Do they still let people ride up front with the operator/engineer? My family was able to ride in the very front and speak with the operator back in about '92. My dad thought that was the best thing ever since he was an engineer on the Cotton Belt/Southern Pacific at the time.
|
| Posted by Dana M. on November 14, 2017 | |
Nice photo Tracey, love the Disney Monorail system for both the Original Disneyland in Anaheim, CA, and the ever expanding "monstrosity" in Orlando, FL. Always had a small secret desire to apply at Disney to become a Monorail Operator or "Pilot", but then I don't deal with the public very well personally, after being a ride operator at a local amusement park back in my late teens and early twenties. And to reply to catfish63755: No they do not allow passengers to ride up front with the operators anymore.
For a brief history lesson: In late November 2009, Disney put Monorail Teal into service. Monorail Teal was built using the undamaged portions of the two trains involved in the July 5, 2009 crash which killed the pilot of Purple when Pink was making a reverse move into a station and crushed the cab of Purple (Video of the aftermath is still available on YouTube - and it's not pretty). The colors of the two trains involved, Pink and Purple, were permanently retired from the color choices for future trains in service. A twelfth train, Peach, was placed into service in September 2011 to restore the resort's fleet back to twelve trains. Peach was assembled using the undamaged center cars from the Purple train, but with new end cabs replacing the damaged sections from the Pink and Purple trains There is seating for up to four guests in the front cab of the trains with the pilot who manually operates each train. These were offered on a first-come, first-served basis, and a pilot gave out "co-pilot licenses" at the end of the journey. Front cab riding was suspended indefinitely / no longer allowed after the July 5, 2009 crash
|
Thanks for the compliment and the background, Dana M--I had no idea about that tragic event. We last went to Disney in early 2009, and I thought I remembered my kids wanting to ride at the very front. And you're absolutely right--those You Tube videos aren't pretty. Very sad and tragic.
|
|