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Reported on the Touring Plans blog...

Magic Kingdom Monorails at Reduced Capacity Due to Beam Damage

Overnight the monorail beams between the Grand Floridian Resort and the Magic Kingdom suffered some sort of damage that is causing delays in transit times between monorail stops. Cast member’s are saying it was some sort of beam joint that was damaged due to the extremely low temperatures. This is forcing the monorails to slow to a crawl as they cross that section of the route, reducing capacity and slowing service times. During peak periods of guest travel this means increased waits at all stops on the Magic Kingdom Resort and Express lines. The Epcot line is running as normal.

Currently no timeline has been given for the repairs to be made and for service to return to normal.

http://networkedblogs.com/tVQHZ

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Oh I am sure Lou will have something to say about this.

Pretty sure it will be something along the lines of

"I told you so!"

It says they have to go slower. Is that even possible? I coast faster than the blistering monorail speed of 35MPH.

I guess the tiny numbers of people that they do manage to transport in between the breakdowns and when taken as a percentage of the total, will have to use some other means of transportation. Hmmm, what could that be?

Get rid of it as a serious people mover and make it an attraction. After all, it is cool looking.

Have I told you that it takes 5 times as many people to maintain it than the buses.

Sorry H. Oh wait, we're not apologizing for nothing.

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Get rid of it as a serious people mover and make it an attraction. After all, it is cool looking.
I have always thought of it as an attraction.

If you recall, after WDW upgraded their system they sold monorails to Las Vegas. While those WDW cars have been phased out, they are still running a similar system, but running out of money.

http://www.lvrj.com/business/las-vegas-monorail-tries-again-to-get-on-track-138702339.html

So, it would appear that an entity like Disney can support it as part of an overall attraction/experience but in the real world it can't support itself.

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So, it would appear that an entity like Disney can support it as part of an overall attraction/experience but in the real world it can't support itself.

I'm not sure that even Disney could support a monorail if it hadn't already made the capitol investment. It's costing them an arm and a leg to keep it running. It's reaching the point of no return though. They either have to replace the trains or extend the existing trains and rails lives. How much life do they have left?

And that's why it will never be expanded at WDW. At estimates of between 100 and 150 million dollars per mile, that's right, per mile, they could never justify expanding it. Why do you think the WL didn't get a monorail.

As a engineering concept, monorails are one of the most flawed transportation systems ever built, but they look cool.

They can't go very fast without jumping off the track, but they look cool.

They don't handle curves or inclines well, but they look cool.

They're maintenance hogs, but they look cool.

Have I mentioned that they look real cool?

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From what I understand, the WL is actually not that far away from the existing monorail. Not sure what the land is like, but an elevated walkway through the trees, and a station, Voila, the Wilderness Lodge has the monorail.

Standing at the front door of the WL to the closest point onthe monorail line would be about 1155 feet/352 meters (crossing all WL parking lots, and also crossing World Drive). So, it would be almost 1/4 mile. I would't mind it but many folks would object to a monorail station that far away.

Note: All measurements made using Google Earth, so I might be off jsut a little.

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As a engineering concept, monorails are one of the most flawed transportation systems ever built, but they look cool.

They can't go very fast without jumping off the track, but they look cool.

They don't handle curves or inclines well, but they look cool.

They're maintenance hogs, but they look cool.

Have I mentioned that they look real cool?

Taking the chance that you are indeed talking about monorails in general, rather than Disney's implementation, I respectfully beg to differ.

Please see the Schwbebahn monorail, it's only been in use since 1901. It travels at about 26 km/hr average, and climbs up to 4% grade, and carries 82,000 passengers a day. It does look cool, especially when it is swinging out around the turns! The accident involving the elephant is worth reading about, I am glad nobody was terribly injured.

Also look at the Seattle Monorail, Tokyo's Disney Resort Line, or the Shanghai Maglev Train (going nearly 300 mph!).

Yes, they do look cool!

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Taking the chance that you are indeed talking about monorails in general, rather than Disney's implementation, I respectfully beg to differ.

Please see the Schwbebahn monorail, it's only been in use since 1901. It travels at about 26 km/hr average, and climbs up to 4% grade, and carries 82,000 passengers a day. It does look cool, especially when it is swinging out around the turns!

Also look at the Seattle Monorail, Tokyo's Disney Resort Line, or the Shanghai Maglev Train (going nearly 300 mph!).

How dare you differ with me Hans? Someones been on Google. BTW, have you posted what town in NH you're from?

You can't compare the Schwbebahn system to the single beam monorail. It's a totally different concept. It's a suspension and cable driven design. It's also travels a short distance, only about 900 feet, it's a toy.

As far as I know there are no moderate or long distance distance single beam monorails operating anywhere in in the world that are not heavily subsidized by the government. Only the tax paying schmucks can afford to build any of those wacky systems.

The Shanghai system is a maglev and suffers from some of the same problems as a monorail, mainly cost.

Let's talk monorails as in single beam monorail like the one at WDW.

Take that, Mr newbie Swede from somewhere in NH.

Monique, if you live anywhere near Hans, stop by and slap him on the head for differing with me.

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How dare you differ with me Hans? Someones been on Google. BTW, have you posted what town in NH you're from?

You can't compare the Schwbebahn system to the single beam monorail. It's a totally different concept. It's a suspension and cable driven design. It's also travels a short distance, only about 900 feet, it's a toy.

As far as I know there are no moderate or long distance distance single beam monorails operating anywhere in in the world that are not heavily subsidized by the government. Only the tax paying schmucks can afford to build any of those wacky systems.

The Shanghai system is a maglev and suffers from some of the same problems as a monorail, mainly cost.

Let's talk monorails as in single beam monorail like the one at WDW.

Take that, Mr newbie Swede from somewhere in NH.

Monique, if you live anywhere near Hans, stop by and slap him on the head for differing with me.

Wow, I'm gald I didn't disagree!
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Wow, I'm glad I didn't disagree!

You're no fun Tim.

If you ever do, make sure you duck.

Ya, you better. Have you ever been smacked on the side of the head by a Queen of Content before?

Eh, don't mind Lou, somebody must have hugged him today! :lmao1:

Have you considered, Miss Smarty Pants, that maybe it was because I didn't get hugged. Just kidding, that's ridiculous. I don't hug.

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I feel like I'm in the Twilight Zone. I clicked to go on the second page of this report, and ended up on this site:

http://sonsoflars.co...image.php?pid=2

Just who the heck is the mystery Swede from NH?

TCD

That is Twilight Zone-ish TCD.

Hans had the audacity to differ with me. Can you believe that?

I know people in NH.

I'm sure he'll be along soon to apologize.

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