Do you think that Disney will extend the monorail to MGM, AK, DownTown Disney, and possibly more hotels? If they were to extend it to AK, then I think that would bring more traffic into the park. I think people would be more willing to go shopping and spend more times at the park, if they didn't have to use the bus or car for transportation.

Light rail would be a better choice than a monorail. Monorail's, tracks, and supports cost too much money than they did in 1972 for Magic Kingdom and then in 1982 for the Epcot expansion.

It was on the table a few years ago and they even broke ground but they never actually did anything with it. If you look closely, the swan and dolphin were supposed to have a monorail through it, but never did.

there has been spectulation of the monorails tracks being extended but the cost of it is alot around 1 million dollars per mile and that was back in the 70's and 80's. since then the value of the dollar has lowered so we could be looking at more money per mile of track than it was before. as connecting all the railways, that could possibly be too difficult unless they were to build another TTC center. right now the monorail system works fine with the tracks that they have now although since epcot is so close to mgm studios, they could try extending it to mgm.

And something I forgot.

Buses are alot more reliable than monorails. If a bus breaks down, then you can call on another. If a monorail breaks down, then that entire line is down until you can get it off the track which would take hours.

The monorails have an excellent history, and I have yet to find an example of one breaking down, as suggested. Even so, they have quick-response procedures in place, and the hours suggested is a big exaggeration.

The cost issue of a million per mile was actually from the 1990s, not earlier, and while it may have gone up, it's possible that new technology has actually made it stay the same.

The reason for the cost is the water table in that part of Florida creates the need to better stability built into the pylon structure.

The main reason the Monorails were never expanded was Micheal Eisner and his (as Roy Disney complained) desire to build "on the cheap." With Iger in charge, Jobs on the Disney Board, and Lasseter at Inagineering, this view may change dramatically.

The argument currently being given against the lightrail idea is twofold: 1) the Monorail is a Disneyland/Disney World icon, and considered by many to be a symbol of the parks - a main reason it circles Futureworld when arriving at EPCOT.

2) The questions of handling ground traffic is dispelled totally when the suspended Monorail track is used - a major concern to the WDW planners. The lightrail idea would involve some workarounds - such as tunnels and bridges, even fences - that would possibly drive the cost back up to the total Monorail costs. In which case, they might as well do the monorail.

At any rate, some solution has to be decided upon, as WDW is consistanly low on opinion numbers when it comes to transportation around the resort, except for the lagoon and the Monorail to EPCOT.

Im just wondering does that mean it will be extended to DLR?? Or are they thinking about extending the monorail from DLR to WDW?

Well I know that I have seen a monorail break down once or twice in my life, and have seen a few accounts of one breaking down. I know of one where they had to use a cherry picker to get the people out of the train and then had to literally tow the train back to the Monorail depot (which I would think would take a few hours to accomplish). From a show I saw a while back, the monorails have a 99.8% effiency(sp?) rating.

I agree that the monorail is a definate symbol of Disney. What would be interesting to see (I doubt it would ever happen) is if they use Walt's idea of the old EPCOT and use the Peoplemover a.k.a Tomorrowland Transit Authority tracks to connect the different resorts and parks. I'd figure that it would cost about the same as the monorail (which would defeat the whole purpose) but I can dream.

Im just wondering does that mean it will be extended to DLR?? Or are they thinking about extending the monorail from DLR to WDW?

Why would they make a monorail go from coast to coast?

wow, that sounds great! i hope they will.. and great idea ;)

you have a point they should exstend the monorail system

Thanks to a recent discussion about this thread, I've been given a couple of nifty pieces of info about one of the long-proposed extensions.

I'm awaiting some photos, at which point I'll pass them on with explanations.

I'm sure it'll happen EVENTUALLY. I do remember getting a piece of info that an engineer in FL told his son that he just got told "They're doing some extremely major work on the monorail tracks with his company".

