Back in April 2023, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis officially dissolved the Reedy Creek Improvement District. The special district had been around since 1967 and allowed Disney to function as its own form of government. DeSantis and the Republican-led Florida legislature voted to dissolve Reedy Creek after DeSantis and Disney began locking horns in March 2022.
As part of Reedy Creek’s dissolution, the embattled governor announced that the state would also be taking over the inspections of Disney’s most iconic transportation option — the monorail. Prior to the dissolution, Disney was able to have its own inspectors come in and make sure the monorail was operating safely. However, DeSantis said that that would no longer be acceptable, so he would send in state inspectors to do the work.
It’s been eight months, but that promise has finally come to fruition. According to Click Orlando — a local news site — the Florida Department of Transportation has begun the process of regulating the Walt Disney World monorail.
“Being that this is the first time that the State has had oversight, FDOT is doing its due diligence to thoroughly complete the review while ensuring the safety of travelers,” said FDOT District Five Public Information Director Cindi Lane.
FDOT’s Structures Maintenance Office, which inspects hundreds of bridges and other structures across the state, has begun conducting field inspections of Disney’s monorail structure.
As part of that process, Disney has provided FDOT with safety manuals and other existing monorail documentation, Lane said.
While it may not seem like a big deal to have state inspectors looking at the monorail system, they actually hold immense power. FDOT inspectors can choose to suspend Disney World monorail service while they are doing their inspections. We do not know how long they could keep the monorails down. Thankfully, that has not yet happened.
Since the state’s takeover of Walt Disney World Resort and the Reedy Creek District, things have gone from bad to worse between Disney, Governor DeSantis, and his new board running Reedy Creek.
The board has tried to force Disney to dissolve its Diversity, Equality, and Inclusion program. The head of the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District — Glen Gilzean — called the program “unAmerican.” However, just two years ago, he was praising Disney and its DEI program for all the positive work it was doing in the area.
The district has also lost dozens of employees, some of whom worked for Reedy Creek for decades. No member of the CFTOD board has any experience working in the theme park industry. Those who have left said that morale is at an all-time low and called the board “unqualified and incompetent.”
Disney is currently suing the CFTOD for violating its First Amendment Rights, as well as breach of contract.
The woman who is suing Disney tried to enter the monorail when the doors shut on her, her boyfriend said in court records.
“As we were getting on the monorail, the monorail doors slammed shut on Rebecca,” John Ruffin said in an affidavit filed in Orange Circuit Court late last month. “Guests on the outside and myself and others on the inside were trying to pry Rebecca loose from the doors. Eventually we got her out.”
Ruffin’s affidavit gives another witness to support Rebecca Vanturini’s claims, although Disney is fighting back against the lawsuit and denied the allegations. Her lawsuit filed in July is still pending. Vanturini’s attorney filed a notice that he is ready for trial, according to court records.
“Rebecca was badly injured,” Ruffin said. “The monorail speaker came on while she was trapped in the doors and it said there was something malfunctioning and resetting with the monorail.”
A uniformed Disney Cast Member “did nothing to help us get Rebecca out,” Ruffin said in the affidavit.
Vanturini’s lawsuit said it took five men to free her after the monorail doors at EPCOT shut on her without any warning, trapping her.
Vanturini is suing for more than $50,000 over the March incident. Her lawsuit doesn’t give more detail how she was hurt other than she had “a permanent injury to her body.”
Disney World is a popular tourist location seeing thousands of Guests daily. Walt Disney World Resort is known as “The Most Magical Place on Earth.” Being the most magical, Guests have high expectations of Disney World.
uests heading to Disney World can explore their different parks: Magic Kingdom, EPCOT, Disney’s Hollywood Studios, and Disney’s Animal Kingdom. Each Disney Park includes something for all Guests. Walt Disney World Resort is also home to two water parks, called Blizzard Beach (temporarily closed) and Typhoon Lagoon.
Since Disney has so much ground to cover for Guests heading to the Disney Parks or resorts, Guests can take advantage of using the skyliner, buses, ferry boat, or the most popular way of travel, the monorail.
Disney’s Monorail allows Guests to ride high in the sky and connects Magic Kingdom Park, EPCOT, and select Disney Resorts by just minutes. The Walt Disney World Monorail System has three separate lines that travel throughout Walt Disney World Resort.
