WDW Transportation - What would you do?

[cloudboy]

There was a lot of discussion over the benefits and drawbacks of the Monorail at WDW in a previous post. What do you think about the transportation plan at WDW? Does it work, could it be improved, and what would you do?


I for one don't care for the busses. You always seem to be waiting forever for them, they are tipsy and lean too much, and somehow are a bit of a letdown for me. But they are pretty efficient. What I would like to see if some kind of system where there is a hub somewhere near Epcot. A Monorail or MagLev system (maybe even a people mover system?) would then run from there to each of the parks. Busses form the resorts would go here, so that you only have to wait for the next bus to arrive, not the next bus going to your destination.

Your ideas?

 

[andre85]

I think the busses work great. I’ve never had to wait more than 20 minutes for a bus (except at maybe Downtown Disney); and they seem to be fairly efficient.

 

[BwanaBob]

I'm probably the only freak that does this...but I'll tell ya why;

Unless I'm staying at a "monorail resort" and I want to go to a park serviced by the monorail, I drive everywhere.

I'll park at TTC, take monorail to Epcot, or vice-versa, but I drive everywhere.

Why? Free parking, I never "follow the herd"- always drive to the front 'cause there's always a space-this eliminates those wait times for tram service with a short walk to the main gate, load and unload as necessary and use the truck as the storage locker, don't have to wait for the bus, and I'm in control.

UNLESS we're going to PI ...(then we bus it!)

 

[Pixie Duster]

I drive as well, but not everyone is lucky enough to have a car with them on the their trip .

Anyway, the buses are not bad and I see no problem with them at all, a lot of people are a bit picky. The monorail would be nice, but it ain't gonna happen anytime soon because there really is no problem without it.

 

[GrumpysGal]

Resort to Park/Park to Resort transportation is the only reason why I stay at Disney resorts. It's so convenient. The best thing since sliced bread for me! LOL

 

[lacrosse nut]

WDW transportation update

I don't have a problem with the buses unless I get on an overcrowded one. And please do not mistake this for complaining, because I am not!!!! I would like to address the issue from a "theme" standpoint. I think they should bring back the train at Fort Wilderness. I know it broke down alot, but that problem is not too hard to tackle! It would enhance the theme of that resort, maybe extend it to the lodge and have some events planned around it. If they have a flower/garden convention, why not a railroad convention? The monorails should be expanded to include a parks loop of some sort, or maybe more waterways. the idea I'm slowly getting at is this; You are at a theme park, why should the ride to and from the parks and resorts be "transportation?" Could it possibly serve the same function with a theme attached to it? Maybe different scenery, bumps, buzzers, whistles, characters, detours, different shaped vehicles, a double decker bus,... etc. You get the idea. Some say they just want to get to the park, and that is true, but why not put a disney twist on it. After going down to WDW a few times I find myself enjoying the narrated train rides around MK, or the monorail, or how about the air conditioned water taxi from epcot to mgm on a hot day (needs a narration though). This is the advantage to having a "themed" park. It is what seperates Disney from all other parks. I guess it is obvious I am not concerned with cost, but if that were the only detour, half of disney would never have evolved!! Thank goodness for the imagineers. That's just one of the many ideas that float through my head on that 17 hour drive back to Pennsylvania!!! :wave:

 

[mkt]

i'd recommend that WDW improve their roads and markings, as well as increase the amount of police on the WDW roads and offer incentives for guests to drive themselves around..

otherwise, more busses would be fine.. but I'm actually against more monorails

 

[Hank Scorpio]

I love the Disney buses.

Yeah sure, sometimes it does take you an hour to get to your destination (but it can also only take 5 mins if your lucky!) but you get to see so much Disney magic along the way.

I personally don't want to be concentrating on driving around and not gettling lost, and worrying about other drivers. I'd much rather be seeing the sights of Disney World... it has so much more to offer then what just goes on in the Theme Parks. I could spend weeks there without even entering one of the big four.

 

[TheDisneyMagic]

Well first of all I would set up some kind of fund, where a certain amount of profits from evey day's takings go.

After however long it takes I would then spend that money first on connectig all the parks (including waterparks) to the transportation and ticket center. the rest of the money I would then spend on cleaning up the Trams because I think its about time they got a lick of paint.

Then in a few years time I would do the same thing for and add the rest of the resorts the the transportaton and ticket center, by the the TPTC would probable need a bit of expansion work done to accompany the monorails.

 

[darkeyeliner]

i think the buses are great. i'll admit - i hate waiting for them, but its so much of a big relief to take them rather then try and find parking and such. like someone else said - i think they should have more themes on the buses. a bigger monorail system would be great [especially since i love the monorail] but i really dont think it would happen.

 

[DME]

I don't care much for the buses myself. We never stay at a Monorail resort and we don't have a car so we must rely on buses. Aside from all the pollution and noise, I think it'd be great if they could build a monorail to MGM and AK from the TTC. An updated version of the Peoplemover would be awesome from the resorts. Wouldn't a peoplemover from Pop Century to Epcot be cool?

 

[cloudboy]

I'm probably the only freak that does this...but I'll tell ya why;

Unless I'm staying at a "monorail resort" and I want to go to a park serviced by the monorail, I drive everywhere.

Actually, I think you and I may be in the majority for a lot of guests. I noticed that on a number of my trips - more people seem to use their cars than busses. If you are renting a car anyways, and it is easier to drive than take the busses, why not drive?

Maybe I am too much of a transport nut, but I would love to see something better than driving. Here are my problems with the busses:

1. Slow - when I have used the busses, you end up spending way, way to much time waiting around. If you are hopping around parks, it adds up to an awful lot of time.

2. They are crowded at peak times. Obviously if you used the busses at other times they are not as bad, but hey, peak times exist because that's when most people want to get somewhere, right?

3. They can be confusing. I see so many people get confused with the busses - which is the right bus? How do I get from my resort to another resort for dinner? It's too chaotic.

4. Theming. Again, maybe it's just where I come from, but seeing those busses somehow is a jolt back into the real world. They are huge, smelly, tipsy, noisy, and bouncy. (rant, rant!). it's this giant detail that somehow is even more noticable as everything else is so special.

Is it just the bus design that gets me so? Could better busses run in a more orderly fashion be much more attractive?

 

[AndyP]

If onsite I'd prefer the monorails, but the buses are good.
However, I've only stayed offsite before, and so we have to drive to WDW.

 

[Tom]

Originally posted by cloudboy
Actually, I think you and I may be in the majority for a lot of guests. I noticed that on a number of my trips - more people seem to use their cars than busses. If you are renting a car anyways, and it is easier to drive than take the busses, why not drive?

Maybe I am too much of a transport nut, but I would love to see something better than driving. Here are my problems with the busses:

1. Slow - when I have used the busses, you end up spending way, way to much time waiting around. If you are hopping around parks, it adds up to an awful lot of time.

2. They are crowded at peak times. Obviously if you used the busses at other times they are not as bad, but hey, peak times exist because that's when most people want to get somewhere, right?

3. They can be confusing. I see so many people get confused with the busses - which is the right bus? How do I get from my resort to another resort for dinner? It's too chaotic.

4. Theming. Again, maybe it's just where I come from, but seeing those busses somehow is a jolt back into the real world. They are huge, smelly, tipsy, noisy, and bouncy. (rant, rant!). it's this giant detail that somehow is even more noticable as everything else is so special.

Is it just the bus design that gets me so? Could better busses run in a more orderly fashion be much more attractive?

When I go to WDW, and stay at a resort, the last thing I want to do is ANYTHING for myself, HAHA! Plus, getting back into MY car would put me back into reality.

As for the monorails, give it up! They aren't going to put any more in anytime soon. It's been discussed in numerous other threads that they are WAY too expensive to install. The land is too swampy and the concrete beams and columns are REALLY expensive to build and install (I can price some up if you'd like, haha!).

I've been to WDW and stayed at POR each June for the last 3 years. I've taken the buses EVERYWHERE! I never waited more than 10 minutes, except when leaving a park after a night show (when everyone else is too). Other than that, they got me from my resort to anywhere I wanted to go, FAST. They take roads and go speeds that you can not in your car. They're Air Conditioned, hold a lot of people, and only lean because they're designed to. (If they didn't lean in corners, they'd flip like SUV's).

I think that if they invested money in beefing up the bus fleet, the wait issues would go away. They're tons more effecient than any other transportation they have. They load and unload quickly and go from point A to point B in the shortest and fastest path possible. If people are confused by the giant yellow words in their DESTINATION DISPLAY, then I think perhaps they should re-take 3rd grade, heehee. If I see a bus with "MGM Studios" scrolling in it's window, I'm going to safely assume that it's going to MGM Studios (weird, I know). If it says "Port Orleans Riverside" and it pulls up in the "Port Orleans Riverside" stop at a park bus lot, I'm going to safely assume that it's going to take me to the Port Orleans Riverside resort.

Anyway, as you can tell, I worship their bus system. All I have to do or think about is where I want to go, then watch the yellow signs in their windows, get on, then get off and I'm "magically" where I exactly want to be! What more can you ask for?

 

[andre85]

Hot damn, edwardtc, you said it perfectly. I agree with everything you said.

 

[Tom]

Originally posted by andre85
Hot damn, edwardtc, you said it perfectly. I agree with everything you said.

Heehee, thanks! Just call it as I see it - I'm too logical for my own good

 

[cloudboy]

Hopefully my experiences have been a unusual. On the few times I used the bus system, I have found myself waiting 20 minutes or more for the right bus to come. Very frustrating to watch 3 studios busses come before one Epcot bus comes. But then again, that is why my experience with the buses is so low, perhaps it is just bad luck?

To address a few points, it is not that easy if you want to get from Port Orleans to Wilderness Lodge for a dinner reservation. Or if you just want to get to Disneyland – not Epcot or Magic Kingdom or any of those (remember, many guests are not Disney fan and think that Magic Kingdom is some new park no one ever heard of because they are too busy going to Disneyland, over there above Epcot.). This isn’t just a problem with the buses, mind you, it’s the whole system. Oh, and remember there are quite a few foreign guests who, no, can’t read the yellow destination signs.

I would like to keep this away from a Monorails versus Busses thing – that is why I started it as a new topic since that is where all the other threads went. How could the system be made simpler, more environmental, and more special? Or is it already special – I see busses like the Disney ones everyday, but this may not be true of most guests – are busses something special I am just taking for granted?

Oh, what roads are only for busses? I know that there is a bridge over near Port Orleans, and of course the bus loading areas, but where else are busses only? Sounds cool!

 

[RyanS]

I love the monorails and freindship boats. I especially like the short walks to Epcot and MGM Studios from the Boardwalk. It's very convenient.

 

[LadyDarling]

Well, my bus expereince in 1999 was less than "ideal" so we rent a car. Time wise, it saves use OODLES!

We go in the off season, when there aren't as many busses running - so the wait of 20 minutes is usual. Now, remember when you're going in the off season, a 20 minute wait is probably the LONGEST you'll wait for ANYTHING and is seems a little crazy to wait 20 minutes just to get INTO the bus to get to the park.

Also, we were staying at the All-star music, so we had deal with TONS of extra stops.

And we were stranded once at the TTC. We left MVMCP at the last possible moment and were stuck along with 4 other folks. It took over an hour for security to find a bus that could get us, and took about 1/2 an hour to get to our resort (we had to drop the other 4 folks off first).

So we've always rented a car. It's proved SO nice! We "tag team" where I navigate and he drives. We like the flexibility of not having to "wait around" for a busses, and we rarely (going off-season) have to park far enough away to take the parking lot trams.

~J. Darling

 

[mrtoad]

I have always been fine with the buses but do like the monorail better. But on this last trip about two weeks ago, the buses to and from Port Orleans Riverside were very slow on the comback from the parks. We have stayed there 4 times now and this was the only really bad time as far as buses go. We would be waiting at the MK for about 1/2 hour some times. The buses for the AllStar Resorts just kept on coming but the one for POR was very slow. It might have to do with the fact that the French Qtr part of PO was closed for renovations. Maybe they cut down on the buses.

We are hoping to stay one the Monorail loop on our next trip.