John Yaglenski (Intercot) claiming BK and Monorail expansion on the way

[All Aboard]

Link to Intercot Thread (http://www.intercot.com/boards/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=8;t=002943) I don't know, sounds like a "jokes on you" but, if true it could be great news.

FWIW - John was the first to break the news about the Timekeeper closure. He also was on the front edge of the French Quarter and EE news. So, who knows.

[toefungus]

I'm going to pay close attention to this, he has been credible in the past with rumours. Let's hope he's right again!

[JaredDisneyNut]

Hi! I'm a longtime member of ICOT, and just noticed John's post. I rarely visit other boards, but had to get over here to see if you had any information about this news. I'm thinking it's a hoax, so don't get your hopes up.

[Snowgod]

Lets go Monorail! This is great news if it is true.:smooth:

[fkj2]

A couple of years ago one of the Monorail Cast Members said an expansion was being planned but wasn't sure of the scope or time frame. She did mention that the buses were a problem d/t pollution and that Disney wouldn't be able to add buses (I suppose in significant numbers) because of state legislation prohibiting it.

[Another Voice]

Hmmmm…..

I don’t know if I’d exactly be planning to go soaring over to the Animal Kingdom expecting to see Beastly Kingdom. Approving a single new attraction, let alone a whole new area, for a park is really complex. Me mates and I know a lot can happen down under in the executive offices in Burbank.

And the other part about the monorail expansion to start in 2007: if Disney could plan that far out right now they wouldn’t be in half the trouble they are at the moment.

[meowthew2]

I don’t know if I’d exactly be planning to go soaring over to the Animal Kingdom expecting to see Beastly Kingdom. Approving a single new attraction, let alone a whole new area, for a park is really complex. Me mates and I know a lot can happen down under in the executive offices in Burbank.

Crikey, I wish you weren't so vague.

[hopemax]

Interpretting AV....

Don't expect a whole new land or any of the Beastly Kingdom stuff. However a Soarin' over Australia attraction is a possibility.

[airlarry!]

Dangit Hopemax, you beat me to it.

By the way, I'll bet you a slice of pizza that these rumors are in the planning stages.

As in, "Hmm...the board is breathing down my neck. Let's secretly -- wink, wink -- announce that we are in the planning stages for Giant Monorail Resort Expansions and...which park is in trouble?...oh yeah, AK...and Giant Animal Kingdom Expansion -- wink, wink. Got all that down, Paul?"

[hopemax]

Hmm...the board is breathing down my neck. Let's secretly -- wink, wink -- announce that we are in the planning stages for Giant Monorail Resort Expansions and...which park is in trouble?...oh yeah, AK...and Giant Animal Kingdom Expansion -- wink, wink.

You know, this did kind of cross my mind too. If there is a large possibility that there is going to be a new management team in place by 2007, what's the harm in announcing a transportation plan?

Right now, it's good PR as far as the customers are concerned, and when the new management comes in and "delays" it, everyone will understand how a new team would want to acclimate itself before rushing into a multi-billion dollar expansion plan.

[All Aboard]

JohnY posted again in response to my thinking it was an "April Fool's" type joke saying that he was completely serious.

Clearly he's not joking and says his sources are solid. (He throws in all the regular caveats 'subject to change' and all.)

Your Airness, interesting angle on the mgt change. That's a very real possibility.

As I've said before, monorail service linking all the parks would be nice, BUT... without service to resorts that do not currently have it, it's actually quite worthless. For example. Let's say you are staying at the Caribbean Beach and your day calls for time at the Studios followed the night activities at Epcot. Currently (if you have no car) you'd bus to the Studios, boat or bus to Epcot and then bus back to your resort. If the new plan doesn't include service to the resorts, the only thing that changes is that bus or boat trip from the Studios to Epcot becomes a monorail trip. To me, there is very little value in that. Certainly not enough to justify the massive expense that would occur.