The Resort Monorail makes the following stops:
Magic Kingdom Park
Disney’s Contemporary Resort
Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa
Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort
Transportation and Ticket Center (TTC)
The monorail opens thirty minutes before opening and one hour after closing for Magic Kingdom. Guests using the monorail for EPCOT should know it opens thirty minutes before opening and two hours after closing.
Ashley Carter recently tweeted that the bill that would allow the Florida Department of Transportation to oversee inspections of the monorail has now passed.
The Florida Senate has passed SB 1250, a transportation bill that includes an amendment that would allow the Florida Department of Transportation to oversee inspections of Disney World’s monorails. The bill passed 26-14.
The Florida Senate has passed SB 1250, a transportation bill that includes an amendment that would allow the Florida Department of Transportation to oversee inspections of Disney World's monorails.
In recent months, Disney World Guests have noticed that the monorail has started showing structural damage. With this bill, the Department of Transportation will be able to inspect that. This is part of Disney’s ongoing feud with Florida Governor Ron DeSantis over the Reedy Creek Improvement District.
Disney is suing DeSantis, but the recently-appointed Central Florida Tourism District also announced a countersuit.
With this new bill in place, it would seem to be almost guaranteed that Disney will have to shut down its monorails at some point as the Department of Transportation conducts an inspection. The question, really, is how long the Disney monorails will have to be closed when this inspection does take place. Then, once the DOT conducts its search, how long will it be before Disney is able to reopen them?
Of course, this is all pending and up in the air as the lawsuits come forward.
Using the monorail is simple. Just wait at one of the convenient and well-marked pickup points throughout Walt Disney World Resort. Your ride will then arrive—usually within minutes—ready to transport you to a variety of destinations. Keep in mind that certain destinations are not direct; you may be required to take a connecting mode of transportation to reach your destination.
Just for you to know glass containers of any type are not permitted on the monorail. Medical strollers for Guests with disabilities will be treated as wheelchairs.
And remember: If you’re staying at Disney’s Contemporary Resort, Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa or Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort, you can enjoy convenient access to all monorail lines, right from your Disney Resort hotel. This is one of the great perks of staying at a Disney Resort.
Disney fans have begun to panic after seeing some terrifying images surface on the internet. The photos show a major infrastructure concern that could potentially be extremely dangerous. With no sign of Disney doing any maintenance to remedy the situation, the public has begun to panic.
One thing to know about Walt Disney World Resort is that it is massive. The Resort sits on 43 square miles of the property, making it way bigger than Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California. There is so much to see and do inside Walt Disney World Resort, but because everything is so spread out, navigating yourself can be difficult.
Driving your own car can be time-consuming with traffic and parking and getting an Uber or a Minnie van can be expensive. Luckily, Disney does offer some complimentary transportation options for Guests to use.
Guests can use Disney’s busses, ferryboats, water taxis, Skyliner, and monorail to get around the Resort. For many Guests, taking the monorail is the preferred option. The Walt Disney World Monorail System is an elevated transportation system that is used to take Guests to different areas of the Resort. The monorail is supported by concrete beams that extend up into the air.
Theme Park photographer @bioreconstruct snapped a photograph that showed some troubling “concrete problems” on one of the support beams for the monorail. The beam looks to be in horrible condition, and Guests are very concerned about the safety issue of the damage. The beam that is crumbling is on the EPCOT monorail track near The Seas Pavilion in Future World at EPCOT.
Guests have begun to panic over the safety of the monorail. One user comments, “Welp, guess it’s driving to EPCOT only for a while.” Many Guests wonder if the Monorail beam will be able to handle the heavy load for much longer. It is a shame to see the infrastructure of Walt Disney World in such bad shape. Hopefully, Disney gets to work and service this issue as soon as possible.
A video from a Disney fan out of Walt Disney World was shared yesterday, August 18, showing the Monorail Orange lost power. The YouTuber looks to be standing just outside of Disney’s Contemporary Resort where the monorail was stranded. It looks like the Monorail was full of Guests heading to Magic Kingdom Park. The stayed in place long enough that you can hear the Monorail driver inform guests on how to remove the monorail windows for some fresh air. Check out the full video and details below as shared by a YouTuber that captured the scene.
As shared by TheCapsTV via YouTube: “On Wednesday, August 18, 2021, around 1:15 p.m. monorail orange lost power exiting the Contemporary Resort on its way to Magic Kingdom. Disney’s Reedy Creek Fire Department was on scene and in charge within minutes. The monorail tow quickly arrived and was able to tow the monorail into the Magic Kingdom station after several minutes.” Check out the full video below:
