Frustrated Guests

[Ken Christensen]

Getting a lot of frustrated guests lately regarding extended wait times.
It's assumed by most guests that a Disney Bus Driver drives a specific and the same route over and over again. This is not the case.
We are given a new dispatch each time we approach our hub (my hub is Epcot).
We drop guests off at the load zone that is designated for our next dispatch, in case there are guests returning to their resort.
If you have experienced an extended wait time for a bus, PLEASE don't take out your frustrations on the driver. It's not their fault, as the cause for an extended wait can be the result of many factors.
Are the dispatchers/coordinators slow to react to situations? Sometimes. Can the hubs do a better job of making sure there is enough audience control people working in the load zone lots? Probably.
Can the drivers run their routes faster with more efficiency? In some cases, maybe, but at some point you are sacrificing safety, and it's not worth rushing.
Disney doesn't guarantee a specific wait time for a bus. Their recording states "About every 20 minutes".
I had a lady complain to me yesterday because she had to wait 30 minutes for a bus .
She wanted to know if someone could be texted when buses aren't showing up at their expected times. I told her that I'm not allowed to text and drive. Then she wanted to know if guests could text someone. I informed her that was not possible. At no time was I rude to her. I tried to answer her questions, but she was at a point where nothing would satisfy her. As a driver, other than to smile and advise her as to what can be done, we have no authority beyond that to offer a solution other than to direct her as to where to voice her concerns.
I proceeded to load the remainder of the guests so they didn't have to wait any longer.
The bus drivers are your friend, not your adversary. They want to help you to enjoy your experience, not make it something you can't enjoy.
If you experience an issue with extended wait times, go to the concierge at your resort, or guest services at the park you are visiting. They can address any issues you may have.

 

[Michblue]

Thank you for what you do! Nice PSA.

 

[OKW Lover]

Thanks for posting this Ken. I saw that all posted on one of my FB groups and its really good info that I wish people would understand.

 

[bumbershoot]

She wanted to know if someone could be texted when buses aren't showing up at their expected times. I told her that I'm not allowed to text and drive. Then she wanted to know if guests could text someone. I informed her that was not possible.

They have in the past had numbers posted that you could call. DH and my aunt used that number back in December 2010 when there were NO buses leaving DHS for OKW. The same SSR bus driver (he *was* on a route) went by them 2 times. On the third time he let them on and dropped them at OKW (along with the others that had gotten in line behind them) after he did the entire SSR route. To give an idea of how long they waited and how long it took, the people in line behind them were leaving DHS in a massively and entirely appropriate amount of time to get to an ADR at Olivia's at OKW. By the time they got to OKW they had not only missed their ADR, but the restaurant was totally and completely CLOSED. (obviously the number DH found at the bus stop wasn't effective LOL)

(I still don't know why none of us who had decided to take the cars back to OKW (my aunt decided she didn't want to walk with her cane back to the car so she took the bus, and DH went with her to keep her company) went out to DHS to get them, but we didn't...)

 

[ncc1701]

Thank you for the post. We never blame the drivers but do wish Disney had a number to text. For the most part our bus service has been very good to good. But there is always one or two times a trip were we have waited 30 to 40plus minutes (not talking about openning or closing with a crowd & needing to wait for bus #3 but mid-day with 20 people max)

 

[MillauFr]

Disney really needs an app that shows the real time position of all the buses and when they plan on arriving at each stop. If Lyft can figure out how to do this I don't understand why Disney can't just hire Lyft to do the same????

 

[Shanti]

Getting a lot of frustrated guests lately regarding extended wait times.
It's assumed by most guests that a Disney Bus Driver drives a specific and the same route over and over again. This is not the case.
We are given a new dispatch each time we approach our hub (my hub is Epcot).
We drop guests off at the load zone that is designated for our next dispatch, in case there are guests returning to their resort.
If you have experienced an extended wait time for a bus, PLEASE don't take out your frustrations on the driver. It's not their fault, as the cause for an extended wait can be the result of many factors.
Are the dispatchers/coordinators slow to react to situations? Sometimes. Can the hubs do a better job of making sure there is enough audience control people working in the load zone lots? Probably.
Can the drivers run their routes faster with more efficiency? In some cases, maybe, but at some point you are sacrificing safety, and it's not worth rushing.
Disney doesn't guarantee a specific wait time for a bus. Their recording states "About every 20 minutes".
I had a lady complain to me yesterday because she had to wait 30 minutes for a bus .
She wanted to know if someone could be texted when buses aren't showing up at their expected times. I told her that I'm not allowed to text and drive. Then she wanted to know if guests could text someone. I informed her that was not possible. At no time was I rude to her. I tried to answer her questions, but she was at a point where nothing would satisfy her. As a driver, other than to smile and advise her as to what can be done, we have no authority beyond that to offer a solution other than to direct her as to where to voice her concerns.
I proceeded to load the remainder of the guests so they didn't have to wait any longer.
The bus drivers are your friend, not your adversary. They want to help you to enjoy your experience, not make it something you can't enjoy.
If you experience an issue with extended wait times, go to the concierge at your resort, or guest services at the park you are visiting. They can address any issues you may have.

