Monorail broken down on Epcot line.

[amylevan]

I am envisioning being stuck for 3 hrs with my claustrophobic, anxiety ridden mother and am having an anxiety attack myself. I think we'll stick to busses and boats in February.

 

[golf4miami]

I have yet to see mention what should happen to the CC guarantee charge that this family now suffered! That's one of the first things that came to my mind when they said they missed dinner at 'Ohana. Not only did they miss out on the awesome experience of eating at 'Ohana, but since they didn't cancel in advance now their CC got charged and Disney expects water and a Fastpass to make that ok?

I really hope whoever was on that monorail stopped in at their nearest guest relations or the help desk at their resort to get taken care of.

 

[Hisgirl]

Wow....I mean just wow. I'm taking my 83 and 82 year old parents in October and I'm just trying to envision them climbing down a LADDER. That would NOT be happening!

And if my hubbie were there, he would need to go to the bathroom as he has a small bladder. Good grief...and can you imagine the children.."Mommy! I need to go NOW!"

"Just hold it sweetie...I'm sure you can hold it for another THREE HOURS"

Seriously, anyone who experienced this needs to write a very factual and firm letter to Disney's customer service, without getting ugly, and tell them exactly what you expect to happen. This was a big deal and the compensation should be a 'big deal'.

Unacceptable. Utterly awful. And the issue is...how do you fix an antiquated monorail that is being used all day every day?

 

[ArwenMarie]

I am envisioning being stuck for 3 hrs with my claustrophobic, anxiety ridden mother and am having an anxiety attack myself. I think we'll stick to busses and boats in February.

Does she have an anti-anxiety prescription, even for "just in case" situations? (something like a low-dose Xanax etc). If she is really prone to claustrophobia and anxiety, maybe she could ask her doctor for one if she doesn't have one already.

 

[angey77]

I would have found some sort of manager on the spot and nicely explained the FP and water would NOT cut it, especially if I had an ADR or was staying in a monorail resort, where you depend on that for transportation.
I had friends staying in BLT once, while the monorail was out every day due to GFV construction. They were not told in advance about this and were staying at BLT specifically because they had a handicapped person and a toddler in their party. They nicely talked to a manager and, to their surprise, were refunded a full night's stay.

 

[ArwenMarie]

And the issue is...how do you fix an antiquated monorail that is being used all day every day?

I don't know, but they either have to fix it or take it down and just switch to buses entirely.

 

[amylevan]

Does she have an anti-anxiety prescription, even for "just in case" situations? (something like a low-dose Xanax etc). If she is really prone to claustrophobia and anxiety, maybe she could ask her doctor for one if she doesn't have one already.

She has gotten prescriptions for specific things in the past (ie before getting on an airplane). But for the most part she manages life by avoiding situations - as in she will never (and I do mean NEVER) set foot in an elevator. Maybe I will suggest she get a just in case prescription to carry with her.

She has ridden the monorail before (although we avoid busy times when you'd be crammed in there), but I don't think the possibility of being stuck has ever crossed her mind.

 

[MichiganDVC]

My parents and my sister's family, at the time two small kids under 6, were riding the disney bus to MK. They were pretty much the only ones on the bus. The bus got sideswiped by a car and had to stop quickly. The kids got a little jostled, but nothing major. Anyway, they had to stay in the bus for an hour+ for some reason, either because they were witnesses to an accident or to wait for another bus or both.

My mother, being the quintessential "do you feel any responsibility for this" lady, marched right to guest services at the hotel and explained the situation and the hardship it caused.

They received two-day park passes, each. So that's probably what Disney should have offered. At least park passes will encourage these people to come back one day.

I wonder if they had a hard time determining who needed compensation? Once they towed the monorail in and the doors opened, which of those people is going to stick around to stand in a line for compensation or whatever. And once they're gone, it's impossible to know if they were ever on the monorail, right?

 

[ParrotBill]

Probably the 'stand-by' monorail queue. The FastPass Plus monorails are working fine.

Go to the back of the monorail, you!

And for those of you worried about the ladders... in an evacuation they also send cherry bucket vehicles to handle those who cannot do ladders.

 

[d1gitman]

good to hear! stuck on a monorail at Disney has to be better than stuck in traffic at home.

Posted from DISboards.com App for Android

actually, no. we've been stuck for 20 min on a hot day on the monorail...it gets extremely miserable and funky when the AC is off....i would rather be in gridlock for 2 hr's with the a/c and tunes cranked.

 

[Odelay]

Looks like Disney isn't trying so hard to assure guests have a "magical time" anymore.

Ten years ago, they wouldn't think of giving only a FP & a bottle of water (to people who probably really had to pee!) as compensation for being trapped above ground for 3 hours during dinnertime with small children!

