Splash Mountain fall refurbishment 2017

[Magenta Panther]

HM stops all the time for wheelchair bound guests (it should. Not complaining).

No it shouldn't and I am complaining. The ride was never designed for that kind of accommodation. It ruins the experience for all guests. TDO should find some kind of work-around for it. The ride has a narrative that was carefully written and timed. That should be respected. It's bad enough that guests are rushed through the foyer and many never hear the narration or see the portrait changing. Not to mention the god-awful claustrophobia-inducing new queue. JMHO.

 

[PizzaPlanet]

Excuse you with your nasty attitude. Welcome to the world of a discussion board. Please enjoy reading the entire context of the conversation before implying your will on me. I never put anyone down, said anyone's opinions were incorrect, or said anything truly negative. A select few couldn't follow the same demeanor. Also, please don't speak for everyone. Thanks in advance.

My apologies, it seemed to me like you were trolling, but I should have given you the benefit of the doubt. I just feel that we all understand your position and can now move on with our lives and this discussion.

 

[matt9112]

No it shouldn't and I am complaining. The ride was never designed for that kind of accommodation. It ruins the experience for all guests. TDO should find some kind of work-around for it. The ride has a narrative that was carefully written and timed. That should be respected. It's bad enough that guests are rushed through the foyer and many never hear the narration or see the portrait changing. Not to mention the god-awful claustrophobia-inducing new queue. JMHO.

the queue is like being in a cattle pen.

 

[NearTheEars]

No it shouldn't and I am complaining. The ride was never designed for that kind of accommodation. It ruins the experience for all guests. TDO should find some kind of work-around for it. The ride has a narrative that was carefully written and timed. That should be respected. It's bad enough that guests are rushed through the foyer and many never hear the narration or see the portrait changing. Not to mention the god-awful claustrophobia-inducing new queue. JMHO.

I hate to keep anyone off an attraction, but I agree with you. Out of the last 5 or so rides on HM, 3-4 stopped along the way. Some multiple times. Thankfully I’ve experienced it several times without a stop, but definitely feel bad every time for any first timers that might be riding.

 

[AndyS2992]

I hate to keep anyone off an attraction, but I agree with you. Out of the last 5 or so rides on HM, 3-4 stopped along the way. Some multiple times. Thankfully I’ve experienced it several times without a stop, but definitely feel bad every time for any first timers that might be riding.

It’s not even just the Haunted Mansion but the Peoplemover, Little Mermaid, Nemo, Spaceship Earth, any omnimover type of ride.

 

[peter11435]

It’s not even just the Haunted Mansion but the Peoplemover, Little Mermaid, Nemo, Spaceship Earth, any omnimover type of ride.

The Peoplemover does not stop for guests with disabilities.

 

[TeriofTerror]

I hate to keep anyone off an attraction, but I agree with you. Out of the last 5 or so rides on HM, 3-4 stopped along the way. Some multiple times. Thankfully I’ve experienced it several times without a stop, but definitely feel bad every time for any first timers that might be riding.

Maybe it's the wine talking, but I feel badly that those riders would prefer to have an uninterrupted ride to accommodating those with disabilities.

 

[Marlins1]

The problem is that we know many of the people with "disabilities" are actually capable of walking on to the rides the regular way. My 80 year old mom has some pain but would never think of being the person that holds up a ride for others as long as she can walk. Hopefully none of us are upset when a truly disabled person is helped on but I don't think that is the case most of the time.

 

[TeriofTerror]

The problem is that we know many of the people with "disabilities" are actually capable of walking on to the rides the regular way. My 80 year old mom has some pain but would never think of being the person that holds up a ride for others as long as she can walk. Hopefully none of us are upset when a truly disabled person is helped on but I don't think that is the case most of the time.

I think appearances can be deceiving and we don't actually know another person's situation. Therefore giving people the benefit of the doubt is the preferable default position. Is it really that difficult to be kind?

 

[Marlins1]

Good point - might be the wine talking in my case too! You have to admit that there are a few cases where we are held up by good old American obesity but I agree it is better to assume the reason is valid and be thankful to be there!

 

[Cousin Huet]

This seems easy, they need to rework it where there is an extension/offs-shoot where they can load people that need it stationary and then that doombuggie can slide in the rotation in gaps left every so often. I don’t feel like this would take a skilled engineer much time or trouble to design.