Without resort service, I'd much prefer Disney NOT lay out the capital and point it in a different direction.

[larworth]

Maybe instead of a desperation move it’s all part of the plan. If Mike has agreed to bring someone in (Pittman or ???) as his eventual successor, he’d probably want to make sure any major transportation plan got credited to his watch and became part of his legacy.

It would be great to see them boldly investing again. However, like Greg, I have some concerns whether this is the best use of $. While more monorails would be nice, I know if the choice was between nice, and 5-10 new E tickets scattered among the parks which I would rather have.

I have this fear this could be a huge albatross. How many public transportation projects have been funded based on a perceived “user value” that never materialized. One of the bigger decisions they will make, sure hope they get it right.

[Panthius]

I think Disney needs a new form of transportation. This would be money well spent and would add to the overall show that is Walt Disney World much more than the current busses.

Pan

[MikePezz]

..use an enclosed version of the wedway peoplemover. It would be cheaper, but just as effective as a monorail expansion.

[Bstanley]

Another reason for better/more entertaining transportation is so Disney can continue to charge a premium for their hotel rooms.

If you have several small children, will be spending most of your time at the MK and want to take mid-day breaks it is fairly easy to be convinced that one of the monorail resorts makes the most sense - even though they cost more. The hour(s) a day you save in travel make it worth the money.

If there was a train from AKL to AK to CSR to EPCOT for example it would make it easier to charge premium prices for AKL and you might be able to raise the prices at CSR a bit and get away with it.

You can't make any more money by building more hotels - there are plenty of them - if you want to make more on the resorts you will have to figure out ways to convince people to pay more.

[Banzai]

I like to think positive :)

[Bob O]

I also will put no credence in this rumor until their is a official announcement from disney. Anybody can start a rumoer and say its subject to change and they have a built in excuse when it doesnt happen.
And i would much perfer they spend money to add attractions to the parks than do anything with the transportation system. With disney having money problems and being in debt IMHO spending money on a monorail expansion wont bring much bang for the buck. And i have had no problems with the transportation system when i have used it, but i will say i dont use if often.

[doubletrouble_vb]

Having just been down there...perhaps they are in a situation where they have to debate adding more infrastructure to handle cars versus adding a monorail. Adding a monorail to keep day traffic from moving their cars more than once could help Disney reclaim some of the acreage they have devoted to parking lots. In addition if well planned it could remove the need to have additional roads & the resort bus traffic could be re-directed to monorail loading points rather than traversing all the way to each and every park. Besides reducing air pollution it would also reduce noise pollution.

Having stayed at Old Key West over Memorial Day it seems to me it is extraordinarily wasteful to have a Magic Kingdom Bus, an Animal Kingdom Bus, an Epcot bus and a Downtown Disney Bus make a circuit of the resort versus having a bus or electric cart devoted to circling the resort to pick up travelers.

[Figmentrocks]

"Another reason for better/more entertaining transportation is so Disney can continue to charge a premium for their hotel rooms. "

Exactly.

The bus situation is horrible at this point and I would assume that if Disney was going to invest in a massive monorail expansion, there are two reasons. One, they will have a long-term cost savings vs. the bus system. Two, they can continue to add to the room rates for this "luxury". The monorail expansion most likely wouldn't be done for our best interest, it's usually the business' interests at heart. :)

[diznynut]

A few years back, they were doing a servey at a few of the monorail stations about expantion. I think it would be great if they went to all four parks.

[Testtrack321]

Think, hoax for monorail, mabey for BK. People, this is new Disney, if it ain't gotta movie tie in or is really cheep, don't expect it. But if it is true, what is the time period they would announce something like this?

[Bob O]

Maybe disney could make a movie based on their monorail rides to the parks??? It could be a perfect tie-in. Maybe have a group of terrorists take a monorail over and have a hero come on board and kill them and save all the families on the monorail!!!

