use multiple pieces of equipment and/or setup and take down equipment multiple times to get to each car of the monorail. It’s still easier and faster than a bunch of separated gondola cabins over various surfaces but it’s not a quick process either.

@Lift Blog or someone with some knowledge of gondolas, how often do these systems shut down completely and force a manual evacuation of the cabins?

You [and anyone else who has questioned these gondolas in the 700+ pages here] do realize that these gondolas run very regularly in much harsher climates on mountains/ski resorts? The snow, ice, and wind? And they are up high- and I am not just talking about the height of the mountain. You are cabling over some sketchy stuff sometimes- I am thinking Whistler and Squaw Valley. I don't know how some of those cars would manually evacuate- it would be impossible. The Disney version is hardly on par with those in the mountain. Look, play it safe and just don't ride it. You'll feel better?

Link to an article about evac...

https://www.tahoedailytribune.com/news/heavenly-team-is-ready-for-gondola-evacuation/

These things are EXTREMELY reliable...

Squaw [good luck climbing down...]



Whistler [ride through shows the slow down for mid-mountain loading and unloading- should give people an idea of what to expect]

 

[JoeCamel]

You [and anyone else who has questioned these gondolas in the 700+ pages here] do realize that these gondolas run very regularly in much harsher climates on mountains/ski resorts? The snow, ice, and wind? And they are up high- and I am not just talking about the height of the mountain. You are cabling over some sketchy stuff sometimes- I am thinking Whistler and Squaw Valley. I don't know how some of those cars would manually evacuate- it would be impossible. The Disney version is hardly on par with those in the mountain. Look, play it safe and just don't ride it. You'll feel better?

Link to an article about evac...

https://www.tahoedailytribune.com/news/heavenly-team-is-ready-for-gondola-evacuation/

These things are EXTREMELY reliable...

Squaw [good luck climbing down...]



Whistler [ride through shows the slow down for mid-mountain loading and unloading- should give people an idea of what to expect]

Not impossible just watch some of the helo evacs on utube.
Not going to happen here but nothing is impossible if enough resources are applied.

 

[networkpro]

What if there were Zombie alligators on the transit path... how would they cope?

 

[GoofGoof]

You [and anyone else who has questioned these gondolas in the 700+ pages here] do realize that these gondolas run very regularly in much harsher climates on mountains/ski resorts? The snow, ice, and wind? And they are up high- and I am not just talking about the height of the mountain. You are cabling over some sketchy stuff sometimes- I am thinking Whistler and Squaw Valley. I don't know how some of those cars would manually evacuate- it would be impossible. The Disney version is hardly on par with those in the mountain. Look, play it safe and just don't ride it. You'll feel better?

Link to an article about evac...

https://www.tahoedailytribune.com/news/heavenly-team-is-ready-for-gondola-evacuation/

These things are EXTREMELY reliable...

Squaw [good luck climbing down...]



Whistler [ride through shows the slow down for mid-mountain loading and unloading- should give people an idea of what to expect]

Not sure where this is coming from. Maybe you replied to the wrong post or you just didn’t bother to read what I wrote.

 

[lazyboy97o]

http://www.e-one.com/fdic-2018-141735/
Something like this should have no trouble getting to the gondolas.

 

[SLUSHIE]

Evacuations will occur multiple times a year... when they are doing training.

Chairlifts have a metal loop where ski patrol will setup a top rope anchor and then the people on the chair will put on a sling and be lowered one at a time. This can take hours to evacuate a whole lift. It's pretty clear that Disney has made this lift pretty accessible from the ground and can use platforms.

The only major incident I recall when working at a ski resort was a broken drive shaft, but that was replace without evacuating the chair. Modern lifts don't have driveshafts so I guess that particular issue wont be a problem.