DEBATE: Busses

[seashoreCM]

Is World Drive (north south freeway MK to Main Gate at 192) congested?

I think the problem if any with Pop Century (that new value resort south of CBR) will be having enough buses and drivers, not the road system. Pop Century as a whole is the same size as the three All Stars.

Buses can leave Pop Century, go south two blocks to uncrowded Osceola, then west to AK/BB or get on World Drive for a clean quick shot northward to MGM, Epcot and MK.

For people who drive, they will be filling up parking spaces to the disadvantage of day guests.

The new resort between CBR and DD is not Disney. They will have to take care of their own transportation.

 

[Brian430]

Those without rental cars, will need to take a bus to DTD from Pop Century. So the night-time congestion will be affected.

As far as those extra 100 buses looping south they will still eventually need to converge with other auto traffic. Even if it happens closer to the parks.

It's inevitable that this much extra traffic can only make matters worse.

WDW needs to revisit its history of innovation when it comes to transportation. The monorail and boat systems are efficient and classy options.

Resorting to buses as a temporary solution would have been acceptable. Making it their main long-term solution is patently unDisney.

They should be ashamed of their own lack of imagination and commitment to quality.

 

[Chip 'n Dale Express]

Originally posted by Brian430
How many more busses do you think it will take to shuttle 6,720 people to the attractions every day? My guess is between 50 to 100 additional busses belching fumes and further snarling traffic.

We've got the busses. In fact, with the 24 new ones arriving, we'll be more than set. As for how many more Driver Shifts we'll need... we've been steadily increasing our department, so we're almost set.

Originally posted by Brian430
Has anyone noticed what traffic near CBR, OKW and DTD has looks like already? The intersection leading to OKW is a total smog-filled mess.

As someone who drives that intersection every single day, I really haven't found that intersection to be a problem at all... by any means. (Except that one frost heave) What has posed the only (slight) problem are two things. First, the "Bonnet Creek Resort" construction. And second, not-so-bright tourists with no common sense.

Another thing to note... our new low floor busses, along with a bunch of our current RTS busses have new low emmission diesel engines that have lower emmissions than a Compressed Natural Gas engine. (We're working on replacing more RTS engines)

Originally posted by Brian430
Does anyone think a more efficient dispatch system can solve this problem?

Our dispatching system is very efficient. See my explanation of Flex Dispatch and Magic On Demand in the Transportation board.

Originally posted by Brian430
If Disney wants to continue this pace of urban-style development they should also invest in their infrastructure. They should also take better advantage the amount of space they have (or had) and spread out those developments.

The last time they did that, people complained that All-Stars, Animal Kingdom, and AK Lodge were "Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaay out there" and "remote". (When in fact... they're not)

 

[Shelly]

I hate the busses! They need to expand the monorail. When we stay at BC/YC We even walk thru Epcot to take the monorail to MK rather than walk out front to catch the bus. I say scrap the busses take all that money and expand the monorail. I know, not feesable but I can dream, right.

 

[bigdisneydaddy]

Disney does a wonderful job with their bus system. The logistics of moving that number of people under an ever changing schedule is huge.
I am sure it takes many hard working dedicated people to operate. I have had to wait for busses just like anyone else, No system of mass transit is going to respond to every single person exactly when they want.
I enjoy riding the older busses, I worked for a company that supplied the GMC plant in Pontiac,MI and used to make deliveries to the plant where they were manufactured. I often wonder if I am riding on a bus that I saw being built in the late 70's early 80's.
Disney should also be commended for their committment to keeping their fleet of older busses updated with newer technology engines. As was said previously, The new generation of Diesels are very efficient and produce significantly less pollution than units just five yrs ago. I think some of the objections to diesels is a "parrotting" of attempts by individuals to demonize an industry, similar to what has been done to SUV owners.

 

[isyne4u]

As a long time WDW visitor I have to say the transportation is just a small part of the experience. I like to look at the overall experience-the magic, the pixie dust, and the fun.

When I pay as much as I do for a vacation I am not about to let something like the transportation get in the way of my fun. I was at WDW for Easter this past year. I went with my78 year old grandmother, mother, and my 23 1/2 month old toddler and we found the buses to be one of the nicest parts of the trip. We were able to hop aboard and go where we needed without too much trouble. We had a few delays but that gave the toddler more time to run around and burn his energy. I don't think we had to wait more than 20 minutes for any bus. The only problem that we saw, was when the toddler threw tantrums on the buses and people realized they couldn't throw us off the bus (legally anyway).

One of my favorite parts was watching the faces of the people who were hot, tired, and crabby. They would get on the bus and then complain about everything from the buses to the cost of food, to the weather and I would sit back enjoy the ride and think about all the fun I had that day and feel sorry for the people that couldn't find anything good about their day at The World.

