News Tomorrowland love

[raymusiccity]

Amazing those steel supports hold up the peoplemover. Thanks for the memory jog.

If ours is held up with simple supports, why is the Disney Land version so problematical?

 

[ChrisFL]

If ours is held up with simple supports, why is the Disney Land version so problematical?

I think it has to do with more modern ADA requirements in California

 

[tpoly88]

I believe the Iger/Chapek regime simply doesn't like Tomorrowland. It's too Walt-y. I bet if they could turn it into something more IP, like Pixar Pier, without too much backlash or expense they would.

i hope they dont but the area just looks beat up and neglected. they could do so much more with the area. reminds me of an old amusment park i used to go to in NJ called Bertans island on lake hopatcong. place got old.

 

[James Alucobond]

I still can't believe they ever thought it was a good idea to demolish the fin-shaped towers that used to flank the entrance. There's just no architectural interest there anymore, and no amount of gears and rockwork could ever hide that even at the height of the 90s redesign.

 

[trainplane3]

If ours is held up with simple supports, why is the Disney Land version so problematical?

The fact that RR slammed into corners going over speeds their PM would normally do. You do that enough to any kind of structure (let alone one built in the 60s) not designed for it, it'll wear down quite quickly. Lateral forces can wreck things not made for them.

Ours could potentially handle it better since for parts of the layout there are two wide supports instead of a single support. But that's only part of the layout.

 

[Sir_Cliff]

Floor looks quite similar to opening day, just a simple design

Yes, it strikes me that people seem aghast at all the 1990s decoration being removed from the pavement of Tomorrowland in favor of a simpler modernist design, annoyed that too much of the 1990s decoration is left behind on the buildings of Tomorrowland to the detriment of a simpler modernist design, but happy the 1990s decoration has been removed from the core of Epcot in favor of a simpler modernist design.

I guess people, like themed environments, are often complicated!

 

[MrPromey]

I think it has to do with more modern ADA requirements in California

Theirs is was also very different from ours. It didn't have a roof, used an entirely different method of propulsion, did not have an easy evacuation because there were no walkways along the full length and I believe it had a track that was a good deal longer.

There's also the issue of how heavily they modified everything to accommodate Rocket Rods which are rumored to have put forces on the supports that were greater than they were designed to handle.

I'm sure if the will and the budget were there, they could have restored them and even today in some form, could rebuild them, possibly making them function more like ours including a safer evacuation option and to comply with any ADA efforts needed from a new build or one modified enough for that to kick in but the cost is probably more than they're willing to spend to recreate that type of experience.

Also, unlike our parks, Disneyland is not suffering from a limited number of attractions. Remember, over there Star Wars Land opened in Disneyland park which already had more attractions than our Magic Kingdom and any one of the other three parks we have, combined.

 

[MrPromey]

i hope they dont but the area just looks beat up and neglected. they could do so much more with the area. reminds me of an old amusment park i used to go to in NJ called Bertans island on lake hopatcong. place got old.

And a major component of the most visited park that is also one of the most expensive theme/amusement parks at the most visited resort in the world should not be reminding anyone of a defunct and run down local amusement park in NJ.

 

[owlsandcoffee]

I still can't believe they ever thought it was a good idea to demolish the fin-shaped towers that used to flank the entrance. There's just no architectural interest there anymore, and no amount of gears and rockwork could ever hide that even at the height of the 90s redesign.

I could be mistaken but I seem to recall that there were structural issues with the fins. As much as I'd like to see them return (Tokyo's look so nice) they would block the PM's view of Cinderella Castle, so perhaps they could do something evocative. Either way I think there should be waterfalls at the entrance.

 

[ChrisFL]

Theirs is was also very different from ours. It didn't have a roof, used an entirely different method of propulsion, did not have an easy evacuation because there were no walkways along the full length and I believe it had a track that was a good deal longer.

There's also the issue of how heavily they modified everything to accommodate Rocket Rods which are rumored to have put forces on the supports that were greater than they were designed to handle.

I'm sure if the will and the budget were there, they could have restored them and even today in some form, could rebuild them, possibly making them function more like ours including a safer evacuation option and to comply with any ADA efforts needed from a new build or one modified enough for that to kick in but the cost is probably more than they're willing to spend to recreate that type of experience.

Also, unlike our parks, Disneyland is not suffering from a limited number of attractions. Remember, over there Star Wars Land opened in Disneyland park which already had more attractions than our Magic Kingdom and any one of the other three parks we have, combined.

Yes, their peoplemover was waaay longer (there's videos on youtube of it), went basically into fantasyland it looked like

 

[jmuboy]

I don't mind the simpler look if it then has some added design to the rest of the area... Simple pavement, with special effects lighting, and new set pieces, and a cohesive theme that is understandable...

