News Tomorrowland Speedway and Walt Disney World Railroad to be impacted by TRON construction at the Magic Kingdom

HauntedPirate

Park nostalgist
Premium Member
I understand this is the very first time someone has suggested running the train as a shuttle. Disney has never considered this option and will surely discuss it now that they’ve become aware of the option. Thank God for these boards and its experts.

Also, I’d like to make a motion that Disney extend the monorail to DHS.

I see your call for a line to DHS, and raise you an AK spur.

Wait... We aren't playing poker?
 

Disone

Well-Known Member
Unless some new technology comes along to reduce the cost of monorail track to a hundredth of its current cost, we will NEVER see a monorail expansion at WDW..
I read this argument a lot, and monorail often gets compared to cost of at grade systems like light rail. Better would be to compare to the cost of elevated metro systems and here most of the time, the beamway is less expensive. More then that, Disney will spend a Billion plus on a new theme park, on a new ship, half a billion on a single attraction. A Billion is going to buy you at a few miles of Monorail track. But.....

I don't really think its the cost, its just the company now lacks the vision it once had that said that cost was worth it. They already have the amenity. Its more corporate now and sadly I don't think Disney see's value in expanding their monorail amenity at any cost. Its a lot of money just to have more of something they already have.

I do think they are losing site of some potential. Personal opinion... Expand the monorail but in doing so make sure that expansion includes a new resort. Think like a ski resort does. When they add something that they already have.... a new ski lift, it drives repeat visit to that ski resort.
 

JoeCamel

Well-Known Member
I read this argument a lot, and monorail often gets compared to cost of at grade systems like light rail. Better would be to compare to the cost of elevated metro systems and here most of the time, the beamway is less expensive. More then that, Disney will spend a Billion plus on a new theme park, on a new ship, half a billion on a single attraction. A Billion is going to buy you at a few miles of Monorail track. But.....

I don't really think its the cost, its just the company now lacks the vision it once had that said that cost was worth it. They already have the amenity. Its more corporate now and sadly I don't think Disney see's value in expanding their monorail amenity at any cost. Its a lot of money just to have more of something they already have.

I do think they are losing site of some potential. Personal opinion... Expand the monorail but in doing so make sure that expansion includes a new resort. Think like a ski resort does. When they add something that they already have.... a new ski lift, it drives repeat visit to that ski resort.
Monorail is a very rigid system. You want to make changes it is really expensive to do. Roads not so much, just toss on a few more buses and the system can expand as needed.
Too bad but from here on out they are building transportation not an attraction that functions as transportation.
 

GimpYancIent

Well-Known Member
Monorail is a very rigid system. You want to make changes it is really expensive to do. Roads not so much, just toss on a few more buses and the system can expand as needed.
Too bad but from here on out they are building transportation not an attraction that functions as transportation.
At today's levels of engineering knowledge, materials and construction capabilities the dollar costs argument against a monorail expansion does not hold water or anything else. Billions are spent on a multitude of projects as is. Construction project costs savings does not fit the Disney Co. building model even though cheap short cuts are selectively sought. The corporate choosing / selection processes of how, where, what and how much to spend are truly mysterious. Sadly, the powers that be are not interested in any monorail expansion, if they were, guess what! It would happen and cost be damned.
 

ToTBellHop

Well-Known Member
Monorail is a very rigid system. You want to make changes it is really expensive to do. Roads not so much, just toss on a few more buses and the system can expand as needed.
Too bad but from here on out they are building transportation not an attraction that functions as transportation.
And yet we got the SkyFryer. Errr. Liner.
 

ToTBellHop

Well-Known Member
Surprising how much less it costs to build towers and string cable than to build a rigid concrete beamway in the sky.
But SkyLiner was expensive.

And it has the monorail issues you mentioned while being marketed as a sort of ride.

Soon enough, they will need an entirely new fleet of trains. At that point, the cost of an extra 3 or 4 traina wouldn’t be that much when they are building 12 anyway. The bigger question is: where would it even be necessary? Not to DHS anymore and I don’t see it for DAK. Perhaps Epcot to Disney Springs if they actually build a connection from MCO to Springs. Not that I see that happening.
 