I'd love to see the Monorail go into the Boardwalk, Beach/Yacht Clubs, and Swan/Dolphin hotels, since the monorail goes through epcot, and those are epcot hotels. I don't know where they'd fit it, though, and it may not happen because Epcot is within walking distance of all 3. I could see a Monorail expansion into the front gate of AK as well as AKL. Possibly even between MGM/Epcot.

If you look closely, the swan and dolphin were supposed to have a monorail through it, but never did.

If you look at the picture here http://www.kingdom-travel.com/Walt_Disney_World_Resorts/_ResortAssets/Swan_Dolphin/Disney_Swan_Dolphin_RESORT_2.jpg you will see black squares in each building. These sections of rooms were designed to be easily removed (well... easier) if the extension was to happen after building them. The issue, as always, was cost. If they ever decide to extend both resorts would be quick to adapt without too much down time to rebuild walls and platforms and such.

I'd love to see the Monorail go into the Boardwalk, Beach/Yacht Clubs, and Swan/Dolphin hotels, since the monorail goes through epcot, and those are epcot hotels. I don't know where they'd fit it, though, and it may not happen because Epcot is within walking distance of all 3. The distance is not actually an issue, and given the need for handicapped assistance, it would actually be helpful.

But let me point out a couple of other things:

* there is a boat line from these hotels to EPCOT and MGM. If Disney World felt that way about the "walking distance," the boats would not be there.

* The distance only helps if you plan to go from those hotels to EPCOT via the International Gateway. If you want to go to Magic Kingdom, you must use the bus. And there is no bus from these hotels to the EPCOT front entrance (where the monorails are) so you are stuck with the bus. And while you may suggest walking through EPCOT to get from the hotels to the monorail (not all that easy a walk), not everyone has a hopper pass.

* If Disney World felt that way about the walking distance, there would be no monorail service to the Contemporary, Grand Floridian, and Polynesian . . . all walking distance to the TTC and Magic Kingdom.

(That last MUST be extended some time to include the Wilderness Lodge. The boat service to the lodge is horrible.)

Eisner was cheap, but there are reasons the monorail won't hapen sooner....

They have to figure out how to make them more reliable then the 96% they currently are... if something happens they can't detour a monorail cutting all the compacity down, it might be better to invest in new busses using a different fueil method right now.....

I'm for wdw monorail expansion to all the parks, but first, fix up the current system and parks....

(Add elevators to mk and ttc stations... you push a wheelchair up those steap hills)
If you look at the picture here http://www.kingdom-travel.com/Walt_Disney_World_Resorts/_ResortAssets/Swan_Dolphin/Disney_Swan_Dolphin_RESORT_2.jpg you will see black squares in each building. These sections of rooms were designed to be easily removed (well... easier) if the extension was to happen after building them. The issue, as always, was cost. If they ever decide to extend both resorts would be quick to adapt without too much down time to rebuild walls and platforms and such.
Wrong, urban rumor.... the archetect made the hotels with that because of his style of arcetecture....

Also, the 2 resorts don't line up with the black squares.

it would be neat if they ran the monorail to all of the hotels and to mgm and animal kingdom or more did transporation centers near large groups of hotels like the all stars:wave2:

The monorails have an excellent history, and I have yet to find an example of one breaking down, as suggested. Even so, they have quick-response procedures in place, and the hours suggested is a big exaggeration.

The cost issue of a million per mile was actually from the 1990s, not earlier, and while it may have gone up, it's possible that new technology has actually made it stay the same.

The reason for the cost is the water table in that part of Florida creates the need to better stability built into the pylon structure.

The main reason the Monorails were never expanded was Micheal Eisner and his (as Roy Disney complained) desire to build "on the cheap." With Iger in charge, Jobs on the Disney Board, and Lasseter at Inagineering, this view may change dramatically.

