Disney World to change ride access program for disabled

[fajina]

Exactly. This revised program is equal access, not better access.

This is not true for those who have real physical disabilities in which the GAC program was originally intended. A person who is confined to a wheelchair will now have to wait the allotted DAS FastPass time and then have to wait for the wheelchair accessible ride vehicle so they will in essence have to wait longer.

A perfect example is the Kilimanjaro Safari ride. We made the mistake of not using the GAC and instead went through the standard queue (it was only a 15 minute wait) but after waiting in line, we then were pulled out to go to the disability line which took forever due to very few wheelchair accessible vehicles. BTW, not one of the wheelchair bound "disabled" rode in their wheelchair like our child did but was able to transfer flawlessly. You could hear a lot of them complaining how long it took and how they should have gone through the regular queue.

 

[SteveMouse]

why would they have to go from kiosk to kiosk? Why can't they make their FP+ on-line before they go??? then, they know right when they need to get to the park, exactly how much time between rides they have to kill, and can really plan much better than before this system. There are always rides you can get on in between fastpass times... People Mover, Carousel of Progress, Small World, etc. Plan a meal (make a reservation or just know where you're going for food by looking at menu's beforehand). Plan to take child/adult into a certain store for a special souvenir while you're waiting. I'm really not getting the downside.

For folks who cannot transfer out of mobility equipment, the choices are much more limited, in terms of time. What may be a 20 minute wait for IASM for walk-ons can be 45 minutes for wheel-ons, due to the limited number of boats. People mover isn't accessible at all. It will be interesting to see how Disney addresses the physical components of equal access, in terms of equal wait times to actually get on the ride. (I don't expect them to modify the People Mover or Peter Pan until they are overhauled, as much as I think they should.

 

[Twende]

I am very nervous about these changes.

There are several in our normal traveling group who have hidden disabilities that are not related to waiting in a line. Since the death of my mother, that is no longer a problem. She could not wait in lines around others, she could wait but her behavior was so erratic that she could pose a danger to others. She was almost 95 and had vascular dementia. Disney allowed us to wait in other places where it was easier for her. And yes she rode everything except RnR and she wanted to do that but we did not allow her to do it. It was "broken down" every time she wanted to ride it. LOL!

But that was then and this is now. We have two in our group who struggle with stairs. Getting some kind of return time will not help this. We have two people with very different vision problems. One cannot see in dark areas, hence places like HM normal entrance are a real problem and danger for them. The other has poor vision in one eye and only a tiny amount of periferal vision in the other eye. This makes enjoying any 3 D movie a real challenge. There are certain places where they can sit so they can shift their head back and forth enough to get some of the 3 D effects. Again coming back at a later time wil not help that.

We have another member who uses reflective captioning devices and is somewhat helped by ALS. Coming back again is no help.

We have a trip coming up in November and I pray that there is a way for everyone to enjoy the attractions to their fullest abilities!

 

[PatMcDuck]

NEVER have we expected "front of the line" access .. nor have we received it.

It irks me that the first line in the article reads, "People with disabilities will no longer go straight to the front of the line". The only ones that SHOULD be going to the front of the lines are children on Make a Wish trips. Period.

If the CMs had universally followed this rule, there wouldn't have been a problem in the first place.

They could not really follow this "rule" because there was not space to queue all the handicapped guests in their groups at the exit, or a place to have them wait at the FP entrance. So they usually just got us on the ride fairly quickly, exception being TS Mainia, Space at DL, Spaceship Earth, etc.

This will work, combined with FP and FP+ pretty well, I think.

 

[StitchesGr8Fan]

Disney does more for people with mental and physical handicaps than just about any other place in the world, and it still isn't good enough for some people. And yes, we have used a GAC for my mentally/physically disabled brother so I'm not someone with no experience shooting my mouth off.

 

[Gracie09]

This is not true for those who have real physical disabilities in which the GAC program was originally intended. A person who is confined to a wheelchair will now have to wait the allotted DAS FastPass time and then have to wait for the wheelchair accessible ride vehicle so they will in essence have to wait longer.

A perfect example is the Kilimanjaro Safari ride. We made the mistake of not using the GAC and instead went through the standard queue (it was only a 15 minute wait) but after waiting in line, we then were pulled out to go to the disability line which took forever due to very few wheelchair accessible vehicles. BTW, not one of the wheelchair bound "disabled" rode in their wheelchair like our child did but was able to transfer flawlessly. You could hear a lot of them complaining how long it took and how they should have gone through the regular queue.

