Disney Skyliner (Gondola Transportation System) Read Post 1 Now Open!

[Laura's Dad]

It may have a side loop behind the main loop closer to the hotel good for departures in one direction (probably to the CBR station). They could then transfer to the Epcot or DHS line

 

[vacationer1954]

Also, does the law imply the system has to handle wheel chairs or every station has to?

Every station where it is practical. To defend an exemption Disney would have to prove that it is cost prohibitive or unsafe to do so. Since they really can stop the gondolas as needed, that won't fly (pardon the pun). People can claim left and right what the law actually would and wouldn't require, but the reality is that this is going to be governed by public opinion and Disney won't risk the bad PR of a lawsuit from a ADA rights group to take that risk that a court would find in their favor.

 

[joelkfla]

It may have a side loop behind the main loop closer to the hotel good for departures in one direction (probably to the CBR station). They could then transfer to the Epcot or DHS line

Those who have been following this have posted dozens of aerial and ground-level photos throughout the construction. The 2nd loop was clearly discernible in construction photos of the other stations, but no such loop was visible in photos of Riviera.

 

[Mikey15]

I assume that the CBR internal buses will not run to Riviera. It's a separate resort and will probably have it's own buses.

For some reason I read Karly as talking about CBR guests trying to get on at Riviera with ECVs. Indeed the topic was Riviera guests! Oops.

 

[Weedy]

They will still be able to load wheelchairs and ECV’s at Riviera.
I posted this video earlier. This is from a now closed Gondola system. Still build by Doppelmyer
They possibly didn’t add the extra loop at Riviera because they didn’t feel there would be that many ECV’s and the station can handle “some” traffic without the additional loop

 

[Spaceguy55]

Good video that shows how it could work.
The difference for the Skyliner will be the CM's..they will be able to assist those using a ecv for the first time or so to keep them from driving straight into the back of the gondola...

 

[joelkfla]

Skyway

Skyliner

 

[OSUZorba]

Because at the terminal stations there is a second unload/load loop where the gondolas come to a complete stop to allow for ECVs and wheelchairs to get on/off easier - whereas the Riviera doesn't have the second loop so unclear how exactly it will work at that station. Doesn't mean it won't and/won't be any more difficult we are just trying to figure out the "how" for that specific station as it is different than the others

My money on still on that they will be able to stop a cabin in the station, but they appear so stacked up in there right now I am not sure if that will really be possible. I think you'd need the equivalent of 3 empty gondola spots to stop and either load/unload one. It'll be interesting to see what they end up with.

ETA: The far side that we couldn't see in the video might be more able to stop cabins on it and they could only load/unload ECVs on that side. That would obviously be less than ideal, though as it would require you to pass the station in one direction and loop back to it.

 

[KYMickey]

They will still be able to load wheelchairs and ECV’s at Riviera.
I posted this video earlier. This is from a now closed Gondola system. Still build by Doppelmyer
They possibly didn’t add the extra loop at Riviera because they didn’t feel there would be that many ECV’s and the station can handle “some” traffic without the additional loop

It's interesting that the cabins in this video have to different configurations. Some have the benches against the outside walls with a large space in the middle for ECV's, wheelchairs etc. The other ones have the benches back to back in the middle of the cabin. The 2nd configuration obviously gives the riders a better chance to view the surrounding but greatly reduces the ability to load any wheeled vehicle.

 

[Spartan86]

My money on still on that they will be able to stop a cabin in the station, but they appear so stacked up in there right now I am not sure if that will really be possible. I think you'd need the equivalent of 3 empty gondola spots to stop and either load/unload one. It'll be interesting to see what they end up with.

I agree with your assumptions. I asked the guys over on liftblog about two things:

1) is my assumption/understanding correct that the conveyors within a station can move individual cabins at varying speeds i.e. one faster or slower than the other?
2) Can the system, while operating accept a non-standard cabin spacing on the cable - a larger than normal gap?

They basically said yes to both. I’m thinking the Riviera line, with conveyor systems at 4 places on the line can “build a hole” for a cabin at Riviera to spend a little more time than normal in the station. I don’t know it means a full stop for any extended period, but if you assume as has been suggested (I think rightly) that an ECV will be backed in if loaded at either end in the stationary load areas, then a very short stop, or no stop should be necessary for “normal” forward unloading at Riviera. Conversely, if we consider a short stop or an extra slow pass through the load zone at Riviera, an ECV should be able to handle a forward load there followed by a stationary reverse unload at either end point.

I’m thinking the sophistication of cabin dispatch, spacing and load timing is pretty advanced and handled with minimal human input other than to indicate a need for a “slow” load/unload or to indicate a stationary cabin is ready to dispatch etc. That and CM supervision and assistance I believe will yield very few full stop events. Time will tell.

 

[OSUZorba]

I agree with your assumptions. I asked the guys over on liftblog about two things:

1) is my assumption/understanding correct that the conveyors within a station can move individual cabins at varying speeds i.e. one faster or slower than the other?
2) Can the system, while operating accept a non-standard cabin spacing on the cable - a larger than normal gap?

They basically said yes to both. I’m thinking the Riviera line, with conveyor systems at 4 places on the line can “build a hole” for a cabin at Riviera to spend a little more time than normal in the station. I don’t know it means a full stop for any extended period, but if you assume as has been suggested (I think rightly) that an ECV will be backed in if loaded at either end in the stationary load areas, then a very short stop, or no stop should be necessary for “normal” forward unloading at Riviera. Conversely, if we consider a short stop or an extra slow pass through the load zone at Riviera, an ECV should be able to handle a forward load there followed by a stationary reverse unload at either end point.

