MK Monorail down YET again

[johnnyblz20]

This has been a continued problem for over a year. Each morning we go to MK the Monorail is either delayed or completely down. Happened again today. This is getting ridiculous. Does anyone know if they are actually trying to fix the problem or just keep waiting for something to break and fix then?

 

[Malibustyle23]

This has been a continued problem for over a year. Each morning we go to MK the Monorail is either delayed or completely down. Happened again today. This is getting ridiculous. Does anyone know if they are actually trying to fix the problem or just keep waiting for something to break and fix then?

I hate to ask a stupid question but they are currently refurbishing it. Is it actually down due to being broke down or just down scheduled for refurbished during your issues?

 

[Malibustyle23]

http://www.wdwinfo.com/wdwinfo/rehab.htm

 

[whiporee]

The monorail system is 45 years old. Things that have been in service for nearly half a century tend to break.

They carry a lot of people every day. So, they break. They are going to continue to break. The only solution is to shut them down completely, which would in all likelihood be worse.

Since you're apparently staying at the Poly, you might be better served to take the resort launch. As this is an irritant and one unlikely to be solved in the near future, it might be best to take it out of the equation for your family and avoid monorail hotels in the future, especially the GF since it is a lot more monorail dependent than any other WDW resort.

 

[Jadyreen1282]

You got some bad luck following you. Perhaps you should play the lotto!

 

[johnnyblz20]

I live close to Disney and go very frequently. This is a several times a week thing EVERY week. Many don't notice it because they only go one week a year, but for us locals it is getting horrible. And no they were not down today for renovations, the CM told me it was a maintenance issue that caused them to be down. If anyone has experienced this several times and sees how busy and packed those ferry boats can be in the AM would know how much of a pain this is.

 

[MKRuns 26]

The Monorail was up and running this morning about half an hour before RD when we ride it to the park.

 

[johnnyblz20]

In the morning we got there around 945 and waited about 20min. They had a maintenance issue with one and was able to get on one eventually. When we were leaving they had them down completely except the one to the resorts. Just annoying that this has been happening for at least the last year so frequently.

 

[mom2rtk]

The monorail system is 45 years old. Things that have been in service for nearly half a century tend to break.

Yes, they do. Especially when they have a life expectancy of around 25 years.

 

[OrangeCountyCommuter]

The Disney cheerleaders will tell you it's wrong to pay more for a monorail resort and expect to use the monorail. I've never understood that logic.


The problems with transport are a reason not to pay for monorail resorts IMHO.

 

[DisneyWishes14]

The Disney cheerleaders will tell you it's wrong to pay more for a monorail resort and expect to use the monorail. I've never understood that logic.


The problems with transport are a reason not to pay for monorail resorts IMHO.

I agree. This is why we only stay at the EP resorts now. Problems with the monorail are not worth the headache or the cost.

 

[Tondee]

This past summer, the monorail when down on our MK day. They had buses running from the TTC. Not many knew about this option and the bus was not crowded.

 

[Wanderer72]

Is there any chance that they do this by design in the busy summer months? Say the monorail is down and send everyone down to the Ferry Boats because it creates a more calculated traffic pattern at security bag check?

 

[nicko]

I agree with the OP. Two weeks ago, I arrived at the TTC at 8:40 AM on a morning when the express monorail was NOT scheduled to be down. The monorail was down and the ferry boats were completely overwhelmed. After waiting 20 minutes in a non moving ferry line, I stepped out and asked a cast member working crowd control if buses were running. Her answer was "I don't know. I just got here." I then asked her if there is someone around who might know? She pointed to another CM farther away. I went over to this second cast member and asked him if buses were running. He replied "No but there might be some in a little while." I finally made it to the MK security lines at 9:30 AM. So much for rope drop.

Frankly it's unacceptable that a company making billions in profit is unwilling to spend the money needed to solve this problem. The lack of respect for the customer is astonishing.

BTW, remember the good old days when a cast member would answer my question as follows: "I don't know but let me find out for you." Sigh....

 

[Spork24]

Is there any chance that they do this by design in the busy summer months? Say the monorail is down and send everyone down to the Ferry Boats because it creates a more calculated traffic pattern at security bag check?

