Why no ticket system for Disney buses?

[patricia27]

When I am on vacation, I don`t want to be getting anxious about bus times!! It might be a lovely morning so our swim lasted longer!! We might decide to go to a different park at the last minute etc, etc. I just like to turn up at a bus stop and board. and yes it can be a bind waiting for wheel chairs etc to be loaded, but that is life; I am lucky I can walk on. My main grievance on the buses is when parents let their small children take up a seat when they could sit them on their laps. Also teens sitting when older people are standing.

 

[patricia27]

I remember waiting for ages for a bus to OKW. I asked the driver of a Port Orleons bus , if he had seen a bus to OKW. Great guy said jump on my bus and I will drop you off!! Guest Service at it`s best!!!!

 

[plaz10]

I agree with you sir! I can see that as a valid idea to cut down traffic. just a simple swipe to confirm you are currently staying on property. or have an annual pass.......

you agree with me - ma'am! :lol:

 

[Stellajack]

I, like many, become frustrated by extended waits for WDW buses, their overcrowding, etc. Why can't there be a ticketed system for the buses?

Offer tickets to each park/resort every 15 minutes. If you know you have dinner reservations at 6, grab bus tickets that morning for 5. Seems simple. You grab tickets to leave the park on a bus at 5:30 but decide you want to go back at 2? Simple, have a stand by line. You already wait in lines for the bus anyway.

It seems like a decent solution to an issue many seem to have with WDW. I get frustrated when I'm there but it never ruins my fun but it sure would go a long way to increasing my enjoyment.

Maybe I don't understand this idea of picking up a bus ticket in the morning, but suppose you want to pick up "5:00" bus tickets for your group when you leave the resort in the morning, but all the "5:00" tickets have been distributed... how does this system help you?

I'm not trying to be smart, but I think I have missed this whole guest friendly bus transportation concept.:shrug:

Clarification please.

 

[Polydweller]

Not sure if this has been mentioned yet, but I never understood why they don't install a device that reads KTTW cards on buses. You simply scan it when you enter the bus. It wouldn't take that long and it would ensure that anyone using the buses was a Resort guest.

But they aren't intended to be resort guest only and why would they be. The buses are intended for every WDW guest whether they are staying at a resort hotel or offsite. A person staying offsite is allowed to travel everywhere on the WDW property and what is the compelling business reason for Disney to stop that. People traveling to a resort for dinner, watching fireworks on a beach, transferring to DTD are all customers of WDW who might be convinced to stay onsite the next time or spend money in the resort shops. Absolutely no business reason to prevent that.

 

[71jason]

Not sure if this has been mentioned yet, but I never understood why they don't install a device that reads KTTW cards on buses. You simply scan it when you enter the bus. It wouldn't take that long and it would ensure that anyone using the buses was a Resort guest.

Do you really think there are that many non-resort guests trying to get to, say, the values? Are they that much of a tourist draw? Even if they were, the vast majority of non-resort guests have a car, and it's quicker/easier to just drive.

(Only exception would be DTD buses--I agree it would make sense for them.)

 

[BrittanyRose428]

I, like many, become frustrated by extended waits for WDW buses, their overcrowding, etc. Why can't there be a ticketed system for the buses?

Offer tickets to each park/resort every 15 minutes. If you know you have dinner reservations at 6, grab bus tickets that morning for 5. Seems simple. You grab tickets to leave the park on a bus at 5:30 but decide you want to go back at 2? Simple, have a stand by line. You already wait in lines for the bus anyway.

It seems like a decent solution to an issue many seem to have with WDW. I get frustrated when I'm there but it never ruins my fun but it sure would go a long way to increasing my enjoyment.