The argument currently being given against the lightrail idea is twofold: 1) the Monorail is a Disneyland/Disney World icon, and considered by many to be a symbol of the parks - a main reason it circles Futureworld when arriving at EPCOT.

2) The questions of handling ground traffic is dispelled totally when the suspended Monorail track is used - a major concern to the WDW planners. The lightrail idea would involve some workarounds - such as tunnels and bridges, even fences - that would possibly drive the cost back up to the total Monorail costs. In which case, they might as well do the monorail.

At any rate, some solution has to be decided upon, as WDW is consistanly low on opinion numbers when it comes to transportation around the resort, except for the lagoon and the Monorail to EPCOT.


When i was at WDW last time ( like a week ago) i heard that the track was struck by lighting a they had to shut down the whole system.

On August 10th, we rode in the front of the Monorail traveling from EPCOT to the Ticket and Transportation Center. The cast member told us what she was told by a "higher-up"-

1-The monorail extension is almost a go, they just need to work out the budget.
2-The plan is to first extend EPCOT's monorail station to include another track. That track to lead to a station in front of Disney MGM Studios.
3-From there, they wish to extend a new "resort" track to include Boardwalk, Yacht and Beach, and Swan and Dolphin.

She also went on to say that the "higher-up" talked about them extending it to DTD and DAKL/AK in the future. I'm not sure if it's all fact, but that's what we were told.

1-The monorail extension is almost a go, they just need to work out the budget.


Oh... just the budget... hrm... that shouldn't be a big deal... should it. (Aside from the budget being the biggest thing preventing expansion for the past... oh... 20 years or so...)

They are saying since the disney cruises are at Port Canaveral (i live like 2 miles from here) they also might extend it there.

Originally posted by:WDWFanaticDWell
I know that I have seen a monorail break down once or twice in my life, and have seen a few accounts of one breaking down. I know of one where they had to use a cherry picker to get the people out of the train and then had to literally tow the train back to the Monorail depot (which I would think would take a few hours to accomplish). From a show I saw a while back, the monorails have a 99.8% effiency(sp?)

Sounds like somebody has been hanging around the Seattle Center monorail a bit too much. The reason the SC Monorail breaks down so much is that it is the only remaining Alweg Original monorail (Disney monorails are based on the Alweg design) In the world, and the city of Seattle seems to think that the monorail has 10000000000000000000000000000000000 more years of service (If disney did the same, the monorails would break down every day too). Bottom line? it's just old.

Sdude, there is no point extending the line to the port, can you imagine getting on the monorail with your bags? Squish City!
~MSDThomas

Oh... just the budget... hrm... that shouldn't be a big deal... should it. (Aside from the budget being the biggest thing preventing expansion for the past... oh... 20 years or so...)Bleh, don't remind me. It's the budget, and that's all we were told. What's also the reason for extending them, is that it's a good investment (according to numerous CMs we asked about the extension). With gas prices raising every week, it would (over time) cost less to run the monorails instead of buses.

They are saying since the disney cruises are at Port Canaveral (i live like 2 miles from here) they also might extend it there.

This concept has been around since the early days of planning for the Space Shuttle project, when they were expecting montly launches. The rumor floating around then was that there would be a series of monorails between WDW and KSC. (I can't actually find a reference for this at the moment, but I've had several people repeat this as true.)

Bleh, don't remind me. It's the budget, and that's all we were told. What's also the reason for extending them, is that it's a good investment (according to numerous CMs we asked about the extension). With gas prices raising every week, it would (over time) cost less to run the monorails instead of buses.

I think it more likely that they would build a refinery on property to convert all the used cooking oil to biodiesel fuel for use in the busses. This seems like a much cheaper alternative. Remember that the monorails do need power to run, and they have to pay for that power somehow. So its not exactly like they can run the monorails for free once they build the track.

Trust me... I love the monorail... being a monorail pilot has been a fantasy of mine for a very very long time. But the numbers just don't work out.

