Small Monorail Update

[Tom]

This shot is from the road to Wilderness Lodge, looking Northward




This is from the North side looking southward

Thank you for the photos.

If I'm thinking right, will this be using one of switches 8 or 9, or am is this not the intersection of Epcot/Spur?

 

[Rob562]

Thank you for the photos.

If I'm thinking right, will this be using one of switches 8 or 9, or am is this not the intersection of Epcot/Spur?

You are correct, this is the Epcot/Spur switch (switch 9, I presume?).
Not 100% clear is the exact layout the new tractor parking beam will have. (I think we need a good overhead shot from the train)

-Rob

 

[ABigBrassBand]

I wish they would take the stickers off of the monorails--there are plenty of opportunities to shove promotions in our face in the parks, but while I'm on the monorail I would like to see outside the car.

 

[MaryJaneP]

I wish they would take the stickers off of the monorails--there are plenty of opportunities to shove promotions in our face in the parks, but while I'm on the monorail I would like to see outside the car.

Agree, wholeheartedly. However, how much more captive an audience do they get than guests jammed into a metal tube with nowhere to look except at the ad.

 

[Rob562]

Agree, wholeheartedly. However, how much more captive an audience do they get than guests jammed into a metal tube with nowhere to look except at the ad.

Except the ads only face the outside of the train... From the inside they're faint ghost images of the artwork on a field of grey at best.

-Rob

 

[s8film40]

It looks like they are building the spur on the position to the west of the EPCOT beam instead of the east. I can't imagine why they would do it this way. If the spur was built on to the east position the work tractor could be moved onto the spur line without interrupting the EPCOT line and could then be moved to the EPCOT or express line with only one movement of the switch. If they do indeed build this on the west side it will involve two switch movements to get the work tractor to the Express line and will have to shut down the EPCOT line any time it is used.

 

[Tom]

It looks like they are building the spur on the position to the west of the EPCOT beam instead of the east. I can't imagine why they would do it this way. If the spur was built on to the east position the work tractor could be moved onto the spur line without interrupting the EPCOT line and could then be moved to the EPCOT or express line with only one movement of the switch. If they do indeed build this on the west side it will involve two switch movements to get the work tractor to the Express line and will have to shut down the EPCOT line any time it is used.

Completely forgot about this thread. Duh.

You're exactly right. They're building on the west side of Epcot. They will have to move the switch no matter what, and they'll have to move it twice if the tractor needs to head immediately back to Epcot on that rail.

 

[87 GN]

It looks like they are building the spur on the position to the west of the EPCOT beam instead of the east. I can't imagine why they would do it this way. If the spur was built on to the east position the work tractor could be moved onto the spur line without interrupting the EPCOT line and could then be moved to the EPCOT or express line with only one movement of the switch. If they do indeed build this on the west side it will involve two switch movements to get the work tractor to the Express line and will have to shut down the EPCOT line any time it is used.

It makes little sense other then as a safety per-caution so the tractor can not just be driven out onto the beam.

 

[flavious27]

It looks like they are building the spur on the position to the west of the EPCOT beam instead of the east. I can't imagine why they would do it this way. If the spur was built on to the east position the work tractor could be moved onto the spur line without interrupting the EPCOT line and could then be moved to the EPCOT or express line with only one movement of the switch. If they do indeed build this on the west side it will involve two switch movements to get the work tractor to the Express line and will have to shut down the EPCOT line any time it is used.

Hasn't it been stated that the tractor would only be used for the EPCOT line?

 

[Tom]

Hasn't it been stated that the tractor would only be used for the EPCOT line?

I don't think it will be exclusive to the Epcot line, but it will indeed be first-response for that line. It will still be able to travel to the other lines if needed. But if they have 3 tractors, it will likely become exclusive by default.

 

[Tom]

It makes little sense other then as a safety per-caution so the tractor can not just be driven out onto the beam.

The CMs who operate the tractors are probably very cognizant of their surroundings and what they're doing. The tractors are self-powered (diesel, I believe) and the movements are very intentional and never "routine" like the monorails.

If a tractor drove off the end of a beam or drove out onto an occupied beam, it would be time to just shut the entire system down forever, because all hope would be lost.

