Gondolas...I just can’t figure this out

[Minnesota!]

I can't wait for them! I want the Boardwalk to become lively again, and it "should" reduce the chaos at the front of the park, too..

 

[Weedy]

Here’s what the gondola cabins will look like

 

[Weedy]

Are they making them so you can put scooters or wheelchairs on?

Of course it will be. It will be similar to this one in Telluride Colorado. The cars will move very slowly in the load area.
I’ve also read (so it has to be true lol ) That there will be wheelchair cabins that can come off line while people load.

 

[Weedy]

There it is a huge (185 pages) thread in Disney Rumors and News. It does rehash things over and over but it’s interesting
https://www.disboards.com/threads/d...n-system-read-post-1-updated-9-18-18.3578988/

 

[Weedy]

Doppelmyer is the company building Disney’s gondola system. Disney’s is supposed to be in a trough like in this video. So wheelchairs and strollers won’t need a ramp the sidewalk and cabin will be the same level.

 

[Monorail_Man_NJ]

Call me old fashioned but I really wish Disney had invested in the monorail extention years ago rather than waiting till the last minute and now we are stuck with big ugly Gondola poles that intrude on the tranquility of many resorts etc.

Im a little biased though

 

[goofyernmost]

They are made to go very slowly when you load and unload. Just barely creeping along. They only hold eight people each and I suspect that there will be a lot fewer then that most of the time. It should be no problem at all for someone that is physically able, if not they will stop it for you and you will board a little further back so that the system keeps moving at all times. If you need it to stop it will, but, it will be only for extreme measures. It has been proven that wheelchairs and scooters and strollers can board even at regular load areas.

 

[suemom2kay]

Same. I love the IG, and almost always stay around Epcot. I will miss the quietness of the IG. Even if they do add more ticket booths (which I think they will need to do), the quaintness of it will be lost.

Totally agree but I guess all things Disney shall come to pass. I was soooo not happy when I heard the news. I'm still not but it is what it is. I still will love the Epcot resort area. My favorite hotels in the "World."

 

[StageTek]

Change is scary.

 

[goofy4tink]

Respectfully, a lot of these posts sound NIMBYish. Did Disney ever promise exclusive IG access to visitors at the five resorts?

Well, a big selling point for these resorts is access to two parks via boat or on foot. Now we'll have a ton of people arriving on the gondola system that aren't paying nearly what we're paying. No, we weren't ever promised 'exclusive' access, but we pay room rates that are higher because we have this access.

I’m excited that the additional people will make the Boardwalk area more vibrant.

I'm always interested in what people mean by this. I've been staying at BW since '03. It's a resort, not a true destination like DS. People have always been able to get there. Gondolas aren't going to make it any easier. I just don't see a ton of people heading to BW in order to see a magician or other street performer.

As I said, those of us that walk between the Epcot resorts and DHS have always had a fairly pleasant walk, unless it was hot/humid. But, there is now a platform station right where our walkway used to be. I'm sure Disney will have something in mind for us, but I'm not sure it's going to be all that wonderful. The walk right now isn't very pleasant.

 

[kaytieeldr]

Well, a big selling point for these resorts is access to two parks via boat or on foot. Now we'll have a ton of people arriving on the gondola system that aren't paying nearly what we're paying. No, we weren't ever promised 'exclusive' access, but we pay room rates that are higher because we have this access.

You'll still be able to pretty much roll out of bed and stroll over to your park of choice in 5-15 minutes. Visitors using the gondola, if i understand right, may well have to transfer if coming from Pop/AoA at least.

I'm always interested in what people mean by this. I've been staying at BW since '03. It's a resort, not a true destination like DS. People have always been able to get there.

Not easily. No direct buses. Getting back is even harder.

And maybe this will reduce the number of unauthorized people parking there.

 

[Mikey2016]

Are they making them so you can put scooters or wheelchairs on?