I haven't read the rest of the thread, so apologies in advance if I'm saying whats already been said, but... how does this make any sense? I don't even remember a time when theres been an actual line for a bus I'm taking unless you count right after a park closes or a fireworks show. Theoretically, according to this proposed ticket system, if I don't know what time I'm planning on leaving the park I wouldn't get a ticket in the morning, so I would been in the stand by line to buy tickets when I get to the bus stop. So even if I did experience lines in the first place, this system would do nothing for me unless I knew the exact time I was planning on leaving the park when I arrive in the morning, correct? I'm too tired for this. :ROFLOL:

Edit: The proposed idea also sounds like a bad fastpass situation waiting to happen. If someone gets a ticket to leave at 6:00 and really stays until 9:00 but wants to use their ticket to avoid said lines that would probably cause issues.

 

[Tom]

Not sure if this has been mentioned yet, but I never understood why they don't install a device that reads KTTW cards on buses. You simply scan it when you enter the bus. It wouldn't take that long and it would ensure that anyone using the buses was a Resort guest.

It would cause the system to operate even slower than it does now. Every card swiped would generate a wireless TX/RX to validate...meaning a few extra seconds per guest boarding. Plus mom trying to run it for the entire family. Plus people who weren't ready.

Besides, what would day guests do if they want to park hop? It would have to accept room keys AND park passes....meaning 99.9% of the people on property would automatically have privilege to ride anyway.

I like this idea, at park close and after EMH, even at park opening, people need all the room they can get in the buses and chairs and scooters take up a lot of space! it might even reduce the amount of people who decide they "need" to use them

Those times ESPECIALLY. Middle of the day, not so bad. But I've been trying to get to a lunch reservation at another park only to wait 20+ minutes for the bus, and then another 10 minutes while they loaded a family of ECVs.

Keep in mind that they are loaded first, but they get off last. It kind of evens itself out.

Also, anyone who screams "It is not fair" should thank their lucky stars they are not the ones on the scooter. I've spent a little time pushing a family member around the parks in a wheelchair, and it is not fun at all!

Have people really still not learned that life is not always fair? Have some compassion for those who have physical limitations. It could be you some day.

It doesn't really even out, because the process in general adds a significant amount of time to the boarding process. And this is what really messes up their quoted 20-min cycle time when they have one bus running the route between a resort and a theme park. Add 5 minutes to load and 5 minutes to unload, and you've gone to a 30-min cycle.

I agree that the people who necessitate an EVC have probably had a rough life, and I feel terrible that they have to enjoy WDW from a rolling chair - but at the same time, I don't believe they should roll up to a bus stop and get on the very next bus, when there are 3 busloads of people in that queue who have been standing for 16 hours.

First the "guys in white vans" are a HUGE necessity. Yes the computer system is massive and very elaborate, but it is a computer. When a bus leaves full, it takes a human to intervene quickly. The human intervention is a very big and important factor in the mornings. And honestly i cant think of anything much faster than one person telling another person directly "hey go to ___" :shrug: I think everyone would also be surprised at just at how many buses those coordinators dispatch to augment the computer system. No computer is perfect, and I think these coordinators are a big necessity, with or without the computer system. Also, every bus has GPS on board and can monitor a number of things, and every bus can be tracked by the dispatchers.

I agree that they're as necessity.....now.....because of the way Disney runs their system. If they had spotters or cameras monitoring all the queues, all they'd need is a room of people at Control telling the "system" that, for example, "Riverside at MK Depot needs another bus"...and the system would put POR's stop into the queue and the next available bus would be cycled to it.

The marquee would change automatically, and the driver would look at his little screen and know he's going to the POR stop at the MK as soon as he makes that turn at the gates. No stopping to lean out the window and talk to the guy in the van, who's manually assigning buses based on what he can see, and the information he's supposed to be getting from drivers as they pull away from a full queue.

I remember waiting for ages for a bus to OKW. I asked the driver of a Port Orleons bus , if he had seen a bus to OKW. Great guy said jump on my bus and I will drop you off!! Guest Service at it`s best!!!!

While this is an example of great guest service....it was only great for you. Unless that driver was slated to go Out of Service after his OKW drop-off, he likely messed something up for a lot of people by going off route.

