State soliciting bids for I-Drive rail; closes at end of month; may go to Disney

[Wilt Dasney]

It may just be me - but I don't see a reason why Disney would support this for guests.

As I see it, it would be a train that runs from MCO to somewhere at Disney - perhaps Disney Springs.
- Along the way, Disney guests have to stop at other places where they could be tempted to leave "The World".
- Disney guests would have to pay for the service
- Disney guests would then have to transfer at the "Disney Station" to another form of transit - probably a bus, but maybe a monorail someday.
- Once that the park, it would be relatively easy for Disney guests to leave WDW and go to another non-Disney location.
That sounds like a pain for Disney guests and not a particularly good deal for WDW.

I can see it having some benefit for local residents who work at Disney. But that would seem like a small number of folks who just happen to live along the route.

At the end of the day, this just doesn't seem to make sense for WDW.

One possibility could be Disney throwing its weight around to get an express train every other departure. It would be free to WDW visitors (and only WDW visitors), giving them an incentive to avoid the departures stopping at other locations.

The downside is Disney would have to basically subsidize every other departure, which eliminates any financial benefit from axing ME. it could also complicate the operation significantly and would be guaranteed to confuse the hell out of a lot of guests, but everything has tradeoffs.

 

[ParkMan73]

One possibility could be Disney throwing its weight around to get an express train every other departure. It would be free to WDW visitors (and only WDW visitors), giving them an incentive to avoid the departures stopping at other locations.

The downside is Disney would have to basically subsidize every other departure, which eliminates any financial benefit from axing ME. it could also complicate the operation significantly and would be guaranteed to confuse the hell out of a lot of guests, but everything has tradeoffs.

Entirely possible.

Along that line, a rail solution I could see working.
- dedicated WDW train station at MCO
- Just like with ME, WDW staff collect your bags off your flight.
- dedicated trains from MCO to WDW station. They could be themed just like the ME is.
- a nice welcome to WDW station. Some form of monorail access from the WDW station to the existing monrail resorts and bus service to the other resorts.

I don't know that it would save them any money, but it could be nice.

 

[jt04]

Entirely possible.

Along that line, a rail solution I could see working.
- dedicated WDW train station at MCO
- Just like with ME, WDW staff collect your bags off your flight.
- dedicated trains from MCO to WDW station. They could be themed just like the ME is.
- a nice welcome to WDW station. Some form of monorail access from the WDW station to the existing monrail resorts and bus service to the other resorts.

I don't know that it would save them any money, but it could be nice.

And the cool thing is that when you arrived at the WDW Station you could go anywhere on property you wanted rather easily. You could have reservations at any number of resorts or spend a relaxing evening at Disney Springs. It really would give guests a chance to get a running start on their vacations rather than having to spend time "checking in" at a specific resort.

I really should be a paid consultant.