I would liken it to a company's "IT Guy" forgetting where the start menu is in Windows or accidentally formatting the hard drive. It doesn't happen - those people are a level above the rest of us ID10T users, and if they make mistakes like that, the end of the world is near :lol:

 

[Rob562]

I don't think it will be exclusive to the Epcot line, but it will indeed be first-response for that line. It will still be able to travel to the other lines if needed. But if they have 3 tractors, it will likely become exclusive by default.

Precisely. It will become a "who's closest" kind of thing. If a train breaks down on the Express beam, they're not going to wait until a tractor makes its way all the way out from the Shop... They'll just bring over the Epcot tractor.

Of course, if a train were to break down near the TTC on the Resort beam, they'd have no choice but to wait for a tractor from the Shop, because the only way onto the Resort beam is via the Shop spur switch.

-Rob

 

[s8film40]

The CMs who operate the tractors are probably very cognizant of their surroundings and what they're doing. The tractors are self-powered (diesel, I believe) and the movements are very intentional and never "routine" like the monorails.

If a tractor drove off the end of a beam or drove out onto an occupied beam, it would be time to just shut the entire system down forever, because all hope would be lost.

I would liken it to a company's "IT Guy" forgetting where the start menu is in Windows or accidentally formatting the hard drive. It doesn't happen - those people are a level above the rest of us ID10T users, and if they make mistakes like that, the end of the world is near :lol:

I guess you never heard about monorail Black getting pushed off the end of an open beam and needing extensive repairs.

One thing about the work tractor accessing Express line, one of the big reasons this spur has been suggested in the past was that if a monorail ever became disabled while on top of the switch from express to the main spur to the shop there would be no way for a work tractor to access it. Disney has been very lucky that this hasn't happened if it did it would cause quite a mess, all the guests would have to be evacuated off the train and then they would have to figure out a way to move it.

 

[flavious27]

Precisely. It will become a "who's closest" kind of thing. If a train breaks down on the Express beam, they're not going to wait until a tractor makes its way all the way out from the Shop... They'll just bring over the Epcot tractor.

Of course, if a train were to break down near the TTC on the Resort beam, they'd have no choice but to wait for a tractor from the Shop, because the only way onto the Resort beam is via the Shop spur switch.

-Rob

Well as long as it does not delay the epcot line for longer than it would to get one of the tractors from the shed to the express line. If this tractor spur works well, hopefully they can add one to the other two lines.

 

[thehowiet]

I guess you never heard about monorail Black getting pushed off the end of an open beam and needing extensive repairs.

I have not, but would love to hear more about this.

 

[Tom]

I have not, but would love to hear more about this.

I would like to hear more as well. Never heard about a monorail being pushed off the end of a beam.

 

[parkgoer]

I guess you never heard about monorail Black getting pushed off the end of an open beam and needing extensive repairs.

I would also be very curious to hear about this...Never heard this mentioned before...

I'm taking this with more than a few grains of salt, but I can find out for sure....

 

[s8film40]

I would like to hear more as well. Never heard about a monorail being pushed off the end of a beam.

It was a few years back they were moving monorail Black in the shop with the work tractor, apparently the beams weren't lined up right and the cab of monorail Black went over the end of the beam and the beam ended up damaging the floor in the car. It was out of service for a while while they fixed it.

There have been several other work tractor incidents, at least two collisions with trains and I know of one where one of the maintenance employees got his legs run over.

I would also be very curious to hear about this...Never heard this mentioned before...

I'm taking this with more than a few grains of salt, but I can find out for sure....

If you ask around and talk to the right people they will confirm it.

 

[Rob562]

It was a few years back they were moving monorail Black in the shop with the work tractor, apparently the beams weren't lined up right and the cab of monorail Black went over the end of the beam and the beam ended up damaging the floor in the car. It was out of service for a while while they fixed it.

There have been several other work tractor incidents, at least two collisions with trains and I know of one where one of the maintenance employees got his legs run over.



If you ask around and talk to the right people they will confirm it.

Hmmm... Hadn't heard about a train off the end of a beam before. I remember the collision between a tractor and a train where Maintenance CM was trying to hook the tow bar up to the train.

I did read a story from when the Shop started moving one of the Shop Spur switches while the rear end of a train was still on top of it...

-Rob

 

[s8film40]

This was the damage from one of the Monorail/Work Tractor collisions.