 

[BrittanyRose428]

This might be a stupid question but why do scooters get to go to the front of the line? I mean, my grandpa had a scooter on our last trip and we didn't go to the front of any lines (though he rented it in the park and therefore did not need to take it on the bus). But why don't they wait in line on the scooter, and when their turn comes get on the bus? Thats what we do when we're in the park with my grandpa if he goes on a ride, I don't see how a bus that also has a line of people is any different.

 

[Sweet Melissa]

This might be a stupid question but why do scooters get to go to the front of the line? I mean, my grandpa had a scooter on our last trip and we didn't go to the front of any lines (though he rented it in the park and therefore did not need to take it on the bus). But why don't they wait in line on the scooter, and when their turn comes get on the bus? Thats what we do when we're in the park with my grandpa if he goes on a ride, I don't see how a bus that also has a line of people is any different.

From what I've witnessed, it's easier, safer, and quicker to load a scooter onto an empty bus than a full one.

 

[DisneyJoe]

It doesn't really even out, because the process in general adds a significant amount of time to the boarding process.

In the big picture, it evens out.

You are only looking at the bus process. Try being in a wheelchair or ECV when the evening event is over and the park is emptying out to get to the buses - who do you think gets to the buses faster - an able bodied family, or someone in an ECV who has thousands of people constantly walking and stepping directly in front of them?

From my experience, you have already been to your bus stop, waited, and loaded onto a bus before the ECV has exited the park to "skip to the front of the bus line".

 

[flynnibus]

This might be a stupid question but why do scooters get to go to the front of the line? I mean, my grandpa had a scooter on our last trip and we didn't go to the front of any lines (though he rented it in the park and therefore did not need to take it on the bus). But why don't they wait in line on the scooter, and when their turn comes get on the bus? Thats what we do when we're in the park with my grandpa if he goes on a ride, I don't see how a bus that also has a line of people is any different.

The scooter needs the open space to move to it's spot. You can't move a scooter through a space filled completely with people.

 

[Fla_Purls]

Wow, surprised to see this thread is still going! With the talk of ECV's, I feel the need to share this story.

DH and I were most recently at Disney World for the Disney Marathon weekend in January. It was a Sunday night, and we were waiting for a bus back to our resort from Downtown Disney. It was pretty late, there were a ton of people - probably 3 busloads' worth - all waiting for the same bus when, what do you know, here comes a group of 5 people cruising up on their rented scooters. Nobody objected or said anything when they rolled up to the front of the line, of course. When the bus finally arrived, I could see the driver looking at the crowd and the pack of 'scooter folk', and he got out of the bus and told them that he'll call for another bus right away but that they (the scooter people), would have to wait for the next bus since there were already so many people waiting. I was pleasantly surprised, but wonder if I will ever see that happen again.

 

[Master Yoda]

In the big picture, it evens out.

You are only looking at the bus process. Try being in a wheelchair or ECV when the evening event is over and the park is emptying out to get to the buses - who do you think gets to the buses faster - an able bodied family, or someone in an ECV who has thousands of people constantly walking and stepping directly in front of them?

From my experience, you have already been to your bus stop, waited, and loaded onto a bus before the ECV has exited the park to "skip to the front of the bus line".

Joe, your opinion on the matter carries more weight on this that pretty much anyone I know. How would you feel about an HC only bus stop with smaller buses designed around making scooters easier to load? The way I see it is smaller bus pulls up, loads you and the family, asks where you are going and then takes you there.

 

[DisneyJoe]

Joe, your opinion on the matter carries more weight on this that pretty much anyone I know. How would you feel about an HC only bus stop with smaller buses designed around making scooters easier to load? The way I see it is smaller bus pulls up, loads you and the family, asks where you are going and then takes you there.

Depends - will they have enough buses and drivers to make my wait only 20 minutes? or similar to non HC bus waits? If it doesn't give the same benefit and wait time as the "regular" Disney transportation then it isn't fair.

