That didn't take long...Skyliner Accident

[artinlife]

They run over Hourglass lake to the Pop/AofA station.

Oh, ok. We drove to Hollywood Studios and got on there and rode to Carribbean Beach, had lunch and then rode to the International Gateway entrance at Epcot. We did not take the spur going to POP.
One thing to remember: when taking transportation like that always use the bathroom first. :0)

 

[Captainkidd76]

A pet peeve of mine is when people criticize others for even discussing a 1st world problem then bring up a mass shooting or plane crash. Guess what: 99% of what is discussed on a Disney message board is a 1st world issue. If you don't find it worth discussing, find some place else to discuss gloom and doom.

 

[Mickey'sApprentice]

I don't think they operate above water. We rode them last week and the path was over land.

The Pop Century/Art of Animation line goes over water

 

[artinlife]

Yes. Someone else said that too.

 

[disneymagicgirl]

There is a skyliner evacuation boat. It is a multi level contraption. People saw it when they were testing the system.

It is parked near the Lm rooms at AofA.

 

[disneydreamer781]

While this won’t lead me to never ride the Skyliner, my desire to stay at Caribbean Beach and have to rely on this as a major form of transportation just went WAY down.

I’m glad that nobody was hurt. This is a nightmare for Disney, as the fix to this might be a substantial cost and cause a significant amount of downtime to at least part of the Skyliner. I’m so sorry that people were stranded on this for hours in the middle of the night. Disney should’ve been handing out free APs and upgrades to the nicest rooms on properties after this.

I know. I booked CBR because of the proximity to the Skyliner. Now I'm pretty much stuck unless I find a DVC rental. Doesn't deter me at all from riding it. I've been stuck on a monorail before for about 1.5 - 2 hours with not much A/C. At least these smell better.

 

[Lewisc]

Gondolas moving through Rivera move slow enough to allow guests in ECV to load and unload without the need to stop the skyliner. CMs were reportedly stopping the Skyliner every time a guest in an ECV entered and left a gondola at Riviera. I wonder if the system, as designed, can handle E-Stops every few minutes without subjecting some components to extra stress.

 

[Linkura]

Can't speak for Disney Transport but I don't think that any transit agency can mobilize equipment and personnel quickly for a sudden emergency.

For example on the Boston MBTA when the Riverside trolley went off the track (near Fenway Park) they had to pull buses off of other routes leaving gaps in service there (read: wheelchair guests possibly left behind while others who could cram into the remaining buses being allowed and expected to do so) plus the time to drive buses over to fill in on the affected route.

Couple that with union rules that require that additional drivers be summoned in order of seniority even though it may take longer for them to get to the bus lot to begin working.

I don't think a comparison to the MBTA, which is a severely underfunded and mismanaged system, is warranted here. Disney is a private company with billions in resources. Their response and guest recovery in this situation has been a complete and utter embarrassment.

 

[suemom2kay]

Gondolas moving through Rivera move slow enough to allow guests in ECV to load and unload without the need to stop the skyliner. CMs were reportedly stopping the Skyliner every time a guest in an ECV entered and left a gondola at Riviera. I wonder if the system, as designed, can handle E-Stops every few minutes without subjecting some components to extra stress.

I’m just going to say it. How will the evacuation of a 400 pound guest with mobility issues in an ECV go? That would not be an easy rescue. How about a patient in a wheelchair that can’t transfer? There is not a lot of room for first responders to work in the gondola with a mobility device present.

 

[Lclark5678]

I’m just going to say it. How will the evacuation of a 400 pound guest with mobility issues in an ECV go? That would not be an easy rescue. How about a patient in a wheelchair that can’t transfer? There is not a lot of room for first responders to work in the gondola with a mobility device present.

Especially over water. Same goes for guests with babies and small children.

 

[suemom2kay]

Especially over water. Same goes for guests with babies and small children.

Truth. I definitely expect a looong downtime with changes forthcoming.

 

[snappy]

I’m just going to say it. How will the evacuation of a 400 pound guest with mobility issues in an ECV go? That would not be an easy rescue. How about a patient in a wheelchair that can’t transfer? There is not a lot of room for first responders to work in the gondola with a mobility device present.

Maybe one of these scenarios contributed to the evacuations taking so long last night. Not sure how we will ever know. Disney won’t be disclosing.

