It's Time to Expand the Walt Disney World Monorail System

It's time to expand the monorail. There has not been a major expansion since 1982 for the construction of the Epcot monorail loop. Since 1982, Disney has added 4 parks, including 2 water parks, and 22 more resort hotels, along with downtown disney, a large shopping center. Disney World encompasses a land size of over 25,000 acres. That is almost twice the size of Manhattan, which has 14,000 acres of land. With 17 million visitors a year, a number that will only increase in the future, Disney World would certainly benefit from an expanded monorail system. Guests are not impressed with the unreliable bus transportation system that connects the resorts and parks.

The Monorail system at Disney World is the resort's flagship mode of transportation. The monorail system is the most heavily used monorail in the world, as it serves 50 million passengers per year. Among the variety of transportation options, buses, ferries, and trains, the monorail is by far the most popular way to travel around the resort. Guests enjoy the beautiful views from the windows and the efficient and futuristic riding experience. It would be an estimated $1.5 billion to undertake a large scale expansion of the monorail, and the investment would be worth it.

Inside the cabin of the monorail:

Right now, there are only three monorail lines:

1. Resort Monorail (connects Magic Kingdom resorts and transportation center)

2. Express Monorail (an express lines between Magic Kingdom and transport center)

3. Epcot monorail (connects Epcot to the transportation center)

Map of monorail coverage: (monorail lines in purple)

The monorail connects only 2 parks and 3 resort hotels. For the other resorts and parks, there is a massive bus transportation system. When traveling from a Disney hotel to a park, the buses arrive approximately every 20 minutes. Due to the massive size of the resort, and heavily used access roads, the ride time between the hotel and the parks can take anywhere from 20 to 45 minutes. 

Travel times on buses can take up to 45 minutes, and that is not including wait time, or walking time from the bus stop to the park entrance. Here are the travel times for 3 of the Disney resorts:

From Disney's Yacht and Beach Club Resort:

To Magic Kingdom- 25 minutes on bus

To Epcot- 5 minutes walking

To Hollywood Studios- 20 minutes walking

To Animal Kingdom- 35 minutes on bus

To Downtown Disney- 35 minutes on bus

The Yacht and Beach Club is centrally located and is within walking distance of two parks. However, the parks that require bus transportation take 25 to 35 minutes to travel to, on average. This is a deluxe resort and is very expensive compared to most other Disney hotels, so only a small percentage of guest staying on Disney property get the luxury being able to walk to two of the parks.

From Disney's All Star Resorts:

To Magic Kingdom- 35 minutes on bus

To Epcot- 25 minutes on bus

To Hollywood Studios- 25 minutes on bus

To Animal Kingdom- 15 minutes on bus

To Downtown Disney- 30 minutes on bus

These are value resorts, meaning it is cheaper than the deluxe resorts. These hotels are in the southern part of Disney property and require guests to take buses to all the parks. The long bus rides can be exhausting, especially after the parks close at 11pm or midnight, and especially if you have small children on a crowded bus.

From Disney's Contemporary Resort: (located on monorail)

To Magic Kingdom- 5 minutes on monorail

To Epcot- 15 minutes on monorail

To Hollywood Studios- 25 minutes on bus

To Animal Kingdom- 35 minutes on bus

To Downtown Disney- 40 minutes on bus

The Contemporary is located on the monorail system, allowing for quick travel to Magic Kingdom and Epcot parks. If there was a monorail system connecting the two other parks and Downtown Disney, guests would be able to travel to any part of Disney World in approximately 20 minutes.

Disney buses in traffic:

The bus system comes no where close to the magical experience of riding the monorail through the sky. A resort that is twice the size of Manhattan should have a beautiful, new system expansion. 

Cost of monorail expansion

• A new $1.5 billion monorail expansion that allowed for efficient travel between parks and most resorts, along with track allowing for connection to future parks would be worth it. 
• Back in the 1980s, there was talk of expanding the monorail. However, the main argument against the project was that it would cost $1 million per mile, making it too expensive. Today in 2013, $1 million per mile would be a very cheap price for monorail construction. 
• Disney World's most recent expansion, the 21-acre New Fantasyland, cost the resort $425 million to build (This is not even be considered a major expansion). 
• A 50-mile monorail expansion connecting parks and resorts would be only $50 million at $1 million per mile. However, that is an unrealistic price for today. 
• A $1.5 billion expansion of 50 miles of track would cost $30 million per mile.

Why Disney Should Invest in the Monorail System

• Some might say that $1.5 billion for a monorail system with no direct revenue is crazy (the monorail service is free, guests only pay for park admission). 
• However, since Disney World's annual attendance rates have increased from 29.5 million in 1992 to 47.6 million in 2012, that is a 61% increase in two decades, the resort has proved that it is only becoming more popular, as more hotels and park expansions are needed every year to prevent overcrowding and long lines at rides. 
• With rumors that a 5th Disney World theme park would be constructed by 2021 and the inevitable growth in the coming decades, the monorail expansion would be necessary to prevent traffic problems on Disney's already heavily used access roadways, and to renew the magic for returning visitors.

The answer to accommodating new Disney guests, and inspiring them to return year after year, is in the sky.

Yay