New bus procedure at resorts???

[joelkfla]

Just wanted to say DH and I love riding the buses and think you all do a great job over all! There will always be glitches in any system, but our experiences over the years have been quite good. DH usually loves to drive anywhere we go, but says that riding the Disney buses is part of his vacation. Keep up the good work!

Thank you!

We now have more than 30 of the shiny new buses on the road, starting wth number 5023. I believe there will be a total of 40-something in this order. You really can't tell them apart from the past 2 years' just by looking at them, except by the numbers.

 

[MickeyEars]

We just returned on the 12th and saw nothing like this being done.

Carla

 

[seashoreCM]

Guests have options for action rather than a wait of 1 1/2 hoursWe once had to let the front desk know that a bus from ASMo to AK hadn't stopped in 15 minutes--they got on the "horn" and a few minutes later one showed up. Any effective customer service program allows the customers a way to improve the service and Disney certainly does it very well..

What is needed is a number to call. It doesn't help if you go in to the front desk and while you are chatting with the concierge, the bus comes and goes.

Now the number doesn't help me because I don't have a cell phone.

 

[camac517]

Guests have options for action rather than a wait of 1 1/2 hoursWe once had to let the front desk know that a bus from ASMo to AK hadn't stopped in 15 minutes--they got on the "horn" and a few minutes later one showed up. Any effective customer service program allows the customers a way to improve the service and Disney certainly does it very well. Let's hope this doesn't become one of those urban legends with a long shelf life; we find the bus system to be very efficient.

We actually had to make a call back in 2007. We waited at the Marketplace side of DD for what seemed like an eternity because everytime a bus to Pop would arrive it would already be full from the PI side and only about 5 or 6 people could get on at a time. There were at least 75 people waiting and people's kids were sleeping on the benches etc. DH called Pop and asked for the number for transportation. Somehow he got transferred. He explained the situation and about 10-15 minutes later 2 empty buses pulled up and we all piled on. That was the only bad experience we ever had.

As for my original post, a little more information has come to light. Turns out that DH's co-worker never actually heard a bus driver say that they had to wait for the line to be full. It was his parents who told him that a bus driver told them that. We now think that his parents were telling a fib to get a little time away from DH's co-worker and his 4 kids! I shouldn't have panicked and started this thread until I had more information. Sorry everyone!

 

[SueM in MN]

Thank you for your support ....

But I don't think I said there have been no changes.

I did say the 20 minute service standard hasn't changed, that buses in Ft. Wilderness continue to go around in circles whether there are passengers or not, and that 1 guest waiting at a park in the a.m. is enough to send a bus.

But things are always changing:

More buses are being added to the fleet. I think there were about 10 put into service this week, and there will be more soon. (Some of the oldest are also being retired, but the net change will be positive.)

Disney is making progress on dispatching thru the on-board computers instead of by radio calls. The latest iteration has been running well for a couple of months now.

Service reliability from DHS should see a significant boost in the coming weeks.

And bus tracking has progressed to where the dispatchers have much better info about where a bus is located, and when the next bus will arrive at a stop.

I don't know where this will all lead ... hopefully, to better, more reliable, more guest-centric service.

sorry
I should have been more specific - you did write there were no changes that involved cameras and waiting for a line to fill
those were the changes I meant.
I appreciate all the good changes that happen and all the helpful bus drivers we end up having as drivers on the buses we ride on.

 

[Sandi]

As for my original post, a little more information has come to light. Turns out that DH's co-worker never actually heard a bus driver say that they had to wait for the line to be full. It was his parents who told him that a bus driver told them that. We now think that his parents were telling a fib to get a little time away from DH's co-worker and his 4 kids! I shouldn't have panicked and started this thread until I had more information. Sorry everyone!

That makes a lot more sense.

 

[goofy4tink]

We actually had to make a call back in 2007. We waited at the Marketplace side of DD for what seemed like an eternity because everytime a bus to Pop would arrive it would already be full from the PI side and only about 5 or 6 people could get on at a time. There were at least 75 people waiting and people's kids were sleeping on the benches etc. DH called Pop and asked for the number for transportation. Somehow he got transferred. He explained the situation and about 10-15 minutes later 2 empty buses pulled up and we all piled on. That was the only bad experience we ever had.

As for my original post, a little more information has come to light. Turns out that DH's co-worker never actually heard a bus driver say that they had to wait for the line to be full. It was his parents who told him that a bus driver told them that. We now think that his parents were telling a fib to get a little time away from DH's co-worker and his 4 kids! I shouldn't have panicked and started this thread until I had more information. Sorry everyone!

If I remember correctly, the bus stops at Marketplace first and then goes over to the PI area...perhaps you have your stops reversed??

 

[camac517]

If I remember correctly, the bus stops at Marketplace first and then goes over to the PI area...perhaps you have your stops reversed??

Oops. You are correct. I did reverse them. Marketplace had just closed for the night which is why the buses were full when they got to the PI side.