I’m thinking the sophistication of cabin dispatch, spacing and load timing is pretty advanced and handled with minimal human input other than to indicate a need for a “slow” load/unload or to indicate a stationary cabin is ready to dispatch etc. That and CM supervision and assistance I believe will yield very few full stop events. Time will tell.

Yeah, this is what I had in mind too. I hadn't thought about the loading direction, but that makes a lot of sense.

Another thing is they probably wouldn't unload and load the same gondola with a ECV on the same pass through the station, unlike the terminals. So you really only have to be stopped long enough to pull straight in or straight out once.

 

[scrappinginontario]

Yeah, this is what I had in mind too. I hadn't thought about the loading direction, but that makes a lot of sense.

Another thing is they probably wouldn't unload and load the same gondola with a ECV on the same pass through the station, unlike the terminals. So you really only have to be stopped long enough to pull straight in or straight out once.

I guess this will depend on if specific gondolas are designated to pull into the ECV portion of the station at the other end. If all gondolas have the option of being pulled in then yes, any one could be used for ECVs but if certain ones are designated to always pull into the secondary portion of the line then I could see them using these ones to load and unload at Riviera. I really don't know enough about the system to say how the ECV secondary lines will work and if all gondolas have the option of being used on that line. Interested to see how it works though as my parents use ECVs when we go to Disney.

 

[jhoannam]

Any real updates?

 

[scrappinginontario]

Any real updates?

Meaning anything new officially from Disney?

No, still scheduled for Fall 2019.

 

[jhoannam]

Meaning anything new officially from Disney?

No, still scheduled for Fall 2019.

Boooo... are any of the stations done? It looked like the Pop/AoA station was complete, well from what I've seen in pictures.

 

[rteetz]

Boooo... are any of the stations done? It looked like the Pop/AoA station was complete, well from what I've seen in pictures.

Nothing is complete done but getting closer.

 

[NotUrsula]

They will still be able to load wheelchairs and ECV’s at Riviera.
I posted this video earlier. This is from a now closed Gondola system. Still build by Doppelmyer
They possibly didn’t add the extra loop at Riviera because they didn’t feel there would be that many ECV’s and the station can handle “some” traffic without the additional loop

I think it's a wee bit telling that although we see several wheeled vehicles rolling onto cars in that clip, you only see one unloading. (And unless they artificially speeded up the motion on that ECV unload, I'm sure that was an owner-operated ECV. That lady pushed off that car really quickly, with her friend holding the top of the seat, probably to pull up in case the sudden weight shift caused the car to swing outward a bit. I don't think that the avg. rental ECV has that much power available for a quick reverse punch. Most of those governors limit reverse speed to "snail's pace".)

I think that y'all have guessed correctly regarding Riviera; that it will handle ECV loading/unloading in forward motion only. It's the simplest solution to the problem, therefore it's the most likely.

I believe that it is only logical to allow operators to manually shunt cars into the 2d loop at those stations that have one, restricting that loop only to cars that auto-load into it doesn't make sense from an emergency management POV -- if they can manually shunt onto that loop, then they can use that loop to quickly put a car into a place where CM's can deal with any odd situations that arise.

 

[DanBoris]

I think it's a wee bit telling that although we see several wheeled vehicles rolling onto cars in that clip, you only see one unloading. (And unless they artificially speeded up the motion on that ECV unload, I'm sure that was an owner-operated ECV. That lady pushed off that car really quickly, with her friend holding the top of the seat, probably to pull up in case the sudden weight shift caused the car to swing outward a bit. I don't think that the avg. rental ECV has that much power available for a quick reverse punch. Most of those governors limit reverse speed to "snail's pace".)

I think that y'all have guessed correctly regarding Riviera; that it will handle ECV loading/unloading in forward motion only. It's the simplest solution to the problem, therefore it's the most likely.

I believe that it is only logical to allow operators to manually shunt cars into the 2d loop at those stations that have one, restricting that loop only to cars that auto-load into it doesn't make sense from an emergency management POV -- if they can manually shunt onto that loop, then they can use that loop to quickly put a car into a place where CM's can deal with any odd situations that arise.

It is believed the "shunting" will be automatic. The loops have spots for three cars, on loading/unloading, one waiting to back on the line and a third for a car to exit the line. For one to leave the loop, one has to enter it to create an opening for the one that leaves. Due to the timing, you can't have two cars in a row leave the line so there will have to be a way to control which ones get loaded with disabled guests and which ones won't.

 

[OSUZorba]

I guess this will depend on if specific gondolas are designated to pull into the ECV portion of the station at the other end. If all gondolas have the option of being pulled in then yes, any one could be used for ECVs but if certain ones are designated to always pull into the secondary portion of the line then I could see them using these ones to load and unload at Riviera. I really don't know enough about the system to say how the ECV secondary lines will work and if all gondolas have the option of being used on that line. Interested to see how it works though as my parents use ECVs when we go to Disney.

I think any of them can pull into the second loop, but they might be on a set interval, i.e. every fifth one goes in. What I mean though is if they unload an ECV at Riveria they night send it empty and then grab the next empty ECV designated cabin to load into.

 

[ksromack]

I don’t follow this thread so this is probably totally out of context. But I’m sitting here at Banana Cabana watching the Skyliners buzzing by across the water.

It’s really something. I’m excited. Take those wraps off and let’s go!

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We really enjoyed Banana Cabana last week....watched one of the Blues playoff games from there! I was really entranced with the gondolas and my family had to tell me to stop taking pictures and videos of them.