Rail transport in Disney Parks

Rail transport in Disney Parks, in a variety of forms, can be found in every theme park resort property owned or licensed by Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, the theme park and vacation resort segment of the larger Walt Disney Company. The origins of Disney Park rail transport can be traced back to Walt Disney himself and his personal fondness for railroads, who insisted that they be included in the first Disney Park, the original Disneyland in Anaheim, California, which first opened on July 17, 1955.[1]

The following is a complete listing of every rail transport installation found in Disney Park properties worldwide.

Monorail Blue, one of the twelve monorail trains on the Walt Disney World Monorail System near Magic Kingdom, the most-visited theme park in the world.[2]

Disneyland Resort

Main article: Disneyland Resort
Name Location Track gauge Opened Closed Notes
Disneyland Monorail System General resort area Monorail June 14, 1959 - Historic Mechanical Engineering Landmark status. Disneyland general admission passports or valid annual passes are required to ride this monorail. Current monorail trains: Mark VII. Previous monorail trains: Mark I, Mark II, Mark III, Mark V.
Disneyland Railroad Disneyland 3 ft (914 mm) July 17, 1955 - Design inspired by Ward Kimball's narrow gauge Grizzly Flats Railroad and Walt Disney's miniature Carolwood Pacific Railroad.
Main Street Vehicles Disneyland 3 ft (914 mm) July 17, 1955 - Besides the tramway with horse-drawn streetcars, non-rail, old-fashioned motor vehicles are also part of this attraction.
Rainbow Caverns Mine Train / Mine Train Through Nature's Wonderland Disneyland 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) July 2, 1956 January 2, 1977 Replaced by the mine train roller coaster Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, which incorporated many of the themes of the older attraction.
Disneyland Viewliner Disneyland 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) June 26, 1957 September 15, 1958 Replaced by the Disneyland Monorail System.
Jolly Trolley Disneyland 3 ft (914 mm) January 24, 1993 2003 The former line and trolley are still present at the park as static displays.
Red Car Trolley Disney California Adventure 1,000 mm (3 ft 3 3⁄8 in) metre gauge June 15, 2012 - Battery-operated vehicles. Non-operating overhead wires are in place to recreate the appearance of a classic streetcar line.

Walt Disney World

Main article: Walt Disney World
Name Location Track gauge Opened Closed Notes
Walt Disney World Monorail System General resort area Monorail October 1, 1971 - No purchase of any kind is required to ride this monorail. Current monorail trains: Mark VI. Previous monorail trains: Mark IV.
Walt Disney World Railroad Magic Kingdom 3 ft (914 mm) October 1, 1971 - All four locomotives were purchased from Ferrocarriles Unidos de Yucatán, but were originally built by Baldwin Locomotive Works.
Main Street Vehicles Magic Kingdom 3 ft (914 mm) October 1, 1971 - Besides the tramway with horse-drawn streetcars, non-rail, old-fashioned motor vehicles are also part of this attraction.
Fort Wilderness Railroad Disney's Fort Wilderness Resort & Campground 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) 1973 1977 (normal operations);
1980 (all operations)		 Numerous mechanical problems during its operation as well as minimal guest exposure led to its closing. Two passenger cars from the attraction for a time could be seen at the central entrance to Disney Springs (previously known as Downtown Disney), but were removed after construction began on The Springs and Town Center districts, which are expected to be completed by the end of 2016.[3]
Wildlife Express Train Disney's Animal Kingdom 3 ft 4 in (1,016 mm) April 21, 1998 - Despite the dated and weathered appearance of the trains, they are actually brand-new models built by Severn Lamb.

Tokyo Disney Resort

Main article: Tokyo Disney Resort
Name Location Track gauge Opened Closed Notes
Disney Resort Line General resort area Monorail July 27, 2001 - Fares are required to ride this monorail.
Western River Railroad Tokyo Disneyland 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) April 15, 1983 - Used purely as an attraction and not for transportation purposes, as it only has one station.
Jolly Trolley Tokyo Disneyland 3 ft (914 mm) April 15, 1996 April 14, 2009 The former line and trolley are still present at the park as static displays.
DisneySea Electric Railway Tokyo DisneySea 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) September 4, 2001 - Designed to recreate the appearance of a classic elevated railway line.

Disneyland Paris

Main article: Disneyland Paris
Name Location Track gauge Opened Closed Notes
Gare de Marne-la-Vallée – Chessy General resort area 4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge 1992 (RER);
1994 (TGV)		 - The station itself lies between the main park and the Disney Village. A short section of track runs in a tunnel directly under the resort. The station is served by local commuter trains on the RER A4 line, as well as national TGV and international Eurostar high-speed trains.
Disneyland Railroad Disneyland Park (Paris) 3 ft (914 mm) April 12, 1992 - Originally named Euro Disneyland Railroad, and its old initials, EDRR, are still visible in parts of the park.
Horse-Drawn Streetcars Disneyland Park (Paris) 3 ft (914 mm) April 12, 1992 - Unlike its counterpart attractions in other Disney Parks, this tramway is a separate attraction from the non-rail, old-fashioned motor vehicles making up the Main Street Vehicles attraction.

Hong Kong Disneyland Resort

Name Location Track gauge Opened Closed Notes
Disneyland Resort Line General resort area 1,432 mm (4 ft 8 3⁄8 in) August 1, 2005 - First rail line with a direct connection to an external rail network designed and themed exclusively for a Disney Park.
Hong Kong Disneyland Railroad Hong Kong Disneyland 3 ft (914 mm) September 12, 2005 - Unlike its counterpart attractions in other Disney Parks, where the trains are entirely steam powered, Hong Kong Disneyland Railroad's locomotives are steam outline models, which are diesel locomotives with the outward appearance of steam locomotives.

Shanghai Disney Resort

The resort is under construction and is scheduled to open on June 16, 2016.[4] No rail transport attractions have been confirmed;[5] however, the resort will have direct access to Line 11 and the future Line 2c of the Shanghai Metro rail network, via the Disney Resort Station.[6]

See also

Historic sites and museums with exhibits related to Disney and railroading:

Other notable people:

Other similar railroads:

Private railroads utilizing equipment that previously ran on Disney property:

Railroad-themed Disney films:

References

  1. ↑ Broggie, Michael. Walt Disney's Railroad Story: The Small-Scale Fascination That Led to a Full-Scale Kingdom, 2nd ed., pp. 12-13, 17, 25, The Donning Company Publishers, 2006. ISBN 1-57864-309-0.
  2. ↑ TEA/AECOM 2014 Global Attractions Attendance Report
  3. ↑ Miami Herald - Disney Springs: a new old-fashioned district at Disney World
  4. ↑ Los Angeles Times - Shanghai Disney resort set to open June 16
  5. ↑ Screamscape - Shanghai Disneyland
  6. ↑ Shanghai Disney Resort - Getting to Shanghai Disney Resort by Shanghai Metro

External links

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