You'd also need to consider routes and travel time. i.e. 2 ECV's waiting at Hollywood Studios, one needs to go to AKL, one needs to go to the Contemporary. A dedicated HC bus pulls up and loads both - does the Contemporary guest need to go to AKL first and then to CR, or vice versa? Again, if taking a "normal" bus, each would go direct to that resort with no extra time.

I've worked this quite a few ways over the years, and I don't see it making any significant difference, unless Disney can provide the appropriate number of drivers and vehicles and routing to provide the same guest experience.

 

[Master Yoda]

Depends - will they have enough buses and drivers to make my wait only 20 minutes? or similar to non HC bus waits? If it doesn't give the same benefit and wait time as the "regular" Disney transportation then it isn't fair.

You'd also need to consider routes and travel time. i.e. 2 ECV's waiting at Hollywood Studios, one needs to go to AKL, one needs to go to the Contemporary. A dedicated HC bus pulls up and loads both - does the Contemporary guest need to go to AKL first and then to CR, or vice versa? Again, if taking a "normal" bus, each would go direct to that resort with no extra time.

I've worked this quite a few ways over the years, and I don't see it making any significant difference, unless Disney can provide the appropriate number of drivers and vehicles and routing to provide the same guest experience.

If they had a HC line for each resort it would probably work a little more efficiently as they could easily load multiple families on 1 bus and know where they are going. They of course would need to have a good number of these buses to make it work.

My main concern was the human emotion element. I tend to look at things from a zero emotion, what works the fastest mentality that ignores peoples feelings which is not the best mentality for a situation like this.

 

[chrissyw14]

Keep in mind that they are loaded first, but they get off last. It kind of evens itself out.

Also, anyone who screams "It is not fair" should thank their lucky stars they are not the ones on the scooter. I've spent a little time pushing a family member around the parks in a wheelchair, and it is not fun at all!

Have people really still not learned that life is not always fair? Have some compassion for those who have physical limitations. It could be you some day.

I did not say I had a problem about loading them first. I said I had a problem that 2-3 bus loads of people had been waiting for a while and they show up 5 min before a bus arrives and get to go on the bus before all of the people that have been waiting for a long time. they can get on first when the second bus arrives.

there are also people who ride in wheelchairs and scooters where it is not a necessity.

On my last trip there was a man who did need a wheelchair and he stood in line rather than cutting everyone.

and I do not see how the first and last evens it all out.

 

[murphysmom]

I did not say I had a problem about loading them first. I said I had a problem that 2-3 bus loads of people had been waiting for a while and they show up 5 min before a bus arrives and get to go on the bus before all of the people that have been waiting for a long time. they can get on first when the second bus arrives.

there are also people who ride in wheelchairs and scooters where it is not a necessity.

On my last trip there was a man who did need a wheelchair and he stood in line rather than cutting everyone.

and I do not see how the first and last evens it all out.

There is very limited bus space for scooters. It is not uncommon for the space to all be in use, therefore it makes sense to put a scooter in that space if it is open. Otherwise they may end up waiting bus after bus after bus for one that does have a scooter space open. Or a lift that works.

I have yet to meet a person who had the gift for knowing by looking at a person who really needs a scooter and who doesn't. If someone gets one out of some misguided idea that they can cut lines, or that using one in the parks is fun, they won't think that for long. And shame on them.

 

[BrittanyRose428]

The scooter needs the open space to move to it's spot. You can't move a scooter through a space filled completely with people.

I should have worded that better, I didn't mean have the scooter go with a bunch of people, more like have them wait in line and then when they get to the front of the line they can get on first, instead of just showing up and getting right on.

 

[flynnibus]

I should have worded that better, I didn't mean have the scooter go with a bunch of people, more like have them wait in line and then when they get to the front of the line they can get on first, instead of just showing up and getting right on.

That assumes you know which bus the person will be able to get on when waiting in line. That would require holding up the entire group to sit down and count people, and make an estimate, if the current person in line will fit in 'this bus' or have to wait for the next bus... before deciding if you let the wheelchair load.

That's just not worth the tradeoff so people can ensure the wheelchair waits the same as everyone..