I really hope so. I did see a video somewhere about wheelchair cabins but what about weight (power chair and person) Some can be 500LBS

 

[TheMaxRebo]

I was going to point out the same thread that @Weedy did ... it is long, but the first post is constantly updated so just reading that first post should provide a good summary of everything that people know (from what Disney has said, from what the gondola company Dopplemyer has said, what we have gotten from insiders, etc.)
https://www.disboards.com/threads/d...n-system-read-post-1-updated-9-18-18.3578988/


To respond to a few questions raised here:
- the gondola will be fully able to take on strollers and scooters and wheelchairs. It is unclear if there will be a separate loading area where cars can be moved to for this, or if all of the cars will come to a complete stop for people to board
- There shouldn't be too much of an impact to the IG entrance to EPCOT (other than perhaps at park opening or after Illuminations) as these are continually moving so you won't get a dump of people from a bus and they are to be inside the security loop (people will either clear security when they first get on or, as I suspect, at the Caribbean beach station as everyone has to change lines there (only exception would be people going from Riviera to EPCOT so perhaps there will be security there as well)

 

[cmwade77]

I like it as a quick private entrance too. If it's going to become a major entry hub, they'll probably need to use some of the extra land they have there to build more ticket booths, security screening tables, and touch points.

Ticket booths and touch points maybe, but I would imagine that you are going to go through security before boarding the Gondolas, so additional security wouldn't be needed here.

 

[cmwade77]

Call me old fashioned but I really wish Disney had invested in the monorail extention years ago rather than waiting till the last minute and now we are stuck with big ugly Gondola poles that intrude on the tranquility of many resorts etc.

Im a little biased though

They are investigating in the monirails as well, but the Gondolas can transport far more people per hour than a monrail system ever could and for a fraction of the cost.

 

[paults]

It's called the run and jump system, Ha

 

[vinotinto]

They are "detachable." What that means for people loading is that they slow down considerably so you can step into the cabin while moving. Once the door loses then it speeds up. It works just like a ski gondola, and if you can load 4 - 8 people on a ski gondola *and* they have to stick their skis on the ski compartment, and climb in with clumsy boots, then it should be no problem to load these without ski boots, poles and skis.

 

[DSLRuser]

Most gondola systems operate similarly to a ski lift with a few key differences.

The cable moves continuously to transport cars between stations. Once a car is in a station, a mechanism allows the car to be lifted off the moving cable and into a loading platform. Once passengers have disembarked and boarded, the car is placed back onto the main moving cable and leaves the station.

Under some circumstances, the main cable will stop. If too many cars accumulate on the loading platform and a station is unable to accept any more, that is called a "station backup." Then, the main cable must be stopped before the next car arrives, and cannot be restarted until the next car is dispatched.

What this guy said. The gondolas become physically detached from the cable in the load and unload process, and slowly move through the load and unload area by another means of motivation...very slowly.

they cable only stops if there is a problem like weather or too many gondolas in the load unload areas.

this process also helps ensure cables are sent back out with proper spacing.

 

[seashoreCM]

The artificial intelligence (or manual intervention) needed is less if the gondolas assume a slower but constant speed to pass through a station, open doors, close doors, and resume a faster speed upon dispatch/departure from the station. Under normal conditions each gondola does exactly the same thing. There can/will be an "exception" condition to stop gondolas if needed for handicapped guests. Stopping the cable if too many cars backed up, as someone else mentioned, would be a "super exception," might require manual intervention and would hopefully be extremely rare.

If all gondolas were to stop, there will be different behaviors, namely some will stop at the departure end, some will stop in second position behind the first, some will stop in third position, etc. This is of course more complex if it is the norm as opposed to the exception.

Having a second platform for handicapped guests where the gondolas stopped could maintain "normal" operation for most of the system and "exceptions" occur in an out of the way place.

The International Gateway at Epcot being small and intimate today is just a chicken and egg situation. IG will be expanded if and when needed.

 

[Dug720]

I'm not sure I like the idea of knowing they can come off the cable so easily... Add that to unairconditioned? NO THANK YOU! These sound like miserable nightmares.