It needs some greenery or palm trees

 

[TrainsOfDisney]

I'm sure if the will and the budget were there, they could have restored them and even today in some form, could rebuild them, possibly making them function more like ours including a safer evacuation option and to comply with any ADA efforts needed from a new build or one modified enough for that to kick in but the cost is probably more than they're willing to spend to recreate that type of experience.

The cheapest solution to get an operating attraction would be to put a “self-powered coaster” on the old peoplemover track like the Seuss trolley at islands of adventure.

The cheapest solution to make the whole thing look better would be to add a vehicle that travels the peoplemover track that does not carry guests. Even if it was just a shuttle that went back and forth at the entrance of the land... that would be a huge improvement to the visuals.

 

[DoleWhipDrea]

For a version of the PeopleMover to grace Disneyland's Tomorrowland again, due to the damage that has been done to the structural supports and track, Disney would have to essentially tear it all down and start from scratch. They could do it, and visitors absolutely want it, but Disney doesn't want to spend the money to do it, so it keeps getting pushed back behind other projects that have a higher priority.

It's incredibly frustrating. Paul Pressler really ruined DL's Tomorrowland.

MK's Tomorrowland absolutely needs more TLC and some big changes, but at least it still has a few legacy attractions operating. Now just imagine if the Skyway/Skyliner could make a fabulous return...

 

[J4546]

id rather them tear all the track out, along with autopia and nemo and redo that entire quadrant of the park

 

[mergatroid]

I could be mistaken but I seem to recall that there were structural issues with the fins. As much as I'd like to see them return (Tokyo's look so nice) they would block the PM's view of Cinderella Castle, so perhaps they could do something evocative. Either way I think there should be waterfalls at the entrance.

Yes, I'm sure one of Martin's videos said they had problems with them from very early on? I think they first turned off the waterfall and following that attempt, decided to remove them.

 

[Heppenheimer]

Theirs is was also very different from ours. It didn't have a roof, used an entirely different method of propulsion, did not have an easy evacuation because there were no walkways along the full length and I believe it had a track that was a good deal longer.

There's also the issue of how heavily they modified everything to accommodate Rocket Rods which are rumored to have put forces on the supports that were greater than they were designed to handle.

I'm sure if the will and the budget were there, they could have restored them and even today in some form, could rebuild them, possibly making them function more like ours including a safer evacuation option and to comply with any ADA efforts needed from a new build or one modified enough for that to kick in but the cost is probably more than they're willing to spend to recreate that type of experience.

Also, unlike our parks, Disneyland is not suffering from a limited number of attractions. Remember, over there Star Wars Land opened in Disneyland park which already had more attractions than our Magic Kingdom and any one of the other three parks we have, combined.

By the look of it last time I was there, the only option for the remains of Disneyland's People Mover is to tear it down. It doesn't look salvageable.

 

[marni1971]

I could be mistaken but I seem to recall that there were structural issues with the fins. As much as I'd like to see them return (Tokyo's look so nice) they would block the PM's view of Cinderella Castle, so perhaps they could do something evocative. Either way I think there should be waterfalls at the entrance.

Not structural. Wetness.

At first the slope waterfalls weren’t very visible, so early on George McGinnis designed a rough surface to stir up the water and make it more bubbly.

Then there were issues with the pylon jets spaying onto the bridge during windier days. Guests got damp. Floors got slippy. After an on-off approach they were turned off and the slopes retiled. Nowerdays there’s possibly a multitude of solutions but that’s what happened back then.

 

[larryz]

The cheapest solution to get an operating attraction would be to put a “self-powered coaster” on the old peoplemover track like the Seuss trolley at islands of adventure.

The cheapest solution to make the whole thing look better would be to add a vehicle that travels the peoplemover track that does not carry guests. Even if it was just a shuttle that went back and forth at the entrance of the land... that would be a huge improvement to the visuals.

... until you get all the guests complaining at Guest Relations about the ride that they can't get on...

 

[MrPromey]

By the look of it last time I was there, the only option for the remains of Disneyland's People Mover is to tear it down. It doesn't look salvageable.

There would always be the option to rebuild, probably with a shorter track but again, I don't think the will is there, especially with today's management.

Also, I know there were some pretty violent deaths and accidents on their version over the years which may have something to do with it - even though it was entirely the guests' fault and something that could be accounted for, especially if it were rebuilt more like ours.

Sadly, my first trip was after Rocket Rods and I recall how weird it looked with all that track that did nothing just sitting around but I guess people who've seen it like that for years, maybe just don't think about it?

This brings up a good point though which is that they've done screwy things with Tomorrowland on both sides of the country. Over there, moving the orbiters to a weird location that created a bottleneck in the front and bringing them closer to the ground while trying to disguise the old system as some weird antenna array is another thing that comes to mind.

 

[PrinceCharming617]

I wish they would stick with one theme and go with it. It seems to be all over the place. Do you want to be classic or have random bright colors that don't belong?

It's enough you have Classic Cars and Monsters. Don't mess up the theming of the land.