Fix Our Monorails

[fbarker]

Ok, I am taking a cue from Peter. After watching this weeks Dis Unplugged and Pete's verbal editorial (i.e. Rant!! ) I felt it might be a good idea for us all to document all of our Monorail problems here and maybe, just maybe, it will encourage Disney management to move forward on making significant improvements to the Monorail. The Monorail is so iconic, is so much Disney. Its one of the significant images of WDW and if it does not project a positive image of the parks then that Disney Feeling just starts to decline. It starts to become just another amusement park. So lets start talking about the things we see wrong with the Monorail ( urine smell, water marks on the back wall carpets, falling AC unit, falling parts, breakdowns etc...)

 

[Klayfish]

Sorry to be sarcastic, but one thread is not going to convince WDW management to spend millions upon millions of dollars on the monorail. It's just not.

I'm an unapologetic WDW apologist, I freely admit it. I also agree the monorail cars, which is one of my favorite things about WDW, are past their prime (being kind) and are ready for replacement. I don't think WDW is unaware of their age and issues. They'll get to them when they get to them. Creating a thread to complain about them isn't going to accomplish much...except a lot of complaining.

I will say that on the grand scheme of things, I haven't had any "serious" problems with them, rather annoyances. sometimes they're down, so we have to take the ferry. No big deal. New monorail cars won't completely fix the issues of a/c not being perfectly cold...remember the cars are very large, the doors open constantly, and they're filled with mass amounts of hot, sweaty people. Pretty hard to keep them ice cold on a hot summer day in those conditions. Kids pee, parents don't help that situation...not really a WDW thing...get new cars and within a few weeks I guarantee you'll get the same smell sometimes. Let's not over exaggerate the falling parts thing. It's not like parts and pieces are just falling off with every movement of the cars.

Like I said, as much as I love WDW, the monorail needs upgrading. Even I wouldn't argue that. Just don't see us convincing them to do anything. With the amount of time/resources they're spending to keep the existing ones going, I have zero question that they're keenly aware of the issues. I'd have to guess doing what they're doing now with them is long term not financially smart, and they know it. For all we know, new ones could be in the works, we just don't know about it.

 

[DaisyJ]

Ok, I am taking a cue from Peter. After watching this weeks Dis Unplugged and Pete's verbal editorial (i.e. Rant!! ) I felt it might be a good idea for us all to document all of our Monorail problems here and maybe, just maybe, it will encourage Disney management to move forward on making significant improvements to the Monorail. The Monorail is so iconic, is so much Disney. Its one of the significant images of WDW and if it does not project a positive image of the parks then that Disney Feeling just starts to decline. It starts to become just another amusement park. So lets start talking about the things we see wrong with the Monorail ( urine smell, water marks on the back wall carpets, falling AC unit, falling parts, breakdowns etc...)

Disney management is well aware of the multiple monorail problems. They choose, on a daily basis, not to address and fix the antiquated transportation. So I choose not to use them when I am there, as I don't feel they are safe.

 

[bettybooplove]

They make millions per day. Alloting a percentage of their yearly billions to improve a form of transportation for their guests sounds like a wise investment.

Some of their revenue should go towards upkeep. I mean why else are we being charged $5 for a Nestle ice cream bar?

 

[Klayfish]

Disney management is well aware of the multiple monorail problems. They choose, on a daily basis, not to address and fix the antiquated transportation. So I choose not to use them when I am there, as I don't feel they are safe.

Out of curiosity, why do you feel they are unsafe? When was the last accident/issue they had with them where someone got hurt or killed? Unless I'm wrong, the last issue like that was probably 10 years ago when the tragic accident happened that killed the driver of one of the monorails. But I can't recall the last time a WDW guest was hurt on the monorail because of an accident. Can't say the same for WDW buses.

 

[Hopefully]

I agree with @Klayfish Complaining here will not convince Disney to do anything. It is simply another annoying thread.

 

[JerseyJanice]

Out of curiosity, why do you feel they are unsafe? When was the last accident/issue they had with them where someone got hurt or killed? Unless I'm wrong, the last issue like that was probably 10 years ago when the tragic accident happened that killed the driver of one of the monorails. But I can't recall the last time a WDW guest was hurt on the monorail because of an accident. Can't say the same for WDW buses.

