Riding up front -Monorail-

[Captain_Nemo]

On my trip last month I noticed CM's were not allowing anyone to ride up front anymore on the monorail. I don't remember seeing anything about it on here. Is that done for good now since the accident?

[Melanie]

We've discussed this at length on here. No more riding up front following the accident, and unfortunately that looks to be the case for the foreseeable future.

[Captain_Nemo]

glad I got my co-pilots license while I still could a few times lol.

[linedropper]

Yep glad our little guys got to do it a year back!

[Mousemates]

yea...we miss it too...used to do it at least once per trip...but I understand the reasoning (and actually agree with them on this one) and kind of figure that this is one bit of magic that won't be returning.

[BigThunderFan]

I agree, it is sad but necessary. We got to do it twice at least, once in 2000 with DW, and then in 2008 with the kids. I am so glad I got some good pics then. Too bad it was only from MK to CR!

[kemps@wdw]

Yep!

[ColeeC]

That's a bummer...such a fun experience for the kids! But totally understandable.

[joonyer]

I agree, it is sad but necessary.

I don't think it is really "necessary" at all, but in our risk averse culture, nobody would ever forgive Disney if somebody else got hurt in the cab of a monorail. It seems amazing to me that we (society) are so afraid of the possibility of injury or harm due to the most unlikely events (like a monorail crash) when the odds of those things happenings are extremely small, BUT at the same time, we pay no heed at all and don't think twice about participating in the most risky activity we all engage in on a regular basis, which is driving or riding in an automobile. You are thousands of times more likely to be killed or injured in a car than doing anything at any theme park, including WDW.

[Nascfan]

I don't think it is really "necessary" at all,

Knee-jerk reaction to the accident by Disney in my opinion.

[brer frog]

I agree. I wonder if I go with a signed waiver that WDW will not be responsible if anything happens, if I'll be allowed in the front?

Wasn't the crash while they were switching them? which guests would not be on board for?

[Scar]

I wonder if I go with a signed waiver that WDW will not be responsible if anything happens, if I'll be allowed in the front?

No.

Why?

Mainly because the CM's at the station do not have any authority to allow it. But even if you somehow did track down the person who did have the authority, why would they waste their (and the legal department's) time in reviewing your document?

[Polynesian Dweller]

Knee-jerk reaction to the accident by Disney in my opinion.

I don't see it as knee jerk at all. Its learning from an accident which is what a good company should do. Regardless of how small the risk is, in this case the ramifications are clearly major. If passengers had been in the cab that day they too would have been killed. Why take any risk for that level of outcome if the risk comes true? At the same time you try to reduce the risk as much as possible for the operators and that is what the still ongoing investigations are about. Finding ways to do that.

So yes, I agree with those who say its too bad that riding up front will likely never be back but it certainly is understandable.

[joanna71985]

I can definitely see why guests are not allowed in the front. It doesn't only have to do with the accident, but also that guests have mocked the accident to the CMs (I personally know someone at Monorails who had this happen to him). So I understand the decision.

Wasn't the crash while they were switching them? which guests would not be on board for?

No. There were guests on the monorail at the time of the accident.

[joonyer]

No. There were guests on the monorail at the time of the accident.

Thank goodness, no passengers were seriously injured. Otherwise, what would Disney have done, shut down the monorail completely? What if there's a bus wreck, will Passengers be banned from the WDW buses? No matter what precautions we take, we cannot avoid all risks.

[Darbylew]

All but one of my grandchildren has been in the
front. I was in hopes that they would allow
people to ride in the front again but it doesn't
seem like that is going to happen at least not
anytime soon.
BEEN THERE, DONE THAT AND GOING BACK IN
MAY!!!!!!!

[Nascfan]

I don't see it as knee jerk at all. Its learning from an accident which is what a good company should do. Regardless of how small the risk is, in this case the ramifications are clearly major. If passengers had been in the cab that day they too would have been killed. Why take any risk for that level of outcome if the risk comes true?

If they truly wanted to learn from the accident then they would follow the safety protocols that are in place that would make this type of accident virtually impossible in the first place. The bottom line is that many errors were made and under normal operations this type of thing can't occur. The findings of the Transportation Board in News forum bear that out. Hence, that's my reasoning for thinking it was knee-jerk by Disney. But, to each his own.

[GrmGrninGost]

I have to agree. Knee jerk reaction.

[hunnyluvsthemouse]

We just returned from a stay at BLT Feb 24-28 and we noticed that the resort monorails were delayed more because of "safety" precautions. They seemed to be in a "holding pattern" for longer periods of time in and out of the stations. We returned to the TTC from Epcot one night and the resort monorail had a track malfunction so we ended up taking the MK Express and walked back to BLT. It just seemed like it took longer than usual to get from Point A to Point B.

[Giggy]

Agree with people saying it's a knee-jerk reaction rather than a necessary precaution. A monorail that has been running for over 30 years and has had 1 fatality in that time, statistically that makes it safer than half of the rides.

What happened was a very sad accident, however if everything that had any risk of an accident was got rid of there would be nothing left! If we're talking safety alone then the more sensible route to have gone down would be enforcing the safety procedures invovled in operating the monorail rather than blanket bans. That said I can't say I'm overly surprised, it's a sign of the times that everyone has to protect themselves from potential lawsuits just because of the minute chance something happens beyond their control.

I understand the need to consider cast members who have lost a friend and can appreciate that for the time being it would be seen as insensitive to continue as normal. However let's not get ahead of ourselves and make this out to be a matter of public safety.

On a related note if someone has seriously taunted cast members over the accident then I hope the idiot was banned from coming back. That's just horrible!