Busses

disneycutie165;2503854 wrote: Personally (and I may be in the minority here), one of the things that makes me feel like I am at Disney is riding the buses. No matter how inefficient I may think it is, I will always be riding the buses and soaking in all the WDW atmosphere while I can. Not trying to say gripes aren't necessary or invalid, but personally I enjoy not having to drive (after a 14 hour drive to Florida I don't want to see/get in the car again until I have to leave) and being all-in with the atmosphere. And if I'm stuck an extra hour at the park waiting for the bus, then so be it - I'm in Disney! :wave:

I love the busses too ... at least most of the time, excluding this trip .... that guy that jumped out into the lane of moving busses was insane. I was surprised they did not send security ... but yea, for me the busses indicate that I have arrived. I like that it shows the date and time and at the beginning we're all thinking "we have 7 days left' with each passing day, of course that goes down ....

We were there first week of June and had very similar issues. More than once we waited what seemed an interminably long time for a bus.there were 10 of us staying at all-star music. We were in the bus line at the MK for over an hour while 6 buses for sports came and went, the last sitting there empty for 10 to 15 minutes. I did address this with the manager at the hotel and his solution was that he would call the transportation office the next day and inquire as to our complaint. It does seem every trip as if more and more of the magic is being stripped away.

We just returned yesterday after a 5 night stay at Beach Club. Had a few issues with the bus service but overall not a bad problem.

I always thought it was every 20 minutes. I always stay at the All Stars so the ride home from MK is always the most hectic. Other than that it's usually okay.

To update .... I did send feedback to Disney and I received a call from them regarding the bus issue. After a lengthy conversation the CM revealed to me that they are experiencing bus issues and have for a few months due to staffing shortages. I was assured there are changes in the works and these issues will be resolved. I was glad to get the call, so Disney is still trying to be that most magical place, however if they keep with this trend, well, we all know what will happen .... for my troubles, I received future FP's to use .... I was not expecting anything but I suppose that was a nice offer ..

My past couple of trips have also had really bad experiences with the bus system.

The 20-minute wait rule has basically become a joke and I can't remember the last time that target was met.

It took almost 3 hours to get from Swan/Dolphin to Disney Springs on one trip, and more than 90 minutes of waiting from POR on another. The drivers have been over-crowding the buses trying to make it work better, but they still make stops after going well over capacity.

There should be a better management system in place since we too saw a lot of empty buses for other areas go by and you'd think one or more could be re-assigned to balance the load when 4 buses show for MK and leave empty, but the line for EPCOT has been waiting a long time.

Hoping it's better for our family trip in Nov because it's the kiddo's first visit and we're staying at AKL, so walking to a park is not an option.

kbauer;2504505 wrote:
Hoping it's better for our family trip in Nov because it's the kiddo's first visit and we're staying at AKL, so walking to a park is not an option.

With the exception of an MK wait one day, AKL was one of our best bus experiences.

#1donaldfan;2504264 wrote: I was assured there are changes in the works and these issues will be resolved.

Skyline? That will take some of the pressure off the buses. I think Disney has stretched their bus system to the limit.

I'd like to see odds on how long that skyline stays running at WDW.

texas211;2504546 wrote: I'd like to see odds on how long that skyline stays running at WDW.

Several decades, I would bet. These are reliable systems with a low operating cost.

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That's great to hear!

I expect delays for extra magic hours and the like so we plan ahead, but the past few trips have been horrid. Being a past CM, I'm wondering why they don't step up and deal with it more quickly and efficiently? Maybe someday.

Thx!

We waited 40 min last year at night. Every night it seems. We won't stand because we had a wild driver once and fell.

This is a little off topic but still related to the bus issue. One of our best Disney memories was a few years back. Our daughter and son-in-law wanted to get married at Disney, but due to financial restraints and family not able or willing to make the trip, they decided on a group honeymoon after the wedding. We had a total of 23 people all staying at POFQ at one point.

One night after watching Illuminations we slowly made our way back to the bus stops. People of all ages sometimes take a while to move together. When we got to the bus stop, there was no one left at any other stop and only a few CM's left. When they saw our group they immediately called a bus for us. We were the only ones on the bus.

As usual, the driver turned on some music for the ride back. About half-way back Sonny and Cher's "I Got You, Babe" came on. Well, we all began to sing along. We were so loud (and bad) that the driver ended up muting the music during the choruses. We continued to sing the song until we reached POFQ and got off re-energised and ready to go for a few more hours. The driver had the biggest grin on his face I have ever seen. We must have made his night.

While I realise there are times when we have waited for buses, and loading issues, and no seats, and long lines, and the need to wait for the next bus, this will live in our memories for ever and wipe out any of the less-than memorable issues we have had.

But now they can "up sell" the Minnie Van service to everyone.

garymacd;2504719 wrote: This is a little off topic but still related to the bus issue. One of our best Disney memories was a few years back. Our daughter and son-in-law wanted to get married at Disney, but due to financial restraints and family not able or willing to make the trip, they decided on a group honeymoon after the wedding. We had a total of 23 people all staying at POFQ at one point.

One night after watching Illuminations we slowly made our way back to the bus stops. People of all ages sometimes take a while to move together. When we got to the bus stop, there was no one left at any other stop and only a few CM's left. When they saw our group they immediately called a bus for us. We were the only ones on the bus.

As usual, the driver turned on some music for the ride back. About half-way back Sonny and Cher's "I Got You, Babe" came on. Well, we all began to sing along. We were so loud (and bad) that the driver ended up muting the music during the choruses. We continued to sing the song until we reached POFQ and got off re-energised and ready to go for a few more hours. The driver had the biggest grin on his face I have ever seen. We must have made his night.

While I realise there are times when we have waited for buses, and loading issues, and no seats, and long lines, and the need to wait for the next bus, this will live in our memories for ever and wipe out any of the less-than memorable issues we have had.

This is such a cute story. I'm sure it is forever ingrained in everyone's memory.