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Belle_0717
05-16-2008, 08:34 AM
Not sure if I should post this here so please move if necessary.

My family has encountered slow running buses from time to time based on the park. But after a call last night from my parents who are currently at WDW, I have some concerns and please let me know if anyone has encountered the same these last few weeks.

My parents have encountered many bus problems this trip. On Wednesday, they waited over 50 minutes at EPCOT to return to SSR! At DTD, they waited 45 minutes to go just 10 min to SSR (it was late and they are getting old - well they probably enjoyed too many libations and good eats too!) A gentleman last night they were speaking with waited over 1 hour for a MK bus - he was going back for the fireworks and the bus arrived at 8:40 pm. Guess he can kiss his "WISHES" goodbye.

Is this just a SSR problem? Has anyone had this problem at other resorts?? I am curious to find out and then know how to bring this up to Disney.

crazeedizneefinatic
05-16-2008, 08:58 AM
I have been thinking about this. I don't have anyone there now but we are going in September. I can imagine with the gas prices Disney would have to cut back on busses. I don't know that for sure but I can imagine that being a possibility. Gas prices here in Pittsburgh reached $3.81 this morning for regular.

GeorgeOfTheJungle
05-16-2008, 09:19 AM
I'm currently at the World and experiencing bus problems too! We have had to wait 40ish minutes for a bus from AK back to our resort, POP Century. People in front of us in that line had been waiting an hour! Also the other night we waited another 35 minutes for a bus from DD back to our resort. It seems like we've waited longer than 20 minutes at other times too.

And we had problems with a boat the other night too. It was 9:39pm when we got down to the WL dock expecting to get a ride back to MK to get a bus back to our resort. We waited about 25 minutes for the boat to come, and one of the guys working on it told us he'd board us and the 10ish people behind us as soon as he unloaded. 10 minutes later after everyone was off the boat, he came back to us and said that it was too late to take anyone back to MK and that we'd have to take buses to DD! We were all upset that he had not just told us that in the first place! So we ended up taking the bus from DD, but it was also running late, so needless to say it was a long night!

JPL
05-16-2008, 09:22 AM
At slower times of the year they often cutback on the buses. Most people assume since it will be less crowded they will have a shorter wait for the bus but that is not always true.

MississippiDisneyFreak
05-16-2008, 10:20 AM
I read a post about this a couple of days ago? They said a CM told them they had underestimated crowds and therefore didn't schedule appropriately for bus drivers, therefore the long waits....

lightyearfan
05-16-2008, 10:33 AM
[QUOTE=Belle_0717;1630924]My parents have encountered many bus problems this trip. On Wednesday, they waited over 50 minutes at EPCOT to return to SSR! At DTD, they waited 45 minutes to go just 10 min to SSR A gentleman last night they were speaking with waited over 1 hour for a MK bus - he was going back for the fireworks and the bus arrived at 8:40 pm. Guess he can kiss his "WISHES" goodbye./QUOTE]

this is precisely why me and dw rent a car, now i know that some people will site that they can't afford to rent a car, and that's fine, but if you can swing it you should do it. we hate being on a schedule do to busing, after spending a full day at the parks we just want to leave and not have to que up in another line to get a bus , that you might be standing on until you get back to your resort. we also want to have the freedom to do whatever we want and having a car allows you to do this. what if you want to goto Seaworld or anywhere else outside of Disney property? it just seems much easier when you car (IMHO)

Victor

Victor

Belle_0717
05-16-2008, 12:22 PM
Thanks for the info.

Lightyear - my dad actually said Disney would be making a fortune if they owned their own rental car company now with the longer waits.

The manager in me has to ask - with increased crowds or larger than anticipated, can't they adjust scheduling appropriately??

SurferStitch
05-16-2008, 12:30 PM
We were in WDW last week, and I have to say, we only had one long wait the entire time. We were going to DTD for the afternoon, and the CM at the GF bus stop said the buses were running about 14 minutes apart....until we got there. Our wait was 40 minutes. Then again, over the 11 years we've been staying there, the DTD bus is always a long wait, day or night.

Other than that, we had anywhere from no wait (bus arrived as we walked up), to a 10 minute wait or less.

One morning we had an 8:10am breakfast at Tusker House, and decided to just drive to the park instead of chancing a late bus. We arrived at the gate at 7:35, just to find out they don't open the parking area until 7:45. We had to sit in front of the entrance until they removed the traffic cones and opened up. So, we probably didn't save any time until we actually parked and walked to the entrance. The drive was much shorter, but the wait at the gate didn't save us any time. That was the one and only time we touched our car the entire trip.

diz_girl
05-16-2008, 12:43 PM
Thankfully, I'll be driving to WDW in December, so I'll have my car to drive to the parks. This is exactly the reason why I'll be driving to the parks, with the exception of MK (taking the boat from WL) and possibly EPCOT. I really don't feel like waiting 45 minutes back to my resort trying to occupy a tired and possibly cranky toddler.

Gottaluvgoof
05-16-2008, 01:01 PM
There are many times, while waiting for a bus, I wished I had my car. It's a shame though, the whole idea of flying down and never having to drive in an unfamiliar place, is really appealing. Not to mention the savings cost of renting a vehicle. I just hope this is an isolated incident, and not a sign of the times (gas prices).

