News New Gondola Transportation - Disney Skyliner -

[Coaster Lover]

Does anyone have an estimate of how many miles the total system would cover?

This was posted a few pages ago... measured via Google Maps. The times listed assume a 6 m/s speed...

Distance:
AoA/Pop to Hub: ~500 m: 1 minute 23 seconds
Hub to Hollywood Studios: ~1.1 km: 3 minutes 3 seconds
Hub to CBR: ~775 m: 2 minutes 9 seconds
CBR to Boardwalk: ~1.0 km: 2 minutes 47 seconds
Boardwalk to EPCOT: 750 m: 2 minutes 5 seconds

 

[roj2323]

I think we're missing the green details....
View attachment 190007
EPCOT to DHS express posted earlier makes a ton of sense too.

Since we are armchair engineering, I'll throw in for fun

The red line goes directly over the area they are currently working on to expand the Bus stop at DAK and intersects the parking lot of DAK lodge. It also comes pretty close to reaching Coronado Springs Entry area as well.

That said this is armchair engineering and there is ZERO evidence that they have plans to do anything like this.

 

[danlb_2000]

If this works out I think we will eventually see it expanded further. I envision something like this...

 

[Rteetz]

If this works out I think we will eventually see it expanded further. I envision something like this...

View attachment 190045

You forgot the stop for the 5th gate.

 

[George]

If this works out I think we will eventually see it expanded further. I envision something like this...

View attachment 190045

I've seen the same alien markings on the ground in Argentina. I think I finally cracked the code. We have two weeks to get 7000 pounds of sharp cheddar cheese to Cairo or we're all toast.

 

[raymusiccity]

Sorry if I have missed this, but typically how long does it take to build a gondola? I know we're talking Disney speed here... but what's anyone's best guess? 2020? Sooner?

Each gondola is unique. If they're fitted for 'Dessert Parties', they can recoup their cost pretty quickly!!

 

[t0cableguy]

Gondolas and a Sky-ride are very low capacity, very susceptible to weather (wind and lightning) are incredibly unreliable, and do not have adequate climate control for a Florida. (No AC).

Orlando Eye has heat and A/C in each pod. Liquid Nitrogen A/C could also be a possibility for air conditioning (many freezer warehouses and large commercial buildings are using this method for A/C now). Cables schemes are already available that can provide electricity to air conditioning and heat. Disney doesn't need to make you freeze. they just need to keep you comfortable. Heat.. well it's only getting down to 20 degrees here at the most and a heat pump can more than handle that.

Lightning, well if that was a problem why isn't the monorail getting shut down every time it rains? Big tin can on a grounded concrete post. I can't tell you how many times I've ridden the monorail while it's storming, and the monorail is easily the highest thing in the areas it travels. It runs on electricity, uses onboard drives and is controlled electronically.

A cable gondola will be run by a centralized pulley house that can be properly isolated from the cabling system, and over engineered with surge protection to ensure it will run in the event of a direct lightning strike. Electrical at disney is a multiple loop system. There is not one cable connecting power to anything at disney, its triple and quadruple redundant for most locations which creates high reliability electricity for WDW.

Wind concerns are mitigated by using multiple cables. If this is to be a truly reliable transportation option, I can't Imagine they will choose to use less than a bi-cable setup for the marginal winds Central Florida receives during rainstorms, which is one of the transportation high demand times for the parks.

So for those dead horses, I have one more that I didn't quote, but has been beaten to death already.

Why does it need to be extremely high to provide efficiency? It's actually less efficient to make it climb high when it leaves the stations and the direction change structures. The more level the cable the less effort it will take for the motors to move the gondolas.

The old skyway cable ride at Magic Kingdom wasn't even higher than most buildings surrounding it, as well as being eye level with some trees. IMO it was a great way to get between tomorrowland and fantasyland. The cables only need to make the ride high enough to clear any obstacles beneath it. The gondola will be the low hanging equipment, not the cable.

Since the cost of building concrete pylons is so high the monorail isn't going to get expanded. That is a dream that will probably never happen. This is a bit cheaper because you build a few towers, some anchor structures, and fly a cable to each one.

I like the idea of others looking at possible future expansion of this system to Coronado Springs, DAK, Blizzard Beach, or any other place in the resort. I personally think it would be fantastic to ride into Blizzard Beach on a gondola. It would complete the effect of the park.

 

[GoofGoof]

If this works out I think we will eventually see it expanded further. I envision something like this...

View attachment 190045

How much would that cost? That's gotta be 20-30 miles of cable. It would be quite a project. I still think we will probably see a hybrid approach for transport keeping bus/boat/monorail and gondola as options to various places.

 

[PJBuckeye]

Since we are armchair engineering, I'll throw in for fun

The red line goes directly over the area they are currently working on to expand the Bus stop at DAK and intersects the parking lot of DAK lodge. It also comes pretty close to reaching Coronado Springs Entry area as well.

That said this is armchair engineering and there is ZERO evidence that they have plans to do anything like this.

View attachment 190040

This is beautiful. I would put a bid on an Animal Kingdom DVC tomorrow if this was true

 

[rfc0001]

How much would that cost? That's gotta be 20-30 miles of cable. It would be quite a project. I still think we will probably see a hybrid approach for transport keeping bus/boat/monorail and gondola as options to various places.