 

[TeriofTerror]

Good point - might be the wine talking in my case too!

I might be a little extra-sensitive on this issue. My husband's cousin just turned 43, and she looks as healthy as a horse. Anyone seeing her on her scooter would assume she's a lazy American who doesn't feel like walking around the parks. In reality, she had a debilitating stroke several years ago and has extremely limited mobility. I remind myself of her whenever I get frustrated by the scooter crowd.

 

[NearTheEars]

Maybe it's the wine talking, but I feel badly that those riders would prefer to have an uninterrupted ride to accommodating those with disabilities.

It’s tough. And probably one of the most selfish WDW/theme park thoughts I have.
But I don’t see it as that much different than health restrictions on thrill rides, or that Pooh-sized folks can’t fit on some attractions.

If there was a way to accommodate w/o interrupting show, I’m all for it.

 

[peter11435]

I don’t feel like this would take a skilled engineer much time or trouble to design.

Not impossible, but not nearly as simple as you make it sound. They do hold a patent for essentially what you describe but implementation is easier said than done and would be near impossible to retrofit existing ride systems.

 

[jaxonp]

It’s not even just the Haunted Mansion but the Peoplemover, Little Mermaid, Nemo, Spaceship Earth, any omnimover type of ride.

Yea, I don't know how that could be avoided. Disney tries to be everything to everyone. Don't seem them saying no to handicap people because it stops a ride once in awhile. What might be nice is if they staggered those stops maybe every 5 min or so. You'd likely only encounter one stop on your ride if it were done that way.

 

[donsullivan]

It’s not even just the Haunted Mansion but the Peoplemover, Little Mermaid, Nemo, Spaceship Earth, any omnimover type of ride.

For clarity, Peoplemover stops are not for guests with access limitations, they are typically caused by able-bodied guests taking too long to get out of the ride vehicles when they return back to the station resulting in a ride-stop for safety. By its very nature, the Peoplemover is not considered an accessible attraction. Its one of the reasons that attraction has gotten only the most nominal upgrades over the years since a major overhaul would likely remove it's grandfathered (pre ADA) status resulting in a mandate that it be made accessible which would be a very significant and expensive challenge.

 

[jaxonp]

For clarity, Peoplemover stops are not for guests with access limitations, they are typically caused by able-bodied guests taking too long to get out of the ride vehicles when they return back to the station resulting in a ride-stop for safety. By its very nature, the Peoplemover in not considered an accessible attraction. Its one of the reasons that attraction has gotten only the most nominal upgrades over the years since a major overhaul would likely remove it's grandfathered (pre ADA) status resulting in a mandate that it be made accessible which would be a very significant and expensive challenge.

Didn't ADA have something to do with the demise of Rocket Rods in the end???

 

[peter11435]

What might be nice is if they staggered those stops maybe every 5 min or so. You'd likely only encounter one stop on your ride if it were done that way.

Generally they do. Guests needing the ride stopped usually have to wait for a specific vehicle or group of vehicles to board. So the ride should only stop when they come around so guests on the ride should in theory only experience one stop per ride. However as @donsullivan pointed out numerous additional stops are necessary due to other guests taking too long to get in and out and other such issues.

 

[donsullivan]

Didn't ADA have something to do with the demise of Rocket Rods in the end???

I’ve heard some try to suggest that, but the reality is Rocket Rods was plagued by so many issues it’s not clear that was ever a major contributing factor. After all you had to walk up a multi-level flight of stairs from underground just to get to the boarding platform-that alone prevented a mobility impaired guest from even boarding, much less needing to be evacuated.

This beginning of this video shows the stairs from the underground passage up to the loading platform. https://m.youtube.com/watch?list=PL...CoY&params=OAFIAVgP&v=Twakh87amak&mode=NORMAL

 

[cheezbat]

Quick, one of these three attraction gets demolished to make way for expansion... which one do you think it is... lol. Next.

Easy answer...

Pirates of the Caribbean. It's the weakest of all three, and by far the crappiest version of the ride. Build a clone of the original, or scrap it for a clone of the Shanghai ride.

Splash Mountain isn't going anywhere.