Jasper
05-16-2008, 01:15 PM
The comments about running fewer buses and thus driving up wait times during slow times has not been something we have ever experienced. Granted things can change but we normally go the week before Thanksgiving which is a traditionally slower time and have only rarely ever waited more than 20 minutes for a bus.

In fact, on some occasions when for various reasons we ended up with part of our party going by bus and part going by car we have almost always had the bus riders get back to the room before the car riders. And yes, that is with both parts of our party leaving the same park at the same time and going to side by side rooms at the same resort. This is interesting and certainly bears watching.

bird
05-16-2008, 06:25 PM
Hi,
We just returned from WDW and we thought the transportation was great, although we stayed at the Poly and only had to catch the bus to Animal Kingdom resorts, DTD, Animal Kingdom Park, we didn't have any problems with buses or any other form of transportation(monorail & ferry). The bus wait was 10-15 min the most if that.

Yolanda

TheRustyScupper
05-16-2008, 07:31 PM
. . . The manager in me has to ask - with increased crowds or larger than anticipated, can't they adjust scheduling appropriately?? . . .

1) They have tons of drivers.
2) Including many, many part time drivers.
3) Adjusting capacity is a 1-2 hour cure.
4) But, overriding the full-week computerized scheduling system is heresy.
5) Or, at least, promotion ending.
6) Managers are looked at in poor favor when they add personnel.
7) The COMPUTERIZED STAFFING IS GOD!

Pirate Granny
05-16-2008, 09:21 PM
We were there between Xmas and New Years last year...We waited no more than 20 minutes for five days and never had to stand...We had ONE exception...we waited at AKL for 55 minutes for a bus to EPCOT...I think it's the luck of the draw and when you arrive at the bus stop and what time...my friend is there now and she is at the ASMovies and has had zero issues with bus service (she said she planned to take a taxi if the lines looked bad, but hasn't had to resort to that yet). We leave on Wednesday...hopefully we'll be just as lucky as it's the Memorial weekend.
:pirate:

Young@Heart
05-16-2008, 10:10 PM
I'm sorry they're having trouble. :(
We've never had good luck w/ the busses. Not only were the waits ridiculous, but the other passengers didn't seem to appreciate our stroller. :blush:

GrumpyFan
05-16-2008, 11:49 PM
The longest we've EVER waited for a bus was about 40 minutes, but that was at closing time for MK, so it was kind of expected.

I would suggest that they speak to the manager at SSR about the issue. Have them tell the story and as close to exact times that they think they waited. Once during a week-long trip might be acceptable, but more than once isn't.

Mickey Loves Golf
05-17-2008, 09:51 AM
Lots of factors contribute to wait times...First and foremost I tell guests that this is a magical world but that doesn't make it a perfect world. We are dealing with buses - a piece of machinery that can break down etc...then you have traffic and accidents and such. A hub could be short drivers that day - for various reasons and I won't go into that lol. Disney does know crowd patterns as we can all be sure they study those furiously but again its not a perfect world and there are no crystal balls in reality lol.

Probably the most important factor right now is the new MIM system they are implementing. Now not only are you dealing with a piece of machinery you are dealing with a piece of machinery that is dispatched via a computer based system of dispatching. YES they dispatched us via computers before but this is an entirely different system with kinks that they are trying to work out - daily. It is a difficult situation for us all - drivers, coordinators, managers and every one involved.

Please keep in mind that when a driver pulls up to your load zone and he/she is late, its more than likely not their fault. However, we are the ones on the front lines and we are the ones that get yelled at for being late when, as I mentioned before, it probably isn't our fault at all. We drive were we are dispatched when we are dispatched...we have no control were we go. It is a very involved system and in the long run the goal is to make our whole system more efficient. So please keep in mind that when your bus pulls up and its late...give the driver a smile. We don't want to be late anymore than you want us to be late. For all the "magical" stories I have shared on here I could share 100 more stories for times I have guests being irate and taking their frustrations out on me. If you are unhappy, please inform the driver that you would like to see a manager. That is what they are there for GSM - Guest Service Manager and remember drivers only go where they are told to go and when to go :thumbsup:

DizneyRox
05-18-2008, 10:55 AM
In recent years, Disney has switched form what used to be a scheduled bus system (where the rule a bus runs every 20 minutes) to a managed system based on demand. I wish they would stop advertising busses run every twenty minutes because it's just not true anymore.

The downfall of the new system is guest wait times. It appears to be based on the nuber of guests waiting for any particular bus. So, if 50 people are waiting for ASM, and 2 people are waiting for the SSR, the ASM crowd will probably get the next bus. I'm asusming that the length of those people waiting for SSR has SOME impact, but the number of people needs to take priority. The reason for that could be many, but I wouldn't put it past them to factor the number of complaints as one of them. 50 people complaining is a bigger stink that 2.

For upcoming trips, I am seriously going to consider car rental once again. First, the grocey stop fromt he airport will be a bonus, and travelling to/from parks and resorts appears to be a better deal. Even with the cost of gas, my time is valuable and worth the extra expense.