[ztbz]

If the Monorail is Expanded, you will still have Disney Buses, the
Monorail will not go to all the Hotels, but instead you will have to take the Bus from your Hotel such as All Stars over to the AK Park then you would get on the Monorail, if you were going to MK or Epcot you may also have to Change Monorails too.

Disney is Replacing all its Buses with the New Nova Bus. These Buses are Being Lease, and the plan is to Replace them every 5 to 6 years.

One part of the Rumour was that Downtown Disney would be the Hub for all the Monorails, I don't think Downtown Disney is going to be the best spot for a Central Hub, more Like Epcot is in the Middle of the Disney property, and would be a better choice. Also Downtown Disney has a Major Parking & Traffic problems every Night, I know, I would not want to have to deal with this Traffic Nightmare.

[Janet2k]

Since Disney sold the monorail cab on e-Bay recently ( Monorail Society's blurb regarding purchaser (http://www.monorails.org/tMspages/News.html#anchor12735) ), maybe they will auction off the rest of their stock to help pay for the *future* monorail expansion. Who knows.

[vernon]

Any transportation system that DOESN'T incorporate the resorts is, IMHO, not much of a help. The $ value to Disney in upping it's transportation is that , hopefully, it increases the reasons for staying in Disney hotels. IF the transportation only serves the themeparks from central parking lots this is self defeating.

I actually think any "hub" needs to be on the outskirts of WDW not in the middle. If it's in the middle it increases traffic throughout Disney. It needs to be on the edge surrounded by the main freeways. For this reason I think the area where I4, Osceola parkway, 535 and 192 converge would be the best place. Keep the traffic away from Disney, it has plenty of its own already LOL

[DOPEY44]

Why can't each park serve as a hub? The 5 min ride from the all star sports to AK, then a monorail would be more enjoyable than a 20 min bus ride to MK. Disney already lists their resorts by which park is closer and Disney will never get ride of all the buses.
I like the idea of linking all the parks together. Day trippers would only need to park in one location and have access to everything as long as the pass they buy lets them use the transportation.
Also, once you link a monorail to a moderate or value resort, the
price will go up. JMHO

[Panthius]

Personally I feel the monorail should definitely not go to the value resorts. Also, I am not sure how different the moderate resorts are. Some may almost be deluxe resorts with their price and amenities while others may almost be value, but the monorail should only go to some resorts, but definitely to all deluxe resorts since these are the people paying the most money for the best Disney has to offer.

Panthius

[All Aboard]

Personally I feel the monorail should definitely not go to the value resorts. Why not???

[daannzzz]

"Personally I feel the monorail should definitely not go to the value resorts.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Why not???"


It would wreck the class system they have for the resorts. You can't have the people paying $79 a night getting monorail service the same as those at $350 a night rooms at the Grand Floridian!!!! This would cause trouble as Disney would then have to add perks to the Deluxe hotels to keep them seperated more from the Values.

[Another Voice]

Or they could just simply raise the prices at the Values...

[DisDuck]

Or we can get rid of the 'class' system that Baron believes exist and everyone staying onsite gets the Monorail which means exceeding guest expectations.

[larworth]

We've focused on the monorail expansion, but was trolling and stumbled onto this comment by the guy who moderates one of the mouseinfo.com discussion boards.

just because someone mentions it first doesn't necessary means they had the information first. For example, there's a new e ticket attraction green lighted in another park that is from DCA and I don't see any news on it yet. Just some things you can't always share...Michael You may recall the earlier AV hint
I don’t know if I’d exactly be planning to go soaring over to the Animal Kingdom expecting to see Beastly Kingdom
If "soarin" is getting approved is this the final referendum on BK?

I bet they have done enough development work on the dragon coaster project to conduct a bake-off. If true, wonder if the attraction (technology, show concept, budget issue) or the theme (real vs. imaginary) was the compelling factor?