Nope, that doesn't make sense

 

[mousehockey37]

I think it's crazy to complain about anything when you're a local honestly. Sure, you're going to see more of the problems than those of us who vacation once or twice every year or so... Just be happy you're there. If I see the monorail is down, I'll find another way. There's nothing that states that you HAVE to use the monorail to get around Disney.

There are countless threads on all the different Disney boards debating the topic of "new monorails". The company that makes this monorail isn't doing anything new (last I heard), so Disney's monorail maintenance is making these things last as long as they can.

Again, I'll take the monorail being down, but being in Disney. I know there are other ways around the parks and resort areas.

 

[Robo]

Have a great trip!

 

[OrangeCountyCommuter]

I was just posting on another thread about going to the overseas parks that our stay IN PARIS was the best and I'm so glad when we went we didn't try to "commute" between the city and DLP. We spent 1 night / 2 days touring the parks and although it was rushed it was enough time to get thru everything. We did this on our arrival day and the following day. Then in the late afternoon / early evening of our 2nd day we moved into the city to an old boutique hotel in the St. Germain des Pres area that was was several hundred years old. Sooooooo cool. Within walking distance to Notre Dame, the Pantheon and Luxembourg Gardens + several metro stops. We just loved it. So many cafes. Amazing experience. Eating dinner at an outdoor cafe within view of the Eiffel Tower at night - priceless. Lunch with a view of the Arc de Triompe. I think we spent 3 nights there and would book the same hotel again - it was so charming.

IMO DLP should just be a side trip from Paris. If you're going to Paris go to see Paris and allow time for DLP too to say you've been there done that. Just don't try to compare it to the US parks. They are not the same - but isn't that sort of the point? You want to see different.

I think it's crazy to complain about anything when you're a local honestly. Sure, you're going to see more of the problems than those of us who vacation once or twice every year or so... Just be happy you're there. If I see the monorail is down, I'll find another way. There's nothing that states that you HAVE to use the monorail to get around Disney.

There are countless threads on all the different Disney boards debating the topic of "new monorails". The company that makes this monorail isn't doing anything new (last I heard), so Disney's monorail maintenance is making these things last as long as they can.

Again, I'll take the monorail being down, but being in Disney. I know there are other ways around the parks and resort areas.

Bizarre. Apparently locals are suppose to be so happy to live near the mouse pixie dust cures everything.

 

[Klayfish]

I know they're scheduled down mid day during the week for maintenance, but I have seen them go down outside of that fairly frequently over the past year. The system is 45 years old, and if I'm right the current cars are 25 years old, so they're no spring chickens. It's definitely a bit of a pain in the rear when it happens, but not a "deal breaker" for us.

I've heard it referred to as the "Monofail", and sometimes it lives up to that.

 

[dreiwhit]

I agree with the OP. Two weeks ago, I arrived at the TTC at 8:40 AM on a morning when the express monorail was NOT scheduled to be down. The monorail was down and the ferry boats were completely overwhelmed. After waiting 20 minutes in a non moving ferry line, I stepped out and asked a cast member working crowd control if buses were running. Her answer was "I don't know. I just got here." I then asked her if there is someone around who might know? She pointed to another CM farther away. I went over to this second cast member and asked him if buses were running. He replied "No but there might be some in a little while." I finally made it to the MK security lines at 9:30 AM. So much for rope drop.

That's what happened to us back in March. The monorail was supposed to be down for maintenance on one of the days we where at another park, so no bid deal, right? When we got to MK on our first day, the monorail was down. We didn't know about the buses, and the CMs were forcefully (yelling and waving arms) directing everyone to the left to the ferry dock. There were so many people that we had to wait for the 2nd ferry and the ferries were absolutely packed! It took a while to load, since they were filling them to max capacity. From the time we left the car until the time we crossed under the railroad tracks at Main Street Station was 90 minutes. So much for RD that day....

I guess one of the reasons why MK is not my most favorite park is that the transportation to MK itself, IMHO, is a bottleneck. Sure, its nice to have that pretty lake with a view of the castle, but at Epcot, DHS and AK, the parking lots are right up to the gate and all you need to do is get on a shuttle and you're at the gate. To paraphrase an old saying, getting to MK isn't half the fun. When we went to Epcot at their RD, we didn't even need to take a shuttle, we just walked from the car to security.