Perhaps I'm overreacting. Rode the Swan, Dolphin/Boardwalk bus back from MK at 11:30pm during Extra Magic hours on April 20th. Waited 15 minutes in long line and stood for the trip. The driver asked if anyone had any questions. A man yelled out, "Why aren't there more buses?" The driver replied, "There are enough buses. The question is, why aren't there enough drivers?"
The driver then proceeded to tell us that they were on two consecutive 12-hour shifts (3pm-3am) and that they were counting on us to talk and ask questions to help them get through it. The implication was that they needed us to help them stay awake. At least that's how I saw it. It was a little disconcerting thinking our driver was not fully alert with a bus crammed with people. I thought this was unprofessional, not to mention the simple fact of talking about their work conditions. As a guest, I don't want to know. You stick a microphone in their hands and they feel they have to right to talk about anything. Cast members should not volunteer their working woes to guests.
They then proceeded to tell us about their first visit to WDW in 1971 and how cheap it was compared to today. Then they pointed out how ugly the Dolphin Hotel was, but added that it wasn't owned by Disney and thus nobody at Disney had any say in the design (which isn't true. Eisner hired the architect and approved the design). Of course, some people on the bus were staying at the Dolphin, so the driver was insulting their choice of accomodations.
I certainly don't want my airline pilot coming on the intercom and asking us to sing to keep them awake. I don't even want the CM loading me onto Splash Mountain to tell me how long their shift is. The bus driver did say they were going on vacation soon. I hope it's a long one.
With regards to bus service in general, it's possible the driver was right but I think dispatch mix-ups are the problem. We only took a few trips but they were mostly unsatisfactory. We stay mostly at MK or EPCOT resorts to avoid buses but we did have two nights at AKL and so were not immune.
On April 13th, we made two trips to AK from AKL. Waiting times at the lodge were nine and four minutes. However, coming back our wait times were 24 minutes (at 1:30) and 31 minutes (at 5:30). That's a long time for a four minute ride. I could walk faster. They advertise 15 minutes wait times.
The next morning was worse. At 8:30am, we waited 35 minutes for the EPCOT bus. Multiple buses came for the other destinations. Only after a lady called the front desk did a bus arrive three-minutes later. Coincedence?
Well, on April 20th we went from Boardwalk to DD/TL. We waited 25 minutes, but people had already been there 20 minutes - making for a 45 minute wait. At one point, two AK buses showed up simultaneously. They were both empty because another AK bus had been there minutes before. Again, a guest called the front desk and a DD/TL bus came a few minutes later. Not everyone was able to get on (it was a hot day and lots of people were heading to TL), but the driver called for another bus.
I can only think that in the EPCOT and DD/TL cases the problems were caused by dispatch errors and not a lack of drivers. Why did they have three AK buses within a matter of minutes, whereas the other day we couldn't get a bus back from AK to AKL?
In the future, we will cut our reliance on the buses even further, and we certainly will not be riding them late at night!
The driver then proceeded to tell us that they were on two consecutive 12-hour shifts (3pm-3am) and that they were counting on us to talk and ask questions to help them get through it. The implication was that they needed us to help them stay awake. At least that's how I saw it. It was a little disconcerting thinking our driver was not fully alert with a bus crammed with people. I thought this was unprofessional, not to mention the simple fact of talking about their work conditions. As a guest, I don't want to know. You stick a microphone in their hands and they feel they have to right to talk about anything. Cast members should not volunteer their working woes to guests.
They then proceeded to tell us about their first visit to WDW in 1971 and how cheap it was compared to today. Then they pointed out how ugly the Dolphin Hotel was, but added that it wasn't owned by Disney and thus nobody at Disney had any say in the design (which isn't true. Eisner hired the architect and approved the design). Of course, some people on the bus were staying at the Dolphin, so the driver was insulting their choice of accomodations.
I certainly don't want my airline pilot coming on the intercom and asking us to sing to keep them awake. I don't even want the CM loading me onto Splash Mountain to tell me how long their shift is. The bus driver did say they were going on vacation soon. I hope it's a long one.
With regards to bus service in general, it's possible the driver was right but I think dispatch mix-ups are the problem. We only took a few trips but they were mostly unsatisfactory. We stay mostly at MK or EPCOT resorts to avoid buses but we did have two nights at AKL and so were not immune.
On April 13th, we made two trips to AK from AKL. Waiting times at the lodge were nine and four minutes. However, coming back our wait times were 24 minutes (at 1:30) and 31 minutes (at 5:30). That's a long time for a four minute ride. I could walk faster. They advertise 15 minutes wait times.
The next morning was worse. At 8:30am, we waited 35 minutes for the EPCOT bus. Multiple buses came for the other destinations. Only after a lady called the front desk did a bus arrive three-minutes later. Coincedence?
Well, on April 20th we went from Boardwalk to DD/TL. We waited 25 minutes, but people had already been there 20 minutes - making for a 45 minute wait. At one point, two AK buses showed up simultaneously. They were both empty because another AK bus had been there minutes before. Again, a guest called the front desk and a DD/TL bus came a few minutes later. Not everyone was able to get on (it was a hot day and lots of people were heading to TL), but the driver called for another bus.
I can only think that in the EPCOT and DD/TL cases the problems were caused by dispatch errors and not a lack of drivers. Why did they have three AK buses within a matter of minutes, whereas the other day we couldn't get a bus back from AK to AKL?
In the future, we will cut our reliance on the buses even further, and we certainly will not be riding them late at night!