If the only issue is a wheelchair then why would you get a dak? With the exception of a few fantasyland rides the cues are wheelchair accessible so the only additional wait is for the appropriate vehicle. Disney does have to limit the number of wheelchair bound people on rides for safety purposes. If they had to evcauate the ride they need to do so quickly and safely and can only safely handle so many wheelchair bound people at once.

 

[FlightlessDuck]

This is being discussed on the News & Rumors board, mostly because it previously hadn't been officially announced by DisneyParks.

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=3174404

 

[minnie mum]

This is not true for those who have real physical disabilities in which the GAC program was originally intended. A person who is confined to a wheelchair will now have to wait the allotted DAS FastPass time and then have to wait for the wheelchair accessible ride vehicle so they will in essence have to wait longer.

A perfect example is the Kilimanjaro Safari ride. We made the mistake of not using the GAC and instead went through the standard queue (it was only a 15 minute wait) but after waiting in line, we then were pulled out to go to the disability line which took forever due to very few wheelchair accessible vehicles. BTW, not one of the wheelchair bound "disabled" rode in their wheelchair like our child did but was able to transfer flawlessly. You could hear a lot of them complaining how long it took and how they should have gone through the regular queue.

I would like to comment on a few of the statements made here.

1. First, the GAC was never originally intended ONLY for those with physical disabilities. Or at least not only those physical disabilities that rquired the use of a wheelchair.

2. The DAS is not a fastpass and is not based on the fastpass return time. It is based on the current standby time MINUS 15 MIN. However, when you return you will use the fastpass line.

3. Regarding KS: first of all, you could have used the option of the FP. Secondly, with the DAS you would have been looking at an immediate entry, since it was 15 min MINUS 15 min= 0 wait time. Thirdly, the place in the standby line where wheelchair users are pulled to the side is well in advance of the switchback area of the standby queue, so I doubt very much if you had been waiting very long at all before you were pulled aside.

Fourth: This may surprise you to learn, but not everyone who uses a wheelchair is incapable of walking. There are a great many people who can put one foot in front of the other for a few steps, and can board a ride. But they are incapable of sustained walking for any distance or length of time. Examples? How about those with chronic respiratory or cardiac conditions? Severe arthritis. MS. I could go on, but I think you get the idea. In the future try not to be so presumptuous when you see someone stand up from a wheelchair or ECV.

And finally, yes, I am aware that there are occasionally waits that exceed our expectations on some of the rides. However I have never found that these longer than anticipated waits are consistent on every ride that has wheelchair accessible vehicles. After many years of using them, I have only had one time where I waited longer than one ride cycle at KS. And only a couple of times at IASW.

I have used this new system and it works very, very well. It has been in place in Tokyo Disney for quite some time and I never found that I was placed at a disadvantage compared to able guests. And that is just what (and only what) this new system is designed to do.

 

[minnie mum]

I am very nervous about these changes.

But that was then and this is now. We have two in our group who struggle with stairs. Getting some kind of return time will not help this. We have two people with very different vision problems. One cannot see in dark areas, hence places like HM normal entrance are a real problem and danger for them. The other has poor vision in one eye and only a tiny amount of periferal vision in the other eye. This makes enjoying any 3 D movie a real challenge. There are certain places where they can sit so they can shift their head back and forth enough to get some of the 3 D effects. Again coming back at a later time wil not help that.

We have another member who uses reflective captioning devices and is somewhat helped by ALS. Coming back again is no help.

We have a trip coming up in November and I pray that there is a way for everyone to enjoy the attractions to their fullest abilities!

I would encourage you to have a look at the disABILITIES board. There are stickies there that can help, or you could ask a few questions about your concerns. I believe that there are no changes planned for those special accommodations that you are referring to.

 

[mrzrich]

As I have said before, I really wish Disney had waited to roll this out AFTER they offer FP+ to everyone. We are staying at a resort which is not FP+ enabled yet.

If we had the FP + option, I would use that and would not have so much worry over how the new DAS is going to affect us.

 

[winboo213]

I see a couple of problems with the rumored new system:

More able-bodied fakers will see the kiosks, go get a das and abuse that system that they possibly knew nothing about.

There is no system of verifying disability.

FP may run out much sooner. Or the FP lanes will be packed and the people will be coming back (probably in larger groups), if you get behind them.... plan on waiting.

More gac/das people will be in standby lanes, making them longer, while waiting for their return time. There is no way to outlaw that.