 

[suemom2kay]

Questions:

Is there a sensor that is supposed to trip if a gondola fails to leave the station that would halt the station push mechanism?

If there is a sensor, why did it fail to stop the cars following the stopped blue gondola?

 

[Ghostridethedolewhip]

A pet peeve of mine is when people criticize others for even discussing a 1st world problem then bring up a mass shooting or plane crash. Guess what: 99% of what is discussed on a Disney message board is a 1st world issue. If you don't find it worth discussing, find some place else to discuss gloom and doom.

This is part of the marketing plan. Next up will be all 4 people that will be stuck in the NBA experience. Will be forced to shoot free throws for 3 straight hours. Gotta get the word out somehow.

 

[LiteBrite]

It's incredible to me that they didn't have Minnie vans lined up waiting to get the people back to their resorts immediately after they got off the Skyliner. That they had to search for a bus at that time of night with no CM presence to direct them just blows my mind.

 

[snappy]

It's incredible to me that they didn't have Minnie vans lined up waiting to get the people back to their resorts immediately after they got off the Skyliner. That they had to search for a bus at that time of night with no CM presence to direct them just blows my mind.

I agree. Disney compounded the PR problem. Not smart in the age of twitter.

 

[VandVsmama]

Here's what I think about this gondola train wreck:

1. If it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, it's a duck. This was an accident. Some sort of collision. Broken glass? Accident. Disney is fooling no one by calling it otherwise.
2. Stuck for hours in an enclosed glass space in central Florida where for most of the year, it's hot and sweaty? No thank you. Say hello to heat stroke and heat exhaustion.
3. Stroller or ECV or wheelchair? No thanks. Forget it. If I required any of those devices, I just would not use the gondola system as a mode of transportation. Why? Same reason a previous poster mentioned...confined space, limited space to move around and now you and rescuers have to maneuver around a large mobility device. What if you're disabled enough that you need a motorized wheelchair complete with CPAP breathing apparatus? Could you imagine the nightmare of that? No thanks.
4. Could you imagine the above rescue while over water? Forget it.
5. Or getting stuck in a gondola during a Florida thunderstorm? Just you wait...it'll happen. No thanks.
6. Somebody commented earlier something to the effect of "Yeah, like there are never any crashes with cars or buses." Well duh, there ARE car and bus accidents every day. But you know what? Emergency personnel are equipped to handle that. And you know what else? If you're IN a bus when it crashes, you at least are not 30 or so feet up in the air. You're probably about 3' off of the ground. Huge difference. Disney buses have 2 doors on them. Plus in cases of emergency just like school buses, the windows can probably be popped out in order to get people out. In those gondola cars? None of that.
7. Have gondolas been used for decades all over the world? You bet! But I would argue that you don't see too many wheelchair and ECV-bound people going on gondolas at ski resorts. Skiers and snowboarders getting on and off gondolas **usually** don't have too many physical limitations. I say **usually** because there ARE disabled skiers and snowboarders. But they are far fewer in number than the quantity of disabled guests possibly riding a sweaty WDW gondola.
8. All of the starts & stops & 5-min waits that people have reported here and elsewhere on the gondolas make it an inefficient mode of transportation.
9. As a result, staying at a gondola resort right now is not a plus, it's a negative. So any premium on room rates that Disney was hoping to charge? That just temporarily went out the window with this accident.

 

[VandVsmama]

DIS article about the accident, which includes an account from somebody who was in 1 of the cars at the station right behind the gondola car that got stuck...
https://www.wdwinfo.com/news-storie...-causing-major-delays-evacuation-in-progress/

 

[sharadoc]

Gondolas moving through Rivera move slow enough to allow guests in ECV to load and unload without the need to stop the skyliner. CMs were reportedly stopping the Skyliner every time a guest in an ECV entered and left a gondola at Riviera. I wonder if the system, as designed, can handle E-Stops every few minutes without subjecting some components to extra stress.

I thought they pulled cars off to a separate loading area for wheelchairs and ECVs. Is it possible that protocols aren't being followed?

 

[sam_gordon]

What's the height of the monorails? I don't see a big difference between being stuck in a gondola w/ECV, wheelchair, or stroller, vs stuck on the monorail with the same.

And, yes, 3 hours should be PLENTY of time to figure out a plan with what to do when the stranded guests get to some location.