How often is accessible transportation really available?

[PadmeNaberie]

We are planning a trip in December with a member of our group in an ECV. We have been many times before, but never with accessibility needs.

We are wondering how often accessible buses and boats (we are staying at Fort Wilderness) really come around? Is every bus accessible, or every other, or are they even more scarce?

We are just wondering how much extra time to figure in for travel.

Thanks!
-Emily

 

[disney david]

We are planning a trip in December with a member of our group in an ECV. We have been many times before, but never with accessibility needs.

We are wondering how often accessible buses and boats (we are staying at Fort Wilderness) really come around? Is every bus accessible, or every other, or are they even more scarce?

We are just wondering how much extra time to figure in for travel.

Thanks!
-Emily

All the buses Disney owns is accessible so any bus comes that going where you want you be able to take. As long as their spots on the bus if not be driver will call for another bus so you don't have to wait as long. All the internal buses are accessible so they can take them around the resort to the boats and to the bus station that will go to the parks.

 

[pbrim]

All of the buses ECV accessible. The only problem you might run into at very busy times is that if the 2-4 ECV spots are full, you might have to wait for the next bus. At busy times, they tend to have CMs at the bus depots to manage crowds, and in my experience if you have to miss a second bus, they will send call for an extra bus to get you on your way. I usually travel with a friend also in an ECV, and typically we have to wait for the next bus only once or twice on a 10 day trip. However, we tend to travel in slow times, so YMMV. Allow extra time in the early mornings, and take your time leaving the park when they close to miss the rush, and you should be fine.

The monorails are all accessible. A CM will set up a ramp for the rider to drive straight in. He will ask where your party is getting off and radio ahead for the CM to have the ramp ready when you leave.

Boats can be more problematic. Some of the smaller boats can not handle ECVs. If the water level is very low, even the larger boats may have problems, as the height difference from the dock may make loading unsafe. Not common, but it can happen.

If your friend travels with an ECV, but can climb steps, they can ride any ME bus -- the ECV will be loaded in the under-bus storage. If they can't make the steps, they should notify ME when they book and again when they check in. If there is not a lift bus there at the time, CMs will radio in for one.

The other thing to be aware of is that, while ECVs load first and unload last for safety reasons, on 5 people are allowed to board with the ECV (total of 6). If your party is larger, the rest will have to go through the standard line and meet up on board or at your destination.

 

[PadmeNaberie]

Fantastic, thanks so much!

What about the few rides whose queues are not accessible? How do they manage that?

 

[pbrim]

There is a sticky at the top about this, but in general:

There should be a CM at the entrance who will tell you what you need for that ride. For most rides, the queue is accessible, everyone uses the same line. In some cases, near the end, you will be diverted for an elevator to avoid stairs, or to a different boarding area, either to allow extra time for boarding or to allow you to leave the ECV at the exit point. In other cases, you can ride your ECV up to the loading point, and it will be moved to the exit point if you exit elsewhere.

In older rides, mainly in MK, you may be directed to go in through the exit or a separate handicapped line. If the stand-by line is long, you may be given a return time, so that you wait the same amount of time, but you can wait elsewhere. This is not the same as the DAS, this is only for WC and ECV users, who don't need a DAS unless they have other needs.

A few rides, most notably POC, will require ECV riders to move to a wheel-chair. There will be WCs available. This is because either the ECV is too large, or there would be problems with getting the ECV to the exit point. For POC, the exit in an entirely different building, so they ask you to use their interchangable WC. (I don't know what they do if you have your own personal WC.)

A very few rides are not accessible unless you are ambulatory. Swiss Family Treehouse, or Tom Sawyers Island spring to mind, there may be a couple more.

If your friend can't walk a few steps to get transfer to the ride, there will be more challenges. Some rides vehicles will accommodate manual or motorized WC, but few if any can handle ECVs. Some people can slide transfer into ride vehicles without walking, but CMs can't help you do that. They can offer you an arm to grab when stepping in or out, but that's it.

Again, the stickies go into more detail by ride, and there is a disabled user guide somewhere on line but I can't lay hands on it at the moment. Last trip I also noticed Disabled Guest maps in each park, that have accessibility marked for each ride, plus additional tips