Something needs to change with bus transportation at Saratoga Springs because of DTD

[dcibrando]

Something needs to change with the bus transportation at Saratoga Springs because of Downtown Disney.

I am a DVC member and owner at Saratoga Springs and visit there at least twice a year. In the past couple of years I knew it was bad, but my last trip in early November has convinced to me that it is much worse and now something needs to change.

What are the problems….well there are 2.

1- WAY too many people (not staying at Saratoga Springs and some not even staying on Disney property) will simply hop onto the Saratoga Springs bus at the theme parks so they can get to Downtown Disney. It is easy to spot these people because they are the ones that ask which stop to get off on, etc. I even see/hear the bus drivers telling them they can do this and where to go. Something has got to stop this from happening and becoming more and more of a trend.

Those of us staying at Saratoga Springs or owning at Saratoga Springs through DVC (paying LOTS of $ to Disney for this luxury) are now standing in longer bus lines, standing up on busses (for example with my 18 month old) while others just going to DTD get to sit, or worse yet we’re not able to even get on a bus because of all the “extra” people wanting to just find a way to DTD. I witnessed this on every bus ride back to Saratoga Springs but discovered it to be much worse at the end of the day (park closing) particularly at Animal Kingdom when most people tend to leave after the 3:45pm parade…and this is also when the busses are full. It’s not fair when those of us staying at Saratoga Springs can’t even use our busses like those at other resorts can.

2- People staying off property or locals parking at Downtown Disney, and then getting to Saratoga Springs to take the busses to the parks to keep from paying parking fees. Again, very easy to spot these people because they seem to always talk about what they are doing on the bus (why they brag about this I don’t know).
Again, this takes up space on busses at Saratoga Springs for guests and DVC members staying there while those staying off property or are simply locals take advantage of the situation and not paying to park at the theme parks.

Possible Solutions:

In my opinion, Disney makes this WAY too easy for just anyone to ride a bus. Those staying ON Disney property (in a Disney Resort) should be able to use any of the busses to/from wherever they desire… HOWEVER… Disney needs to strongly consider a bus running from each theme park TO Downtown Disney.

1- Have a bus that provides transportation FROM each theme park TO Downtown Disney, but it would NOT pickup from Downtown Disney to the theme park (this will stop those getting on a bus to keep from paying parking fees). If the ride back to the theme park to pick other guests up is wasteful with no one on board, then have the bus stop at Saratoga Springs or Port Orleans to pick up for that theme park.

Example:

• Bus stops at designated Downtown Disney bus stop at Animal Kingdom for transportation to Downtown Disney
• Bus stops at Downtown Disney (Saratoga Springs stop) to let guests off, and load guests for that resort.
• Bus stops at Saratoga Springs to let folks off and to load for next trip to Theme Park
• Repeat

2. Each guest at Saratoga Springs (or Port Orleans if it is a problem there too) could have a Disney bus pass for their resort that they could show to the bus driven upon entry to the bus. Would this be a hassle and inconvenience… maybe a little, but definitely not as much as the hassle and inconvenience of giving up bus seats and transportation to others that are taking advantage of the system. If this is too much, then simply have each family show their Disney Resort key to prove they are at least staying on site during these dates. If Disney provides Downtown Disney transportation from the theme parks then showing the room key would then eliminate those other people parking at Downtown Disney (staying off property) trying to take advantage of the busses at SSR.

I’m sure there are many other ideas that would work as well, maybe better than the ones I mentioned but seriously…someone needs to really take a look at this as this problem is only getting worse as more and more people discover how easy this is to do…and those that suffer are the ones staying at the resort or DVC members paying into that resort.

Thanks for listening to my thoughts & suggestions

 

[JWG]

They just need a system by which you show/swipe your KttW card for bus use. Since the system is paid for by all resort guests whether DVC or cash, any should be allowed to ride.

