Who should build them?
I'm hoping Disney picks either Bombardier or Hitachi as the supplier, they are the only two transportation companies with decades of experience in monorails which already have the features Disney desires and would meet the fit and finish expected.
Real Costs?
I know the pro bus people are quick to point out the high costs of monorails but I would really like to see a true comparison based on data for 40 years if they ran buses. Including the number of buses they would have purchased and disposed, the share of road costs, bus stops, fuel, pollution, driver costs, maintenance and a speed factor between stations. Ultimately boiled down to a passenger mile cost. And the one thing they can't put a dollar on - it's just cool to ride the monorail.
Cool Dream Stuff beyond here
Photo-Fan-Shopped Mark VIII - I took the current Bombardier INNOVIA 200 model monorail and modified it a little. Inside - LED lighting, WiFi for phone info, monitors& mini-bar.
Now a really out there Dream
For a new WDW monorail line running East West
These are pictures of the Sao Paulo,Brazil Monorail currently under construction. This is the Big Brother to the WDW Mark VI. Sorry these won't fit the existing WDW track and stations, so just enjoy the drool. Totally automated, walk thru cars and in Sao Paulo the trains will be 7 cars and have a standing room capacity of 1000! Eat soot Buses!
Let the drooling begin
Bombardier INNOVIA 300
Walk thru cars
The Shop - 56, 7 car trains
1st INNOVIA 300 under construction
Line 15 Sao Paulo Under construction
Yeah, this just made me laugh out loud.
Hitachi is such a different style it just seems like it would be a bigger hassle for them, thus more expensive. The INNOVIA 200 is an update to the M-VI (Las Vegas) which got its name from being an update to the fleet at Walt Disney World.
Exactly. The stock Innovia cars are similar to the current trains, just sleeker and with a/c integrated in the roof. Hitachi would likely require a custom shell. With the cost outlay required, I would consider both as viable options, however, when the time comes, as well as refurbing the current stock.
The whole job would probably have to be custom. Hitachi's stock design is the walk through cars which are totally above the drive wheels which would be far too tall for Walt Disney World in terms of overhead clearances and platform heights.
Interesting! Haven't looked into Hitachi's cars. That would definitely not allow for clearance into the stations, and would be quite unfortunate for the Contemp.
Hitachi's cars are very similar to the Seatle Monorail, but with even boxier designs. The INNOVIA 300 (Sau Paulo) also has a larger profile which enables the movement between cars. This additional capacity would be the big reason to get new trains, but as you noted such trains would hardly fit in the Contemporary. New INNOVIA 200 trains would be just a new set of what is already there. I think the air conditioning placement is the biggest change from the M-VI to the INNOVIA 200.
I keep hoping they replace the curtainwalls at the ends of the canyon - curtainwall technology has come a long way.
Although I love what the Seattle Monorail stands for and the history, that thing is really ugly-cute. Boxier is not good, in my opinion - I looked, and I'm not a fan of Hitachi's design at all. Do you know what the difference in height is between the 200 and 300? I'm curious how much space they'd need. I remember when the original openings were expanded in the curtain wall - there is some room to play with by modifying the surrounds, but not a lot.
That cable-net is very cool. Unfortunately, I don't think that glass will ever be replaced unless there's a real structural need to.
Rooftop to Top of Running Surface
Got it, thanks. Really interesting. Didn't realize it was that much of a difference - it doesn't look like they have that much more to them in the photos. There is some space between the floors in the Contemporary due to the construction method, but I don't know if there's 2 ft plus, and given the option, they're not going to spend the money to do that kind of work. So it would be a matter of finding a place for a/c units within the cars in the 200 series as the viable option.
I could see Disney purchasing one or two new trains just so that others can take more of a break and have time for work to be done, but there would be little to no capacity gains with a whole new fleet. Somebody would need to develop a smaller walk-through car drive system that would enable the trains to fit within the size constraints of Walt Disney World. And since the only other system that might be up for that would be Las Vegas, which is rather new, I do not see anybody developing such a system.
It's been done before - in 2009 they were down two trains for about three months, and another train out of the picture for over two years. It can be done but it's definitely hard on the fleet.