More gac/das people will be having meltdowns in the standby lane (that ought to be pleasant) and just in general. Considering we had a raging debate here about bubbles. How do you feel about really really inappropriate behaviors in a confined space? How do you feel about spitting, hitting and screaming, inappropriate other behaviors? I am not condoning it, but I have seen it in parks. I think part of gac was to get the people with behaviors away from others quickly which was a win-win for everyone. I personally would rather someone go ahead of me in line than listen to screaming for 30 minutes, but that's just me. God help us if the das users all hop in line with their bubble guns!

 

[lanejudy]

A perfect example is the Kilimanjaro Safari ride. We made the mistake of not using the GAC and instead went through the standard queue (it was only a 15 minute wait) but after waiting in line, we then were pulled out to go to the disability line which took forever due to very few wheelchair accessible vehicles. BTW, not one of the wheelchair bound "disabled" rode in their wheelchair like our child did but was able to transfer flawlessly. You could hear a lot of them complaining how long it took and how they should have gone through the regular queue.

The problem with KS is that there isn't any place to park and ECV or wheelchair at the regular ride entrance. The only place those can be parked, without requiring the person to walk the full length of the queue, is at the pull-off for the accessible ride vehicle. Therefore, yes, everybody utilizing a mobility device that needs to be parked must use this ride entrance. It is entirely possible for a person to be able to walk limited distance such as transferring to a ride vehicle but not be able to walk the full length of the standby queue. The problem is parking.

 

[lanejudy]

I am very nervous about these changes.

There are several in our normal traveling group who have hidden disabilities that are not related to waiting in a line. Since the death of my mother, that is no longer a problem. She could not wait in lines around others, she could wait but her behavior was so erratic that she could pose a danger to others. She was almost 95 and had vascular dementia. Disney allowed us to wait in other places where it was easier for her. And yes she rode everything except RnR and she wanted to do that but we did not allow her to do it. It was "broken down" every time she wanted to ride it. LOL!

But that was then and this is now. We have two in our group who struggle with stairs. Getting some kind of return time will not help this. We have two people with very different vision problems. One cannot see in dark areas, hence places like HM normal entrance are a real problem and danger for them. The other has poor vision in one eye and only a tiny amount of periferal vision in the other eye. This makes enjoying any 3 D movie a real challenge. There are certain places where they can sit so they can shift their head back and forth enough to get some of the 3 D effects. Again coming back at a later time wil not help that.

We have another member who uses reflective captioning devices and is somewhat helped by ALS. Coming back again is no help.

We have a trip coming up in November and I pray that there is a way for everyone to enjoy the attractions to their fullest abilities!

Most of these accommodations are not going away and there is no need for a separate entrance line to accommodate them. The exception may be for the person who needs to avoid stairs - a cane or other "visible" mobility device may be required. There is good detailed information available on the DisAbilities FAQ thread which is updated as details become available.

 

[winboo213]

In the last post, last paragraph I did not mean getting gac users "away from others" in a bad way. I meant happy and not melting down and not in a confined space with other park goers who may not want to witness said meltdown. Sorry, that sounded harsh.

 

[winboo213]

KS is a pain, there is stroller parking about half way through. I tried to park WC there and CM said we could not, though we wanted to walk the rest of the line. I did it anyway. She gave me attitude. You should be allowed to walk the rest of the line, if able. The disabled vehicle should be saved for those who cannot transfer imo.

 

[fajina]

If the only issue is a wheelchair then why would you get a dak?

Our child has both mental and physical disabilities and can't tolerate the heat so waiting in line would never work. We are ok with the new system though because it will allow us to get our child to a cool place while we wait for the ride. Even though we will have to wait longer than you to experience a ride, it will be worth it to stop the abuse that infuriated us and made our vacation less enjoyable.

 

[Hyonlyf]

If the only issue is a wheelchair then why would you get a dak? With the exception of a few fantasyland rides the cues are wheelchair accessible so the only additional wait is for the appropriate vehicle. Disney does have to limit the number of wheelchair bound people on rides for safety purposes. If they had to evcauate the ride they need to do so quickly and safely and can only safely handle so many wheelchair bound people at once.

This. Most rides have queues that are wheelchair accessible, no need for a DAS return time.

 

[sharadoc]

A couple of issues that I'm expecting to have:

1. How do we explain the change to someone who won't understand it? For the past 4 years, DS could choose where he wanted to go and be able to ride. Now we we will plan it for him.