You'll suffer resort guests doing that to get to dinner reservations. If I'm at BWV and want to go to CR for an ADR, I have to "transfer" at DtD. I may jump the SSR bus if it comes first to save time.

I hear you on bus issues though. The "Epcot Resort Loop" is awful. Depending on destination, it stops at Swan/Dolphin, Yacht/Beach and BW. Same issues - long lines, standing or missed bus.

We've recently rented a car through Priceline for about $10/day as way to avoid this.

 

[Chuck S]

I remember in the early 1990s you had to show a resort ID to ride a resort bus. It would be pretty simple to reinstate that type of system, even without adding a card reader to the bus.

The problem is, any multi-day park ticket entitles one to use the WDW transportation system, and it would be difficult to stop abuse, as the resort restaurants, etc. are open to everyone.. A person could just say that they are going shopping or dining at that resort...and you know, no one would lie about it, right?

 

[Tamar]

I agree with Chuck. Although we didn't have a problem with crowded buses to SSR when we stayed there in May, I'm sure our week was the exception rather than the rule. Not only is the practice of avoiding parking fees by parking at DTD bad for SSR guests, it also makes it difficult for shoppers to find parking at DTD.

 

[dianeschlicht]

Frankly, I think they could cut down on a lot of it with the simple act of charging for parking at DTD. If they had parking meters and a 4 hour limit, you wouldn't have the people trying to bypass paying for parking just to get to the parks.

I don't think you can limit access to resort guests only, since many people staying elsewhere might like to have dinner reservations at Turf Club or even use Disney transportation to get to the review center. We rarely stay at SSR, but we do visit there every trip because Turf Club is one of our MUST DO, dining places.

 

[WDWisTheBest]

Frankly, I think they could cut down on a lot of it with the simple act of charging for parking at DTD. If they had parking meters and a 4 hour limit, you wouldn't have the people trying to bypass paying for parking just to get to the parks.

I don't think you can limit access to resort guests only, since many people staying elsewhere might like to have dinner reservations at Turf Club or even use Disney transportation to get to the review center. We rarely stay at SSR, but we do visit there every trip because Turf Club is one of our MUST DO, dining places.

You may be right about the parking meters and a 4 hour limit, but I doubt seriously that this will ever happen. Limiting access to resort guests only will not happen.

 

[dianeschlicht]

You may be right about the parking meters and a 4 hour limit, but I doubt seriously that this will ever happen. Limiting access to resort guests only will not happen.

I'm in agreement about not limiting resort access. I have always thought though that charging for parking at DTD was something that needed to be done. There is such limited parking available there anyway, and charging wont hurt the people who want to frequent DTD, but WILL stop the people parking there free to go to the parks.

 

[dcibrando]

Disney can allow those staying on site using their kttw card to use any busses... I'm ok with this...especially for those with dining reservations, etc. BUT they still need a bus stop from each theme park to DTD to keep from the other problem at SSR. This would solve both problems I believe

- KTTW card (1 per family) to allow bus transportation
- DTD bus from each theme park

 

[dianeschlicht]

Disney can allow those staying on site using their kttw card to use any busses... I'm ok with this...especially for those with dining reservations, etc. BUT they still need a bus stop from each theme park to DTD to keep from the other problem at SSR. This would solve both problems I believe

- KTTW card (1 per family) to allow bus transportation
- DTD bus from each theme park

As far as I know, there IS bus service from each of the parks to DTD. I've used it often.

 

[dcibrando]

I've never seen it... I've seen busses to the ticket and transportation center. if they have DTD busses from the theme parks then they sure do need to advertise it on the signs

 

[dianeschlicht]

I've never seen it... I've seen busses to the ticket and transportation center. if they have DTD busses from the theme parks then they sure do need to advertise it on the signs

I've used DTD for transferring when we were dining at DTD and going back to a park for a later parade. So I KNOW they have it FROM DTD to the parks. I know I've taken it the other direction too, but not for a long time.