I'd guestimate $350M - that's right, tree fiddy

 

[Rteetz]

How much would that cost? That's gotta be 20-30 miles of cable. It would be quite a project. I still think we will probably see a hybrid approach for transport keeping bus/boat/monorail and gondola as options to various places.

He was joking.. Many of those lines go directly over theme parks.

 

[PizzaPlanet]

And just as a reminder, I was one of the first, if not only posters to mention gondolas as a possibility. And was dismissed as usual.

We've got to give credit where credit is due. His earliest post about it was in 2008!

 

[csmat99]

We've got to give credit where credit is due. His earliest post about it was in 2008!

We don't have to give him credit. Broken clock is right two times a day in JT's case it's once every decade.

 

[doctornick]

So you guys are pretty sure about the gondolas then? It just seem like overkill for one resort, and is not real "next-gen".

It's not "one resort" -- it's for CBR/AoA/Pop and whatever the new DVC next to CBR ends up being. That's a massive number of rooms/guests that will be serviced by this.

 

[monothingie]

Orlando Eye has heat and A/C in each pod. Liquid Nitrogen A/C could also be a possibility for air conditioning (many freezer warehouses and large commercial buildings are using this method for A/C now). Cables schemes are already available that can provide electricity to air conditioning and heat. Disney doesn't need to make you freeze. they just need to keep you comfortable. Heat.. well it's only getting down to 20 degrees here at the most and a heat pump can more than handle that.

Lightning, well if that was a problem why isn't the monorail getting shut down every time it rains? Big tin can on a grounded concrete post. I can't tell you how many times I've ridden the monorail while it's storming, and the monorail is easily the highest thing in the areas it travels. It runs on electricity, uses onboard drives and is controlled electronically.

A cable gondola will be run by a centralized pulley house that can be properly isolated from the cabling system, and over engineered with surge protection to ensure it will run in the event of a direct lightning strike. Electrical at disney is a multiple loop system. There is not one cable connecting power to anything at disney, its triple and quadruple redundant for most locations which creates high reliability electricity for WDW.

Wind concerns are mitigated by using multiple cables. If this is to be a truly reliable transportation option, I can't Imagine they will choose to use less than a bi-cable setup for the marginal winds Central Florida receives during rainstorms, which is one of the transportation high demand times for the parks.

So for those dead horses, I have one more that I didn't quote, but has been beaten to death already.

Why does it need to be extremely high to provide efficiency? It's actually less efficient to make it climb high when it leaves the stations and the direction change structures. The more level the cable the less effort it will take for the motors to move the gondolas.

The old skyway cable ride at Magic Kingdom wasn't even higher than most buildings surrounding it, as well as being eye level with some trees. IMO it was a great way to get between tomorrowland and fantasyland. The cables only need to make the ride high enough to clear any obstacles beneath it. The gondola will be the low hanging equipment, not the cable.

Since the cost of building concrete pylons is so high the monorail isn't going to get expanded. That is a dream that will probably never happen. This is a bit cheaper because you build a few towers, some anchor structures, and fly a cable to each one.

I like the idea of others looking at possible future expansion of this system to Coronado Springs, DAK, Blizzard Beach, or any other place in the resort. I personally think it would be fantastic to ride into Blizzard Beach on a gondola. It would complete the effect of the park.

Monorail is made out of fiberglass and there have been monorails struck with lightning without suffering major issues, so I don't think its a fair comparison. The skyway was shutdown during severe weather, but it was totally open to the elements. I really doubt Disney lawyers will even entertain running this during bad weather. Lastly the monorail A/C can't keep up because of poor design and/or maintenance, I have little faith that whatever system they do install accross the many gondolas that are installed will work well when it's 95 hot and humid in a glass enclosed bubble.

 

[doctornick]

There is already alternate transportation methods (walking or boat) between DHS and Epcot so a direct line really isn't needed. Not to mention, if this moves fast enough, it could as fast or faster on the indirect gondola route then it would be by boat.

Yeah, I don't think the value of this is going between Epcot and DHS. There's already boats and a walking path available for that.

This system is for CBR/AoA/Pop Century (+new DVC) guests being able to go to either Epcot/Boardwalk area or DHS and vice versa. Obviously, someone could use it to go between Epcot and DHS if they wanted but the viability of the system isn't dependent on that being a seamless or rapid trip.

 

[monothingie]

If this works out I think we will eventually see it expanded further. I envision something like this...

View attachment 190045

Peter that you?

 

[doctornick]

The line is based on the angle of one of the legs of the north building. Going over the resort buildings does seem odd, but definitely not out of the question.

How tall are the CBR buildings in question?

 

[HauntedMansionFLA]

It's not "one resort" -- it's for CBR/AoA/Pop and whatever the new DVC next to CBR ends up being. That's a massive number of rooms/guests that will be serviced by this.

Will Pop and AoA be upgraded from value resorts to a higher price point? AKL is the most beautiful resort on site and you only have busses to transport you.

 

[MisterPenguin]

If they do expand further, a connector between Coronado and Swolphin or Yacht & Beach would be a huge boon for super large conventions whether it's hosted at Coronado or Y&B.