Out of curiosity, what was the the standard operating procedure for guest compensation ten years ago for a three hour delay on the monorail? I hadn't heard there had been a policy change.

 

[dmccarty]

The monorail is just unreliable and we avoid using it anymore. The last time we tried to ride it was to just ride and it was shutdown due to a storm in the area which is not a maintenance issue but it makes the system unreliable. We only wanted to ride the monorail because we had taken a nephew for his first trip to WDW and we wanted him to get on the monorail.

We do not use the monorail that often, but most of the times we have ridden, there have been delays on the track. My big worry is what happened to the OP. I try to stay hydrated so I drink lots of water and have to go to the bathroom frequently as a result. Me being stuck for three hours on a monorail is going to mean one of two things are going to happen, someone has an empty water bottle for me to fill or the carpet is getting wet.

I really feel sorry for people who had small kids. That was a nightmare.

I also feel sorry for the CM's who have to clean up the cars. That is going to be a nightmare.

Disney is making money and they need to fix the monorails. PERIOD. It is ironically funny that DVC was showing a video of the new DVC resort at Grand Floridian this week. The DW and I were talking about the new resort but the big NEGATIVE is that IT IS ON THE MONORAIL LOOP.

Later,
Dan

 

[d1gitman]

...how do you fix an antiquated monorail that is being used all day every day?

at night. the monorails don't run 24/7.

 

[ArwenMarie]

Disney is making money and they need to fix the monorails. PERIOD. It is ironically funny that DVC was showing a video of the new DVC resort at Grand Floridian this week. The DW and I were talking about the new resort but the big NEGATIVE is that IT IS ON THE MONORAIL LOOP.

I agree.

So they keep building DVC, keep charging very high rates at the hotels, all based on being on the monorail. But then let the monorail system crumble.

 

[solstice621]

I am having anxiety just READING this thread. Sorry to hear this happened and even sorrier that Disney didn't compensate better. Disappointing to say the least.

 

[JanaDee]

Unacceptable. Utterly awful. And the issue is...how do you fix an antiquated monorail that is being used all day every day?

You spend billions of dollars on technology that doesn't work when you should have spent it on the failing monorail system.

 

[Laketravis]

You spend billions of dollars on technology that doesn't work when you should have spent it on the failing monorail system.

Took the words right out of my mouth. The monorail at WDW is an iconic headliner dating back to park inception. Letting it deteriorate is almost sacrilegious, like allowing an errant piece of toilet paper to hang off the back of Mickey's shoe........

 

[Mom2Stitch]

The monorail is just unreliable and we avoid using it anymore. The last time we tried to ride it was to just ride and it was shutdown due to a storm in the area which is not a maintenance issue but it makes the system unreliable. We only wanted to ride the monorail because we had taken a nephew for his first trip to WDW and we wanted him to get on the monorail.

We do not use the monorail that often, but most of the times we have ridden, there have been delays on the track. My big worry is what happened to the OP. I try to stay hydrated so I drink lots of water and have to go to the bathroom frequently as a result. Me being stuck for three hours on a monorail is going to mean one of two things are going to happen, someone has an empty water bottle for me to fill or the carpet is getting wet.

I really feel sorry for people who had small kids. That was a nightmare.

I also feel sorry for the CM's who have to clean up the cars. That is going to be a nightmare.

Disney is making money and they need to fix the monorails. PERIOD. It is ironically funny that DVC was showing a video of the new DVC resort at Grand Floridian this week. The DW and I were talking about the new resort but the big NEGATIVE is that IT IS ON THE MONORAIL LOOP.

Later,
Dan

THIS.
I remember when it was a positive, we saw a difference in the crowding with the addition of BLT, I imagine the addition of 2 new DVCs will only make that problem worse. If I was a DVC member and relying on the monorail, I would be voicing my concerns.

Wow, I can't imagine being stuck for that length of time. I would have went straight to guest services.

 

[sonofanarchy]

Out of curiosity, what was the the standard operating procedure for guest compensation ten years ago for a three hour delay on the monorail? I hadn't heard there had been a policy change.

Obviously, no one knows the answer to that. I think the poster's point was, Disney's concerns over guests having a magical experience aren't nearly as important as they once were. I'd agree 100%.

 

[JanaDee]

THIS.
I remember when it was a positive, we saw a difference in the crowding with the addition of BLT, I imagine the addition of 2 new DVCs will only make that problem worse. If I was a DVC member and relying on the monorail, I would be voicing my concerns.

Wow, I can't imagine being stuck for that length of time. I would have went straight to guest services.

Don't forget the DVC expansion coming up at the Poly in the next few years.