2. The "inappropriate" touching thing. DS will just grab something that someone has if he wants to see it. When he gets frustrated he stims his fingers in front of his face and rocks side to side really hard and fast. We have to hold his hands and make sure he's looking at us the whole time. How much more will this happen because of the restriction, which is different from every other time we've gone to Disney World.

3. Meltdown due to the change in touring style. We have had these a couple of times. He will yell no, refuse to move and will eventually sit down in the middle of the walkway. The looks from other people are the best part of this - like I really need to deal with that! If/when that happens on our next trip, I will find a castmember so they can possibly pass along the info to a supervisor and let them know how the change is affecting some people.

We are absolutely going to give it a chance, figure it out and hope for the best. But I am SO scared that this next trip will be our last trip.

To the discussion of "equal" accommodation, I have to say that the one thing that Disney did for Autism families is "autism accommodation". It's not giving us the equal of everyone else, it's giving us what we need to be able to go to Disney World. Yes, that's sometimes "more" than what other people get. But I always felt that Disney recognized that the rest of the time, we get a whole lot "less" than what other people get and somehow, just for that week or two, we could be happy, have fun together and hopefully lessen stress.

I guess this also means that when DS waits to see Chip and Dale, and they acknowledge his autism and his total love of the them, that they will no longer be allowed to spend extra time with him, give him all the hugs he wants, let him touch their heads, take a ton of pictures.

So go ahead, tell me that I should never expect special treatment, that if my son can't handle it then stay home, that I should be able to use fastpass and plan everything out 6 months in advance. Well, I can't. I'm so sad and frustrated by this change. We love Disney so much we will absolutely make it work to the best of our ability. But it scares the stuffing out of me!

 

[aaarcher86]

KS is a pain, there is stroller parking about half way through. I tried to park WC there and CM said we could not, though we wanted to walk the rest of the line. I did it anyway. She gave me attitude. If it happens this time it will be on video for her boss!

Video of what? You clearly ignoring a CM and them getting frustrated by it? Alright....

If that's not where WCs go then it's not where WCs go

 

[minnie mum]

I see a couple of problems with the rumored new system:

More able-bodied fakers will see the kiosks, go get a das and abuse that system that they possibly knew nothing about.
My understanding is that you cannot get the das card at the kiosks. You have to pick them up at Guest Relations in the park. You go to the kiosk to be assigned your return time for a particular ride. If a 'faker' goes to all the trouble of going all the way back to GR to get the card, returns to the kiosk to get a return time for a ride and then sees that they aren't getting any advantage, then I'm pretty sure they won't bother using it. Therefore there is no impact on the lines.

There is no system of verifying disability.
There never has been such a system. That is against the law.

FP may run out much sooner. Or the FP lanes will be packed and the people will be coming back (probably in larger groups), if you get behind them.... plan on waiting.
Why would the FPs run out sooner? The use of a GAC/DAS is completely separate from FPs. People have always been able to use FPs whether they had a GAC or not. This will not change with DAS. So the number of people eligible to use FP is unchanged. The FP lanes are not going to be any more packed than they are now because of the DAS. In fact they could be less congested now if all the 'fakers' are no longer using the special pass. And they should not be returning in larger groups, since the number of people who can accompany a person with the pass is fixed.

More gac/das people will be in standby lanes, making them longer, while waiting for their return time. There is no way to outlaw that.
Again, if a significant percentage of current GAC users are 'fakers', then the percentage of guests using DAS should be much smaller. And since many GAC/DAS users state that they cannot stand in the standby lines for a significant length of time, you may not see this happening. However, since the old 'fakers' will now be doing it the 'hard way', THEY will be now in the standby lines, so the wait times may actually be longer because of that. OTOH, many more rides will now be available for FP+, so this may aid in further reducing standby wait times. Who knows?

More gac/das people will be having meltdowns in the standby lane (that ought to be pleasant) and just in general. Considering we had a raging debate here about bubbles. How do you feel about really really inappropriate behaviors in a confined space? How do you feel about spitting, hitting and screaming, inappropriate other behaviors? I am not condoning it, but I have seen it in parks. I think part of gac was to get the people with behaviors away from others quickly which was a win-win for everyone. I personally would rather someone go ahead of me in line than listen to screaming for 30 minutes, but that's just me. God help us if the das users all hop in line with their bubble guns!
I must say that this paragraph really doesn't deserve a comment

I thought you were joking when you made this post, but I see from your subsequent posts that you are not. I think you need to reread the details of this new system more carefully.