 

[dcibrando]

I know they don't pick up from Downtown Disney directly TO the theme parks... this would cause even more people to park there and ride free to the parks without paying to park.

I believe they only go directly to resorts... someone correct me if I'm wrong.

 

[robinb]

I think they should just have a DTD bus to/from the parks. The cheaters will always find a way around whatever roadblock you throw up. Why make things harder for the honest people? We wanted to go back to the MK after an afternoon at DTD and we took CR's bus and walked to the MK. So, it's not just SSR that is the problem and it was a PITB. I would have rather just taken the bus to the park directly.


ETA: the reason why there are no DTD buses from the parks is because Disney wants to charge people the parking fee. They saw all kinds of lost revenue from people parking free at DTD and taking the bus. Now those SAME cheaters are parking at DTD and walking over to SSR and taking the Congress Park bus or taking the bus to a nearby resort and walking. What is the difference in Disney's bottom line? How many honest people are being inconvenienced by no bus to the parks from DTD? How many SSR, Epcot resorts & CR guests are inconvenienced by bus squatters? It's frustrating to me because no matter what you do, the honest people will still be inconvenienced and the cheaters will still cheat. Just reestablish the buses and be done with it.

 

[dianeschlicht]

I know they don't pick up from Downtown Disney directly TO the theme parks... this would cause even more people to park there and ride free to the parks without paying to park.

I believe they only go directly to resorts... someone correct me if I'm wrong.

You might be right about that, because I do remember it taking a long time when I went through DTD.

 

[dcibrando]

then if thats the solution...they would need to start charging for parking at DTD

 

[dianeschlicht]

I think they should just have a DTD bus to/from the parks. The cheaters will always find a way around whatever roadblock you throw up. Why make things harder for the honest people? We wanted to go back to the MK after an afternoon at DTD and we took CR's bus and walked to the MK. So, it's not just SSR that is the problem and it was a PITB. I would have rather just taken the bus to the park directly.

You are absolutely correct, and if they did the parking meters with 4 hour limits at DTD, the buses to the parks wouldn't matter for parking there either. No one is going to try and do a park in less than 4 hours. Most people wont take more than 4 hours at DTD either....even if they go to a movie or CDS. I've spent so much time driving around DTD looking for a parking place and wishing they had meters so i could find a place to park!

 

[robinb]

You are absolutely correct, and if they did the parking meters with 4 hour limits at DTD, the buses to the parks wouldn't matter for parking there either. No one is going to try and do a park in less than 4 hours. Most people wont take more than 4 hours at DTD either....even if they go to a movie or CDS. I've spent so much time driving around DTD looking for a parking place and wishing they had meters so i could find a place to park!

That solution doesn't even require that you charge for parking at DTD. We used to have meters here in WI where you could get 15 minutes free by spinning the knob. Disney could have a free 4-hour spin and then ticket expired meters. But that requires them to (1) add meters and (2) enforce the parking rules. That costs more than just accommodating the free parking cheaters on the buses.

 

[dianeschlicht]

That solution doesn't even require that you charge for parking at DTD. We used to have meters here in WI where you could get 15 minutes free by spinning the knob. Disney could have a free 4-hour spin and then ticket expired meters. But that requires them to (1) add meters and (2) enforce the parking rules. That costs more than just accommodating the free parking cheaters on the buses.

That's probably true, but I wouldn't even mind if they had a pay booth when you went into the parking area.

 

[dvc_john]

To keep park guests from parking at DTD at DLR, they charge for parking. But they give you several free hours (3 I think), and an extra 2 hours if you validate at a movie theater or restaurant.

Something else that would help at DTD at WDW would be to allow free (or reduced rate) parking at the parks for Florida Seasonal Passholders.

 

[JaxDisneyFans]

Something else that would help at DTD at WDW would be to allow free parking at the parks for Florida Seasonal Passholders.

I totally agree about free parking for FL Season Passholders! This would eliminate the need for locals to use DTD as their onsite parking lot.