Again, if I'm going to pay that much for a vacation I'm not letting anything stand in the way of having a good time. (Okay maybe the terrible two year old tantrums- but those were quickly forgotten)

I know there are problems with the buses but, in my opinion, in the grand scheme of things what does it really matter as long as the overall trip was enjoyable. I am there for fantasy and in fantasy land there are no clocks.

As for the TL to Italy in the same day. I would plan a different day to go to Italy for dinner, because after a day in the water the kids are going to be tired, probably sunburned, and ready to eat long before 7 pm. My suggestion, TL and then back to the hotel for some time to change, snack and then dinner at the restaurant at the resort.

Just my opion for what it's worth.
tara

 

[isyne4u]

As a long time WDW visitor I have to say the transportation is just a small part of the experience. I like to look at the overall experience-the magic, the pixie dust, and the fun.

When I pay as much as I do for a vacation I am not about to let something like the transportation get in the way of my fun. I was at WDW for Easter this past year. I went with my78 year old grandmother, mother, and my 23 1/2 month old toddler and we found the buses to be one of the nicest parts of the trip. We were able to hop aboard and go where we needed without too much trouble. We had a few delays but that gave the toddler more time to run around and burn his energy. I don't think we had to wait more than 20 minutes for any bus. The only problem that we saw, was when the toddler threw tantrums on the buses and people realized they couldn't throw us off the bus (legally anyway).

One of my favorite parts was watching the faces of the people who were hot, tired, and crabby. They would get on the bus and then complain about everything from the buses to the cost of food, to the weather and I would sit back enjoy the ride and think about all the fun I had that day and feel sorry for the people that couldn't find anything good about their day at The World.

Again, if I'm going to pay that much for a vacation I'm not letting anything stand in the way of having a good time. (Okay maybe the terrible two year old tantrums- but those were quickly forgotten)

I know there are problems with the buses but, in my opinion, in the grand scheme of things what does it really matter as long as the overall trip was enjoyable. I am there for fantasy and in fantasy land there are no clocks.

As for the TL to Italy in the same day. I would plan a different day to go to Italy for dinner, because after a day in the water the kids are going to be tired, probably sunburned, and ready to eat long before 7 pm. My suggestion, TL and then back to the hotel for some time to change, snack and then dinner at the restaurant at the resort.

Just my opion for what it's worth.
tara

 

[manning]

quote

By the way, the busses are supposed to be a sort of scheulde. I was on one once that skipped a stop (my stop) because the driver was late.

--------------------------------------------

Was that Crankshaft driving??

 

[Chip 'n Dale Express]

Originally posted by manning
By the way, the busses are supposed to be a sort of scheulde. I was on one once that skipped a stop (my stop) because the driver was late.

With the exception of the Fort Wilderness internals, we are not on any form of schedule anymore.

 

[ohanafamily]

Originally posted by Chip 'n Dale Express
With the exception of the Fort Wilderness internals, we are not on any form of schedule anymore.

From what I can understend from you flex/mod description, you may not be on a set schedule, but there is a maximum of a 20 minute interval between the busses in the off season, and 8 minutes during peak season (varying slightly for the peak and off peak hours) This is ftom the resort to the parks. On the way back, since you can more easily determine who needs to go where, you don't have to adhere to quite that schedule, so perhaps within 5 minutes of someone walking up to the stop, or every 20 minutes after the previous bus left during not peak season. also this depends on how many people are at the stop.

Am I somewaht right on this?

BTW Tyler, I like the new Signature

 

[mitros]

Regarding Tylers post on 11/17, the theming of the buses, I think it is very beknownst {dont think thats a word, is it?} as to why they let outside companies wrap their buses, the ever popular $$$ I am sure disney gets paid a pretty buck for those rolling advertisments, which of course, in the case of the outside vendors are rolling outside of the property for ad purposes. I guess they figure why should we spend money decorating our own buses when they only drive on property and anyone that sees thaem is already here and doesn't need to see ads about things on the property! Anyway thanks for the photos of the buses including the ones you posted on the transportation boards regarding the car crash.

 

[Chip 'n Dale Express]

Originally posted by ohanafamily
From what I can understend from you flex/mod description, you may not be on a set schedule, but there is a maximum of a 20 minute interval between the busses in the off season, and 8 minutes during peak season (varying slightly for the peak and off peak hours) This is ftom the resort to the parks. On the way back, since you can more easily determine who needs to go where, you don't have to adhere to quite that schedule, so perhaps within 5 minutes of someone walking up to the stop, or every 20 minutes after the previous bus left during not peak season. also this depends on how many people are at the stop.

Disney will always advertise bus intervals at 20 minutes. This is mostly a "Cover Your Butt" type thing. In actuality, busses are dispatched anywhere from 5 minute to 17 minute intervals, depending on anticipated demand. All of our dispatching is done via computer, which ensures that no route goes uncovered. It tracks intervals, bus allocations, and many other bus operation features.