[daannzzz]

As I mentioned on another message board. How is Soarin over Australia going to fit into the AK? I am sure Soarin over Australia will be beautiful and wonderous but how will they tie ANIMALS into it. Will your hanglider swoop down on numerous terrified animals scattering herds. Might be interesting. A Carnivore over the plains type of story might work.

[All Aboard]

daannzzz (you've been here a while, time to explain the screen name) I'm not sure that Kali River Rapids has any animals in it. I don't recall, because nobody will go on it with me since they got drenched the first time.

[DC7800]

Originally posted by daannzzz
Disney would then have to add perks to the Deluxe hotels to keep them seperated more from the Values.

Wouldn't adding amenities to every level of WDW resorts be an almost ideal solution for the All-Star's and Pop Century's percieved shortcomings? Don't just add "magic" (ie, the monorail) to the value resorts; rather, move all resorts upscale. The value properties move up close to where the moderates are today, while the deluxe resorts give us new and unprecedented levels of luxury. This preserves the "seperation" of resort categories supposedly necessary to justify the price difference, but (done correctly) addresses the more serious grievances against the All-Stars and PC. Right now, the monorail isn't the "perk" it once was anyway, simply because of all the (new) places it hasn't been expanded to. If it is to be a defining characteristic (and selling point) of a resort once again, the 'rails need to reach most everywhere (WWOS, the Speedway, etc. excluded).

The problem, of course, is room prices. I'll argue WDW needs something in the "value" category (say, $99 or less - but this should not consist of "Funky Chicken" decorations in lieu of immersive theming), but the added perks carry an expectation of higher prices.

Or we can get rid of the 'class' system that Baron believes exist and everyone staying onsite gets the Monorail which means exceeding guest expectations.

All WDW resorts should exceed guest expectations, however much you're paying. More importantly, that "class" system is totally unecessary to justify higher deluxe room prices. The Grand Floridian (deluxe) will always stand well above PC (value), and even with major architectural (and landscaping) "theme" changes and a monorail platform at Pop Century, I can't imagine anyone getting the two resorts confused. Give us the greatest Disney experience possible at any price, and Disney is likely to find it's no longer necessary to discount rooms to fill them.

As for the actual monorial expansion, the projected dates are so far out that even plans virtually cast in stone could be long forgotten (by future, different Disney management teams) before construction is scheduled to begin. Still, I would hope that there is a realization within Disney that something must be done transportation wise in WDW, and that the guest expectations for such would center arouind a monorail expansion. So, even if this rumor eventually became fact, what is to be done in the interim?

[Another Voice]

There’s getting the green light and then there’s getting the bulldozers actually show up for construction. There’s one attraction that, shall we say, has received so many green lights for take-off, all at different locations and in all kinds of forms, that it has almost become a standing joke. All the green lights in the world can’t stop a single gentleman with a big fat red pen. The parks long ago lost their ability to control their own fate and plans are subject to sudden and dramatic changes (and cancellations).

And even the plans themselves may serve other purposes. Right before DCA opened, everyone associated with the project “suddenly” began dropping “hints” about all the wonderful new attractions that were just around the corner (‘Rock n Roller Coaster’ and ‘Armageddon’). The “rumors” were really just an attempt to spin the growing realization that the park was in serious trouble before it opened, kind of pre-emptive damage control. Neither of the two “rumored” attractions came to pass for reasons that had nothing to do with the parks themselves, but they made for a good story at the time.

Right now you have a situation where a certain executive needs to be seen as being “proactive” and a “problem solver”, a company needs to be seen as “returning to normal” (look at all the buzz the no discount press release generated), and a lot of designers scrambling to keep their jobs. So, you have a lot of rumors being spread around for a lot of reasons. But you only have one guy with the checkbook - and he has other interests.

What gets rumored, what gets announced, and what gets built are going to be three very different lists.

[daannzzz]

"daannzzz (you've been here a while, time to explain the screen name) I'm not sure that Kali River Rapids has any animals in it. I don't recall, because nobody will go on it with me since they got drenched the first time."