My son and I love the Disney bus drivers. Thanks for all that you do!

 

[wilkeliza]

I never blame the drivers but I do blame dispatch. Seems rediculous when you wait for 1 park (say MK) and you watch 3 buses for every other location come before you even get 1. I know the dispatching system changed a while ago and it seems to have created more issues then it fixed.

 

[DVC-Don]

I once had a lady in line behind me complain that she waited over 45 minutes to the bus driver. I interrupted her and told the driver I was there before her and I only waited 20 minutes. She humphed and during the ride gave me the stink eye. What a loser she was.

 

[huskies90]

Disney really needs an app that shows the real time position of all the buses and when they plan on arriving at each stop. If Lyft can figure out how to do this I don't understand why Disney can't just hire Lyft to do the same????

150% agree with this. I live/work in the Hartford, CT area and they added a smartphone GPS app to the bus system so you can track where your bus is and when it will arrive. If the city of Hartford can do it, why can't Disney? They have had tracking monitors on some stops for over 2 years now so they have some kind of GPS system already. Should not be hard to add it to an app.

 

[goofy4tink]

Thanks Ken! Glad you reposted this here. There always seems to be a ton of angst about bus wait times. There are always those guests that feel the bus system should run like a private car service..sadly, they don't understand that it's pretty much public transit. Disney does a really good job of moving incredible numbers of people around every day...yet, we still have those that complain that they had to wait for 30 mins!!!

 

[tobikaye]

I think people forget that sometimes there are transportation CMs at the bus depots at the parks and they can ask them for help. If I am at a park and the wait hits 25+ minutes, I usually give it about 5 more minutes before I go and politely ask a transportation CM when we should expect a bus. If there are no transportation CMs helping out, I have asked a driver doing a pickup at a nearby stop if they could let dispatch know there were guests that had been waiting for a while.

I have really only had to do this about 3 times in the last 10 years, so not too bad. Although, two of these were at resorts, so that is now taken care of by the monitors located there.

FYI: I usually use the stopwatch on my phone because I am bad at knowing a five minute wait from a 20 minute wait. This way, I know for sure how long I have waited.

 

[JohnneeO]

150% agree with this. I live/work in the Hartford, CT area and they added a smartphone GPS app to the bus system so you can track where your bus is and when it will arrive. If the city of Hartford can do it, why can't Disney? They have had tracking monitors on some stops for over 2 years now so they have some kind of GPS system already. Should not be hard to add it to an app.

NJ Transit does this too, its called "My Bus Now". Whenever I arrive at stop, I can punch a code into the app or website that corresponds with the bus stop I am waiting at. On screen, I will see a list of all buses due to arrive in the next 30 minutes or so, with the route #'s and arrival times. Given WDW's heavy reliance on bus transportation, it seems like a no-brainer to invest in this.

 

[wilkeliza]

I think people forget that sometimes there are transportation CMs at the bus depots at the parks and they can ask them for help. If I am at a park and the wait hits 25+ minutes, I usually give it about 5 more minutes before I go and politely ask a transportation CM when we should expect a bus. If there are no transportation CMs helping out, I have asked a driver doing a pickup at a nearby stop if they could let dispatch know there were guests that had been waiting for a while.

I have really only had to do this about 3 times in the last 10 years, so not too bad. Although, two of these were at resorts, so that is now taken care of by the monitors located there.

FYI: I usually use the stopwatch on my phone because I am bad at knowing a five minute wait from a 20 minute wait. This way, I know for sure how long I have waited.