 

[Chip 'n Dale Express]

Originally posted by mitros
Regarding Tylers post on 11/17, the theming of the buses, I think it is very beknownst {dont think thats a word, is it?} as to why they let outside companies wrap their buses, the ever popular $$$ I am sure disney gets paid a pretty buck for those rolling advertisments, which of course, in the case of the outside vendors are rolling outside of the property for ad purposes. I guess they figure why should we spend money decorating our own buses when they only drive on property and anyone that sees thaem is already here and doesn't need to see ads about things on the property! Anyway thanks for the photos of the buses including the ones you posted on the transportation boards regarding the car crash.

Actually... Disney pays THEM to advertise on thier busses.

As to why we don't wrap our busses with themes and whatnot... it's all a bunch of corporate legal red tape. When I was in Monorails, and we were designing our Co-Pilot licenses... we were not even allowed to have Mickey Mouse (or any other character for that matter) on the license, even though we are a part of Disney.

 

[PKS44]

Tyler-

What about these stories we hear from people waiting 45 minutes to 90 minutes for a bus from AK to MK in the mornings, or to go to DTD, or WL transportation nightmares, etc...are these fabrications, rare exceptions that get blown out of proportion because that is what people remember, or what?

Paul

 

[ztbz]

Was this the trip time to go from the Ak to Mk or was it waiting for a Bus for 45 to 90 mins to get from AK to MK?

Now if its the Trip time, lets take into account first you must
take the Bus from AK to TTC then transfer to the Monorail to the MK and on a busy day it can take up to 45 mins (or More) to get to the MK.

Also the TTC Buses are on a Scheuldes including the AK to TTC Route.

Nearly 95% of all Bus Routes are NOT on a Scheulde the exections are TTC Routes, Sports Complex route and the Cast Shuttles, Also when a Bus does a Route, chances are the Bus Driver will be assigned another Route when He/She Reachs the Park or Downtown Disney.

Also one of the Worst Roadways at Disney is Buena Vista Drive with 19 traffic Lights from All Star Resort to the Mgm Studio to Downtown Disney, this is an East/West Roadway.

Also if you are planning to go to Downtown Disney at Dinner time (5 to 8 pm) plan to leave early this is the Worst time for riding a Disney Bus to Downtown Disney.

Z

 

[ohanafamily]

From what I understand from Tyler is that once they went to the FLEX/MOD dispatch system these long waits can't happen anymore. There is still a lot of perceived wait time...it always SEEMS longer when you are tired/wet.

 

[Chip 'n Dale Express]

Originally posted by PKS44
Tyler-

What about these stories we hear from people waiting 45 minutes to 90 minutes for a bus from AK to MK in the mornings, or to go to DTD, or WL transportation nightmares, etc...are these fabrications, rare exceptions that get blown out of proportion because that is what people remember, or what?

Paul

Well, the first thing to remember is that Disney Transport is highly dynamic. Always improving services. So just because something was one way last year, doesn't mean it will be that way this year.

Second... although it's not impossible for something to happen to cause an extended wait, currently with Flex & MOD, it's highly improbable. In my experience, 90% of all guest complains about extended waits are due to the following:

• Percieved time... Really was only 10 minutes, but felt like 30.
• Not paying attention. The bus came, but the guest was busy talking, and didn't notice it come and go.
• That bus just isn't running right now. Back when Epcot opened at 10am, the bus didn't start to run till 9am. I had one couple chew me out at 8:30 because they had been waiting over an hour for the Epcot bus. Or, people won't realize a park has closed, and will be waiting.
• The guest is simply lying. Unfortunetly, this happens a lot. People will walk up to a bus stop, pick up the house phone, and then complain that they've been waiting 45 mins for a bus.

The other 10% of complaints are legitimate... and typically happen during nighttime peak times for DTD. Although DTD pads the bus routes with extra busses, if a bus fills up at the Polynesian, the next bus will be asked to start at the Grand Floridian... however, it still takes 5 mins for the bus to get there, so that's an extra 5 minutes that those guests might have to wait.

 

[mkandk]

Hey, what about a segway? I realize they are too expensive right now to be practical, but I have a feeling Walt would be all over this new technology. Maybe they could be available to rent at the resorts, and you could check them in at the park gates.

 

[Chip 'n Dale Express]

Originally posted by mkandk
Hey, what about a segway? I realize they are too expensive right now to be practical, but I have a feeling Walt would be all over this new technology. Maybe they could be available to rent at the resorts, and you could check them in at the park gates.

I got to ride one of those things a few months back... they're cool, but the coolness wears off... personally... I'd rather walk. Excersize is good. Not to mention, I can just see all the accidents and collisions we'd have...

 

[ohanafamily]

How about renaming the thread "Transportation Talks With Tyler"