You are right. Kali doesn't have any animals and has a very, very loose tie in with animals. That han'd even crossed my mind, maybe because it is a weak ripids ride with a beatiful queue and some decent theming but no great rapids. I think the imagineers may be able to put a slight animal slant on Soarin over Australia. It will most likely be a decent attraction where ever it is placed. I am one of those who thinks Soarin over California is great but only a D ticket.
As far as my screen name goes, it is a mundane explanation. my name is dan and it's MY computer. Name in possesive form translates to Daannzzz! :rolleyes:

[daannzzz]

"Wouldn't adding amenities to every level of WDW resorts be an almost ideal solution for the All-Star's and Pop Century's percieved shortcomings? Etc..... "

Adding amenities to all the resorts would be awesome ( though not something I think Disney will do). I don;t think I would want to see the AS or PC moved up a notch so that and even more value engineered ( less expensive) resort could be created. They are about on the bottom rung now unless they want to invest in some Super 8's in Kissimee. And having every resort on a monorail line doesn't work for me either. The monorail is exciting but I personally don't want monorail beams snaking all over the property. Yes it is fun and convenient but part of the magic at the resorts is the lack of regular infrastructure that is visible. I don;t want to see a monorail staion and beamway at the CBR or AKL.
It already detracts from the front of the Polynesian resort.
The WDW resorts are also getting to the top edge of what I will pay for a nights stay. They can't hardly add any amenity that would make it okay to up the prices anymore than they do already. I am willing to pay $89-$99 to stay at the AS not at the PC for some of the styling issues. I am willing to pay $300 at the Y7B Club and Grand Floridian because of their location and alternate modes of transportation. I don't think I would be willing to pay $130 for the All Stars or $200 for a moderate just for Monorail service.

[manning]

What's the best way to move people, when there is grid lock??

[raidermatt]

Dannnzzz- You make a good point about the monorail not exactly fitting in at AKL, or even at AK for that matter. But I don't see a problem with a station attached to the property. It shouldn't go through the property, ala Epcot and the Contemporary, but it can work nearby. (along those same lines however, AK and AKL just SCREAM for boat service...as much as I'd like to see monorail expansion, I think I'd like to see overall boat expansion just as much)

I also understand the point about infrastructure, but large numbers of cars, busses and overall vehicle traffic detract more from the scenery than a monorail line ever could. Besides, if you're on the monorail, the track isn't very distracting, but all of the roads and traffic sure is...

[doombuggy]

While I would love to see some park expansion (I am not crazy about AK, but hey), The busing issue isn't going to get better. Additional monorail service/routes would be great. I am sure the company has been thinking/pondering this issue for quite some time. The reality is that these things cost money. Lots of it. Hopefully, the monorail expansion will become a reaity within the next few years. I will say that the monorail or lack there of does not change my choice of hotels to stay at in WDW, if I am not staying at my dad's time share or at my friend's house. I stay where I can afford it - if I can afford a deluxe, I'll stay there (usualy with at least 2 other people!).

Just my two cents.........:earsgirl:

[daannzzz]

Like I said, I enjoy the monorail and remember back a ways where I would stay at a motel near disneyland just so i could stand in the motel parking lot and see the monorail and occaisionally have a room with a view of it. But I would prefer to see more boat service added along with Monorails. The AKL would be Ideal for Boat Service to the AK but you still have all the other destinations to go to. No matter how you slice it bus service will be fairly prevelent unless Disney wants to keep prices the same or lower them and make you transfer at boat docks and Monorail staions much more often. Imagine a monorail stop at the AKL. You want to go to the MK. Does this line go directly to all the parks or do you need to transfer to the monorail at Epcot and then again at the TTC. Or lets say there is boat service from AKL to AK and to get to the other parks you have to take the boat to the AK and transfer to a monorail station there.
I understand why Disney hasn't done alot with this yet. It will be a daunting task to figure out.