You can also tweet @WDWToday if no one is around. If they see your tweet and respond they are able to get ahold of dispatch as well.

 

[joelkfla]

150% agree with this. I live/work in the Hartford, CT area and they added a smartphone GPS app to the bus system so you can track where your bus is and when it will arrive. If the city of Hartford can do it, why can't Disney? They have had tracking monitors on some stops for over 2 years now so they have some kind of GPS system already. Should not be hard to add it to an app.

Yes, and you'll see frequent complaints here that the times on the boards are unreliable.

The difference between your home city and Disney Transport is that your city's buses run on a schedule with fairly predictable run times and typically long runs; Disney buses do not. Disney buses are dispatched as they approach their hub or as a driver comes online. The system has target times for dispatch, but buses may be dispatched earlier or later depending on availability. So at the hub, the departure time is completely dependent on when and how many buses arrive or come online. Even at the resorts, anything beyond the travel time from the hub to the resort is just a target time.

The other big factor of variability is dwell time at stops. The main impactor here is whether or not any wheelchairs are involved, but also just the number of guests being loaded and unloaded can significantly affect it. At some resorts, buses may have to wait for buses in front of them to unload and load before they can get into the stop. At multi-stop resorts, it's compounded. And if a bus hasn't left the hub yet, the unload and load time at the hub also factors in.

 

[tobikaye]

You can also tweet @WDWToday if no one is around. If they see your tweet and respond they are able to get ahold of dispatch as well.

I will remember that. I used to have a number for dispatch many years ago that someone gave me, but I have since lost it.

 

[StageTek]

This is why I could NEVER have a job where I have to interact with the public. Stagehand for me and it's bad enough that I have to deal with actors....

I hate it when I see people blaming the bus driver. I always make it a point to thank you folks as I get off the bus. I can't imagine how difficult the dispatch job is but I can imagine how easy it is to make a mistake that then backs things up. I gotta say that 98% of my experiences with the busses have been terrific. And the 2% has always been because of "guests". On all my trips I can only remember one time where I thought the driver was out of line.

Thanks for this thread!

 

[supersnoop]

Disney really needs an app that shows the real time position of all the buses and when they plan on arriving at each stop. If Lyft can figure out how to do this I don't understand why Disney can't just hire Lyft to do the same????

150% agree with this. I live/work in the Hartford, CT area and they added a smartphone GPS app to the bus system so you can track where your bus is and when it will arrive. If the city of Hartford can do it, why can't Disney? They have had tracking monitors on some stops for over 2 years now so they have some kind of GPS system already. Should not be hard to add it to an app.

NJ Transit does this too, its called "My Bus Now". Whenever I arrive at stop, I can punch a code into the app or website that corresponds with the bus stop I am waiting at. On screen, I will see a list of all buses due to arrive in the next 30 minutes or so, with the route #'s and arrival times. Given WDW's heavy reliance on bus transportation, it seems like a no-brainer to invest in this.

I think you missed the part where dispatch selects the route when a bus arrives at the park. Sure, they could map all the buses, but there'd be no way to tell which on is "yours". The bus you think you're waiting for could be rerouted at any time. And that would have the inverse affect on guest satisfaction.

Disney buses don't run on a schedule or fixed route. If they did, then they'd be subject to all kinds of expensive and onerous federal regulations which would seem inappropriate for a privately-operated system.

 

[MillauFr]

Disney buses don't run on a schedule or fixed route. If they did, then they'd be subject to all kinds of expensive and onerous federal regulations which would seem inappropriate for a privately-operated system.

How do the express buses operate that travel between the parks? Aren't they on a fixed route and schedule?

 

[huskies90]

Yes, and you'll see frequent complaints here that the times on the boards are unreliable.

The difference between your home city and Disney Transport is that your city's buses run on a schedule with fairly predictable run times and typically long runs; Disney buses do not. Disney buses are dispatched as they approach their hub or as a driver comes online.

I think you missed the part where dispatch selects the route when a bus arrives at the park. Sure, they could map all the buses, but there'd be no way to tell which on is "yours". The bus you think you're waiting for could be rerouted at any time.

I'm not buying any of this for a second. They have a complex routing system but can't get the busses to their locations or know where they are or when they will arrive? Sounds like they are creating a lot of unnecessary overhead. U don't think there are huge variables in city traffic? Disney absolutely could have set routes and they should have enough statistical data to know when/where they will hit delays and extra volume.