Its rumored that there is an expansion coming, but not for a long time because its going to cost an estimated 10 Million dollars or some other extrmely expensive amount. And its rumored to etend to a lot more hotels and to hit another area or park i forgot where though

Disney is also getting Mach 7 Monerails soon that can go 65MPH and Get from The Monerial center to Epcot in less then 45 Seconds

Disney is also getting Mach 7 Monerails soon that can go 65MPH and Get from The Monerial center to Epcot in less then 45 SecondsThe Mark VIIs are going to DLR only. The trains are very different between DLR and WDW, so if WDW were to get a new train, it would have to be the Mark VIII or beyond.

The Mark VIIs are going to DLR only. The trains are very different between DLR and WDW, so if WDW were to get a new train, it would have to be the Mark VIII or beyond.
That's very interesting, something I might dig into later. Oh, and a monorail traveling from EPCOT to TATC in 45 seconds would be amazing, but wouldn't it not be able to take the turns?

Also, WDW has started refurbishing monorails as well. The monorail trains on the EPCOT/TATC loop now have a hard floor (not carpet) and new seats. You can smell the difference :D

I really think they should have a monorail going to AK. I mean when i went to WDW I didn't even know how to get to Animal kingdom. What about the water parks? I think they should have a monorail from the water parks to the hotels. Just My 2 Cents.

Are you sure about all of what you're saying? There couldn't possibly be any monorails being updated in WDW, and I don't know about DLR, never been there except 3rd grade, but VMK wasn't open and I was too scared to do anything @_@

Points?
1)They'd have to shut down about 1/3 of the roads in WDW just to start.
2)To build the tracks it would probably cost 1.5 million at the least...
3)...to do the detours, people would have to go through staff areas, so there would be more buses to take care of, so bus stuff: about 250 grand a week for gas and probably insurance...
4)...plus, don't forget extra monorails! An extra 500 grand.

But, it would be more convenient, seeing how it takes 15 mintues to get from the Animal Kingdom to Magic Kingdom.

Just my :twocents: on this.

I will say this much:

The monorail brings in a different crowd, an offsite crowd to resorts, we noticed a ton of people at the Poly and Contemp who were not even staying onsite. The pools at both resorts were very crowded and also were their lobbies.

I love the Wilderness, and do keep in mind the boat goes express to MK before 3 PM and express going back after 3 PM ;)

I cannot see an expansion being imminent, the monorail is no cheap thing to assemble and build, at all.

Do keep in mind it would make the Boardwalk area VERY crowded, a good thing for Mickey Mouse.

Here is my :twocents:

The WDW Monorail system is not going to be expanded in the near future. They are not going to be adding any additional monorail trains in the near future. Right now, they have enough to do keeping the current system up and running. They will be rehabbing the trains at a leisurely rate.

This concept has been around since the early days of planning for the Space Shuttle project, when they were expecting montly launches. The rumor floating around then was that there would be a series of monorails between WDW and KSC. (I can't actually find a reference for this at the moment, but I've had several people repeat this as true.)



I think it more likely that they would build a refinery on property to convert all the used cooking oil to biodiesel fuel for use in the busses. This seems like a much cheaper alternative. Remember that the monorails do need power to run, and they have to pay for that power somehow. So its not exactly like they can run the monorails for free once they build the track.

Trust me... I love the monorail... being a monorail pilot has been a fantasy of mine for a very very long time. But the numbers just don't work out.

i dont really think disney would expand all the way to the port bc that would put them in more dept than they are already since track cost $1 million dollars
I Also think they would expand to the parks first then resorts but i wish they would just focus on the bus system bc there might be a way in the near future that Honda cars and some bmw cars will be run by hydrogen to try snd break the addiction to oil but if they were to use gas i would think they would use the new fuel that uses sugar cane bc it uses no oil but the E85 ethanol that the us has uses oil and the buses have been more reliable and seems faster.