Obviously, I'm not Daisy J, but the recent incident when a piece fell off the monorail train was pretty scary.

 

[JerseyJanice]

I agree with @Klayfish Complaining here will not convince Disney to do anything. It is simply another annoying thread.

I don't know if it's an annoying thread, ITA that it's a pointless one. TPTB at Disney do not read this board for direction on how to run their business.

Maybe if guests stopped booking the monorail resorts on a large scale due to monorail operating conditions, it might prompt management to do something, but I don't see that happening. The monorail resorts are still the closest ones to the Magic Kingdom.

 

[Planogirl]

I can understand the frustration. The monorail was so nice and "cool" at one time. Nowadays we normally use the boats to get around.

 

[DaisyJ]

Out of curiosity, why do you feel they are unsafe? When was the last accident/issue they had with them where someone got hurt or killed? Unless I'm wrong, the last issue like that was probably 10 years ago when the tragic accident happened that killed the driver of one of the monorails. But I can't recall the last time a WDW guest was hurt on the monorail because of an accident. Can't say the same for WDW buses.

I don't feel they are unsafe because I fear I am going to get injured or killed on one...though having huge chunks of metal randomly breaking off is quite unsettling. It is more about me not being willing to take the gamble of getting stuck in one of the cars, which happens pretty much on a weekly basis.

 

[Hopefully]

I don't know if it's an annoying thread, ITA that it's a pointless one. TPTB at Disney do not read this board for direction on how to run their business.

Maybe if guests stopped booking the monorail resorts on a large scale due to monorail operating conditions, it might prompt management to do something, but I don't see that happening. The monorail resorts are still the closest ones to the Magic Kingdom.

I need your help and sorry in advance for being "Thick" " but what do ITA and TPTB mean?
I looked in the abbreviations thread and neither is there
TIA

 

[DaisyJ]

I need your help and sorry in advance for being "Thick" " but what do ITA and TPTB mean?
I looked in the abbreviations thread and neither is there
TIA

I totally agree (ITA) and the powers that be (TPTB). For those wondering about another of Hopefully's abbreviations, TIA means thanks in advance.

 

[dreiwhit]

They make millions per day. Alloting a percentage of their yearly billions to improve a form of transportation for their guests sounds like a wise investment.

Some of their revenue should go towards upkeep. I mean why else are we being charged $5 for a Nestle ice cream bar?

IMHO, Disney has fallen into the trap that a lot of large, publicly-traded companies with large physical plants fall into. They can either plow their profits back into the property, or they can keep their shareholders happy by keeping their stock prices up and dividends paid out. I suspect they're focusing on their stock price and investors. And, i'm not taking about the average Joe and Jane investors like us, i'm talking about the large institutional investors that hold large blocks of stock. They're the ones companies keep happy, otherwise they will dump their blocks of stock or fight for control of the company. I've seen this happen in other industries that I follow - the railroads being a prime example.

We went to MK for a total of 5 days on two seperate trips in 2016. Every time we went, the monorails were having problems. Two of the days, they weren't running outside of their maintenance window. And, on the other three days, they had problems with the trainsets that made them unusable.

Out of curiosity, why do you feel they are unsafe? When was the last accident/issue they had with them where someone got hurt or killed?

A large chunk of metal fell off the blue monorail within in the past week. Its a good thing that it didn't hit someone underneath it, but from what I read, it did land near a group. Parts falling off isn't a good indicator of safety.

 

[HopperFan]

Obviously, I'm not Daisy J, but the recent incident when a piece fell off the monorail train was pretty scary.

Yup. That man could have been killed had he been a few seconds closer. It's not just the riders who take chances but those guests who are walking in close proximity. It's not okay there are not catch guards in every area where guests are permitted, and honestly some of them are so small they won't catch a part that is propelled. Yes I get it, we could say that about all rides and their parts ... but the monorails are crossing over guest pathways.

I've gotten to where we don't ride them other than a random middle of day when I am guaranteed an empty car ... you have to plan to be stuck for extended amounts of time. While we can all say well there has only been one major incident a year ... there is no constant reporting of all the times it sat for an hour or more, with guests inside, or being towed/pushed (just not news worthy) ... just first hand reports and a few youtube videos.

One thing we taught our kids from the time they were very small, no matter where you go - movie, concert, train, plane, restaurant - ALWAYS know where all the exits are because "stuff" happens. They have had to use them and sadly it's even more necessary these days. On a monorail, you have one easy exit and you can't use it until a hook & ladder truck gets to you. That means if there is a major issue on a train, you will have to wait until they get to your car, a train evac can take hours after they even decide to do it.

So for me, yes I feel they are unsafe for many reasons, and I don't want to be trapped in them with other guests. All the other modes of transportation can not only be evacuated faster and safer AND we won't wait around hours while engineers discuss if they can get us to a station.

And while this may end up in a Community or Transportation board, no reason to call it pointless or annoying as that could account for about 90% of the threads on here. It's a discussion board ........

 

[JerseyJanice]

I need your help and sorry in advance for being "Thick" " but what do ITA and TPTB mean?
I looked in the abbreviations thread and neither is there
TIA

DaisyJ gave the correct answers.

@HopperFan Did you see the photo of the hunk of machinery that fell off the train?

A person could be killed getting hit by something that large. It wasn't a little screw or cog. I'm going to have one eye looking up at the monorail as we walk from the buses into the Magic Kingdom next trip.

 

[HopperFan]

DaisyJ gave the correct answers.

@HopperFan Did you see the photo of the hunk of machinery that fell off the train?

A person could be killed getting hit by something that large. It wasn't a little screw or cog. I'm going to have one eye looking up at the monorail as we walk from the buses into the Magic Kingdom next trip.

It was huge, and I get that it was explained the broken end was fiberglass, the rest looked metal ... no matter a penny can kill you when dropped from high enough.

Key here is there was nothing in place to prevent flying debris from hurting someone. Not cool. The monorails are old, older than the last set they retired. They seem to be in maintenance more than they are running. Every time the last few years they put us in hold my mind is just racing about how I want to get out of it. It's not I'm totally paranoid, my preferred method of transportation in NYC is the subway because I know I can always get myself out and evac .... I'm from ATL and have no issues with MARTA trains because they are well maintained and I know an evac would happen fast with many ladders working at once. Disney doesn't want the publicity so they will keep you on that train and exhaust all avenues to get that train to the station .... even if I am stuck for hours.

 

[Klayfish]

Yes, I agree that it could have been a disaster if it had hit someone...but it didn't...thankfully. I don't follow this stuff all that close, but I don't think this is a common occurrence whatsoever. If it were, we'd hear about it a lot more. Anyone know when the last time it actually did happen (being sincere, I really don't know)? Again, not saying it wasn't bad, it wasn't potentially dangerous, etc...it was all of those things. But from my understanding it was a completely random, freak accident that almost never happens. If pieces were falling off every week or every month, I'd probably feel different.

Wasn't there just a bus crash not all that long ago, full of students? Why no fear that WDW buses are unsafe? How many of them crash every year? I'd bet it's a lot more than monorail pieces falling off or someone getting hurt on them. Being someone who stays offsite and drives in, we see/deal with lots of buses daily. On one hand, I feel sorry for those bus drivers, as they have to deal with tourists who cut lanes, slam on the brakes, etc... But at the same time, I've seen some very, very questionable driving by the buses...repeatedly.

Me personally, I'd feel far, far safer on the monorail than I would a bus. I could be wrong, like I said, I don't monitor this stuff super close. Monorails are ancient, but just IMO, far from unsafe. One piece falling from one for the first time in who knows how long, doesn't make them "unsafe" to me.

 

[Planogirl]

It's enough for me that they get stuck so often. The thought of being trapped in that box for an hour just creeps me out.

 

[StraightToDumbo]

I think a lot of the monorail stuff is overblown.

 

[StraightToDumbo]

Right?!!! I've been on WDW busses that have crashed into things. I'll take the monorail any day. I think the concerns are a bit over the top. I'm pretty sure they are inspected regularly, and if there were anything inherently unsafe, they wouldn't be allowed to run them for insurance reason