Monorail Front Seat

[cinderella0908]

Hi I have been traveling to Disney since I was 5 and one of my favorite things to do is ride up front in the monorail. I am heading back in September for my first wedding anniversary and my favorite ride is from Epcot to The Magic Kingdom. Does anyone know if Disney is still allowing people to ride up front since the crash?

 

[msmayor]

No...guests up front is no longer allowed.

Whether that option returns in the future is unknown.

 

[cigar95]

No...guests up front is no longer allowed.

Whether that option returns in the future is unknown.

Let us hope the option returns - though it would not surprise me if it takes a year or more. It will take a while for the emotional wounds to heal.

 

[msmayor]

Let us hope the option returns - though it would not surprise me if it takes a year or more. It will take a while for the emotional wounds to heal.

It wouldn't surprise me if the option never returns. Disney's insurance carrier would now no doubt raise their premium significantly since there is accident experience, and the risk of payments to guests in the event of injury from riding in that area may be prohibitive.

 

[DebbieB]

I don't think it's just the possibility of injury to guests, there's also the possibility of the driver being distracted by people sitting so close.

 

[kaytieeldr]

I'm not so sure 'driver distraction' would come into play. As far as I know, each driver had the final say on whether to allow passengers to ride up front. No driver who did have passengers has had an accident with passengers in the compartment, and, um, what else... Oh, right. Any driver concerned about being distracted could simply refuse - either at pickup, or perhaps at the beginning of any/all shifts.

 

[Donna]

I don't think it's just the possibility of injury to guests, there's also the possibility of the driver being distracted by people sitting so close.

debbie,
what about the insurance, isn't disney self-insured?

 

[msmayor]

debbie,
what about the insurance, isn't disney self-insured?

Whether self-insured or not, I bet they have a litany of in-house attorneys who would advise against permitting it anymore.

 

[DebbieB]

debbie,
what about the insurance, isn't disney self-insured?

I don't know but I would bet they have some commercial insurance. A huge liability claim could wipe them out otherwise. I would also bet that an insurance company would have concerns about people in the front with the driver.

 

[jlewisinsyr]

Until the system is fully automated (no driver at all), I don't think you'll see a return of "up-front" riding.

 

[cigar95]

A view that I have posted elsewhere is that there is a whole list of *possible* disastrous accidents that could result in multiple injuries or deaths. The only difference between these and the monorail incident is that they've not yet happened. If I know this, the company and its legal department certainly know it. (Just think of the changes made at Disneyland's Tom Sawyer Island a few years ago as such an example.)

For instance, the possibility certainly exists for a serious accident involving a Water Mouse and one of the other craft on the Seven Seas Lagoon. Would it, by analogy, make sense to therefore remove Water Mouse rentals at the two resorts on the lagoon?

If Disney is going to take drastic action because of *possible* accidents, it does not serve them well to wait until *after* the accident has happened to take action. In fact, one could argue that the corrective actions taken in the aftermath of the monorail tragedy may make it *less* susceptible to future accidents.

That is why I suspect that the closing of the front cabin is based on something more than just the potential for future accidents. The emotional angle is my best guess.

 

[Donna]

A view that I have posted elsewhere is that there is a whole list of *possible* disastrous accidents that could result in multiple injuries or deaths. The only difference between these and the monorail incident is that they've not yet happened. If I know this, the company and its legal department certainly know it. (Just think of the changes made at Disneyland's Tom Sawyer Island a few years ago as such an example.)

For instance, the possibility certainly exists for a serious accident involving a Water Mouse and one of the other craft on the Seven Seas Lagoon. Would it, by analogy, make sense to therefore remove Water Mouse rentals at the two resorts on the lagoon?

If Disney is going to take drastic action because of *possible* accidents, it does not serve them well to wait until *after* the accident has happened to take action. In fact, one could argue that the corrective actions taken in the aftermath of the monorail tragedy may make it *less* susceptible to future accidents.

That is why I suspect that the closing of the front cabin is based on something more than just the potential for future accidents. The emotional angle is my best guess.

well, actually, a fatal accident DID happen with the water mouse, then called water sprites, in 1989. A mother and her 6 year old son got too close to the ferry and ran in to it, the mother died and the boy was injured. Nothing was really done after that accident. The water sprites were back on the water the very next day. We were staying at the Poly at the time that it happened.

 

[CR Resort Fan 4 Life]

It would be nice if they did let guests sit in the front car because it's something I enjoyed doing, however I don't see them bringing it back.

 

[truck1]

Disney is self insured, and very compartmentalized.They have it set up in a certain way, that if they ever did get sued, the liability would be limited.

My best guess on the front seat is that they are going to wait for the final report on the accident from the NTSB before reviewing and possibly reopening the cab to guests.Theres engough safety systems in the train to prevent normal accidents, it cant do much for a cascade effect to cause one accident which is what I understand happened from someone in the know.

 

[Donna]

I don't know but I would bet they have some commercial insurance. A huge liability claim could wipe them out otherwise. I would also bet that an insurance company would have concerns about people in the front with the driver.

I thought there was something on the back of the ticket media, whatever it may be, that does limit the liability.

 

[ElizabethB]

Boilerplate on the back of a ticket is useless.

 

[jlewisinsyr]

I thought there was something on the back of the ticket media, whatever it may be, that does limit the liability.

Those clauses mean very little in the event of an accident. Most parking garages have clauses that say they are not responsible for damages to your car too, but they have little validity if there is an actual issue.

 

[bratmomma]

I had actually read on another site (bad bad me!) that cone riders are allowed again. I hope so. I know many people would ask me "how could you!?" but I want my kids to be able to ride up front. I think the chances of another devastating accident, so close to the first in the monorail's history, is pretty slim.

Here is the info I was talking about... I googled list of changes since monorail accident.... (I actually thought google would direct me to a DIS page, honestly! LOL ) Not sure how reliable it is though.

http://thedisneyblog.com/2009/07/11/list-of-changes-disneys-made-since-monorail-death/

 

[declansdad]

No...guests up front is no longer allowed.

Whether that option returns in the future is unknown.

Did they make an announcement to that effect and if they did, where could I find it?

 

[DVC-Don]

Did they make an announcement to that effect and if they did, where could I find it?

Here is a link: http://wdwnewsletter.com/2009/07/16/disney-implements-new-monorail-safety-rules/