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JoeCamel

Well-Known Member
But SkyLiner was expensive.

And it has the monorail issues you mentioned while being marketed as a sort of ride.
Not as much as they spend on a ride. It assembles quickly and many of the enhancements to the system were not necessary to operate they wanted it to be "nice". The route with turn stations and building the towers in the water is what really jacked the cost, if you run point to point stations it is very affordable for the number of passengers it can carry. I wonder if @liftblog (looks like no account) is still tracking throughput to see if it is record setting.

eta: I have no idea if this site is good or allowed but they say 33 million to build. Dirt cheap
 
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Disstevefan1

Well-Known Member
I read this argument a lot, and monorail often gets compared to cost of at grade systems like light rail. Better would be to compare to the cost of elevated metro systems and here most of the time, the beamway is less expensive. More then that, Disney will spend a Billion plus on a new theme park, on a new ship, half a billion on a single attraction. A Billion is going to buy you at a few miles of Monorail track. But.....

I don't really think its the cost, its just the company now lacks the vision it once had that said that cost was worth it. They already have the amenity. Its more corporate now and sadly I don't think Disney see's value in expanding their monorail amenity at any cost. Its a lot of money just to have more of something they already have.

I do think they are losing site of some potential. Personal opinion... Expand the monorail but in doing so make sure that expansion includes a new resort. Think like a ski resort does. When they add something that they already have.... a new ski lift, it drives repeat visit to that ski resort.
Yes, it's possible a monorail expansion could happen IF they begin charging for the currently free WDW transportation; bus, boat, skyliner, monorail.

This gives them the "financial vision" to do it.
 

MisterPenguin

President of Animal Kingdom
Premium Member
Not as much as they spend on a ride. It assembles quickly and many of the enhancements to the system were not necessary to operate they wanted it to "nice". The route with turn stations is what really jacked the cost, if you run point to point stations it is very affordable for the number of passengers it can carry. I wonder if @liftblog (looks like no account) is still tracking throughput to see if it is record setting.

eta: I have no idea if this site is good or allowed but they say 33 million to build. Dirt cheap
There's a space in @Lift Blog
 

RSoxNo1

Well-Known Member
Not as much as they spend on a ride. It assembles quickly and many of the enhancements to the system were not necessary to operate they wanted it to "nice". The route with turn stations is what really jacked the cost, if you run point to point stations it is very affordable for the number of passengers it can carry. I wonder if @liftblog (looks like no account) is still tracking throughput to see if it is record setting.

eta: I have no idea if this site is good or allowed but they say 33 million to build. Dirt cheap
I was under the impression that it was substantially more than that. @lentesta?
 

ToTBellHop

Well-Known Member
IIRC, someone from the construction team said $120-$150MM. I think the $33MM number is from general "you too can have a gondola system like this, for the low, low price of..." quotes, not Disney's specific needs.
Yes. Still cheaper than an E ticket but not cheap. And I doubt the monorail would cost much more. They made a conscious choice to use this system instead. Of course, the monorail would not have connected to all these resorts, so there’s appeal there for the Skyliner. There’s no way they would have had a monorail station for Pop/AoA.

I actually think the Skyliner is pretty fun; I just don’t use it often as we don’t stay at those resorts and I’d rather walk between DHS and Epcot since it’s faster than the Skyliner and the boats.
 

mikejs78

Premium Member
Yes. Still cheaper than an E ticket but not cheap. And I doubt the monorail would cost much more. They made a conscious choice to use this system instead. Of course, the monorail would not have connected to all these resorts, so there’s appeal there for the Skyliner. There’s no way they would have had a monorail station for Pop/AoA.

I actually think the Skyliner is pretty fun; I just don’t use it often as we don’t stay at those resorts and I’d rather walk between DHS and Epcot since it’s faster than the Skyliner and the boats.
Usually we walk as well, but since I haven't been on the skyliner yet I'm thinking of us taking the skylinet from international gateway to DHS when we stay at the beach club in April. Our flight lands in Orlando around 12:30, so I'm figuring we can get to our resort and then head over to DHS just for the novelty of trying the Skyliner. And since it Will be mid-afternoon by then it won't be busy.
 
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