Why is it that...

[calif disney]

I can go to any city in the United States...go to a bus bench grab a schedule, and count on the bus being there in a relative amount of time. But When I go to WDW all I get is...the bus will be there in 20 minutes, and it never is...at least not when your tired and want to get back to your room....(after 12 hours of being run all over the park by two young kids)

And does anybody have any idea how long they have been running peoples finger prints through the computer when entering the park. I just got back, and have never seen that before.

 

[betterlatethannever]

I can go to any city in the United States...go to a bus bench grab a schedule, and count on the bus being there in a relative amount of time. But When I go to WDW all I get is...the bus will be there in 20 minutes, and it never is...at least not when your tired and want to get back to your room....(after 12 hours of being run all over the park by two young kids)

And does anybody have any idea how long they have been running peoples finger prints through the computer when entering the park. I just got back, and have never seen that before.

They started the finger scan at the beginning of the year when they started up the new MYW tickets. BTW, they do not scan fingerprints.

From Allearsnet.com

What The Biometric Readers Do

The reader identifies you as the true owner of the ticket. The first time you use a Biometric reader at a turnstile, it takes a few measurements of your index and middle fingers, which are recorded in a database and referenced to a number encoded on your ticket. When you use your tickets again later, the readers compare your fingers to the measurements it already has stored for your ticket, and if they match, it allows you to enter the park. If they don't match, you'll have to show some form of ID to prove the ticket is yours. Kids do not have to produce ID.

What the Biometric System Does NOT Do

The Biometric reader does NOT scan your fingerprints, and the database does NOT store any other information about you other than your particular finger measurements and your ticket number. The information contained in the Biometric database is completely worthless to anyone other than you and the automated turnstile, and the information cannot be used for anything else other than identifying you as the owner of the ticket. There is far more information about you printed on your own personal checks from your bank than there is stored on the Biometric database.

TIP: Be sure to have everyone in your party sign the back of their ticket immediately to avoid confusion at the turnstile. If you use someone else's ticket by mistake, the measurements will not match and the turnstile will lock.

Me again. The above TIP doesn't seem to matter since my DW and I have switched tickets accidentally and we both got through. I've seen a thread here that the computers are smart enough to recognize that the ticket is part of the same family and accepts it.

Ed

 

[MrsNick]

I can go to any city in the United States...go to a bus bench grab a schedule, and count on the bus being there in a relative amount of time. But When I go to WDW all I get is...the bus will be there in 20 minutes, and it never is...at least not when your tired and want to get back to your room....(after 12 hours of being run all over the park by two young kids)

And does anybody have any idea how long they have been running peoples finger prints through the computer when entering the park. I just got back, and have never seen that before.

You've never tried taking the bus in NYC then, have you?

 

[Tara]

And does anybody have any idea how long they have been running peoples finger prints through the computer when entering the park. I just got back, and have never seen that before.

They don't run fingerprints. They scan the bones in your fingers and compare them against your original scan in a way that reasonably assures you are the ticket holder. Annual passholders and Florida residents have long been required to have their fingers scanned for park entry, and this practice was extended to all guests when Magic Your Way passes came into being.

 

[DebbieB]

I've had AP's since 1998 and they were doing the finger scan then, so it's really not new, it was just extended to all passes.

Regarding the bus schedules, I rent a car so I don't have to deal with that.

 

[paladin]

Regarding bus schedules in major cities: remember that those buses are public transportation, these are not. They don't really need to publish a schedule since their schedule is every twenty minutes (or so). Even if there were a printed schedule, it doesn't mean that the buses will always adhere to it - there are many things that can slow buses down (public or Disney) - weather, traffic, accidents, loading wheelchairs, etc.

Sorry to hear that you had trouble with the buses and hope the rest of your trip was great.

 

[CarolA]

Where do you live??? Buses run on a schedule??? Our subway can't even stay on the schedule much less the buses LOL!

It's not a finger print it's a scan... and they are going to use it to arrest all of us one day (Just kidding... as I understand it they don't really even keep it, they code it on the card the first time you use it... the machine then compares the reads...That's why you have to recode every time you get a new AP...)

 

[seashoreCM]

For all cities and WDW -- I wish there was a way of knowing how many minutes until the next bus or streetcar or subway train came. Actually all I would like to know is one of two things, whether it is coming in less than three minutes versus more than three minutes so I know whether I have to run to catch it or whether I can just walk.

Disney has the technology to give me that knowledge.

Disney hints:
http://members.aol.com/ajaynejr/disney.htm

 

[thegales]

Remember also that Disney will increase buses as the need arises. Say at the end of a long evening, there is a large queue for one of the resorts. Disney will reallocate a bus to handle that queue. If all the buses were on a fixed schedule, then the people would need to wait until the next scheduled bus if the first bus was full.

I know it seems like your resort bus is always the last to come, especially at the end of a long day. One thing we noticed though, if we do check our watches just as we get to the bus stop, it really is 20 minutes or less that we needed to wait for the bus. Although, I would swear we had waited for twice that long.

 

[bdcp]

WDW buses also run on a continuous schedule from x am to xpm or whatever. City, commuter buses run from pt a to pt b at a specific time. Of course, I've never had to wait very long for a bus at WDW. The size of the crowd for a particular resort bus has a lot to do with the size of the resort also.