Disney’s Magic Kingdom in Orlando, Florida is a remarkably successful theme park. Part of the reason for this is that its design was patterned after Disneyland in California, which is the second most successful theme park. According to a report published by the Themed Entertainment Association (TEA) in 2018, The Magic Kingdom had the top attendance, followed by Disneyland and Tokyo Disneyland in third place. All, of these parks have the same basic “Disneyland” design. In addition to the Magic Kingdom there are three other parks in Walt Disney World in Orlando. The attendance at each of these parks is significantly less than that of the Magic Kingdom, even though each one is newer. These are Animal Kingdom at 66% of the Magic Kingdom, Epcot at 60% and Hollywood Studios at 54%. Another part of the reason for the Magic Kingdom’s success was the public relations efforts going back before the opening of Disneyland in 1955, with the Disney TV show and the interconnection of the various Disney products – the movies, additional TV shows, toys and literature. So, why mess with something that works so well? Well the Magic Kingdom is now a victim of its own success and the congestion that goes with that success in regard to the length of line before one can enter a ride and in regard to just the congestion due to the number of people in the park. Disneyland and the Magic Kingdom were designed when attendance was much lower and before the technological advancements which I believe could substantially improve this situation. To me the most disagreeable thing is the waiting in line. These lines are currently needed to keep one’s place in a first come first serve system. Since rides have a limited capacity the Fast Pass system cannot reduce the amount of time the average person waits in line, unless there are periods when no one is trying to enter the ride, which does not seem likely for the most popular and most congressed rides. Or, unless Fast Passes somehow discourages people from entering a ride. Fast Pass could even out the length of lines over the day. However, a different system, while it would not shorten the amount of time a person needs to wait to enter a ride could drastically reduce the amount of time a person needs to wait on a line. This type of system would sue electronic lines instead of physical lines.
Upon entering the park, a person could insert her ticket into a machine that would then display the time she could enter a particular ride or attraction and would also electronically encode that time on the ticket. This machine would be interconnected with others throughout the park and in this way would “know” how many people are in the electronic line for that ride. As people get on the electronic line the time that the next person would be allowed to enter the ride would be changed. For example, if the average capacity of the ride is 20 persons per minute then every time 20 people “enter” the line one minute would be added to the time for the next person to enter the ride. In this way instead of physically standing in line the person could wander around, sit in comfort, have something to eat or go to the bathroom, that is anything that is more enjoyable than standing in line. People would only be able to use the ticket to wait on one electronic line at a time. Once the person has finished with the ride, she could then enter a line for another ride. The machine could also display the wait time for various rides so the person could then use that information to choose which ride to go on. Smart phones could also be used as a ticket in which case the person would not have to use a machine. Now, nothing is perfect, and I would not expect these machines to be perfect in anticipating when a space would be available for a person to enter the chosen ride. Because of this there most likely would be a short wait once the person arrived at the ride at the designated time, but it would be much shorter than currently. If there is a problem with a ride the system could be adjusted to take any such delays into consideration and if the person had a smart phone they could be notified. Not all rides would have to have this system. Rides what are not that popular could be on the current “stand-by” system. Also, there would be no “stand-by” or “Fast Pass” for rides on the electronic system. There is a problem with this system, which I plan to address that in my next post.
Tom,
Upon entering the park, a person could insert her ticket into a machine that would then display the time she could enter a particular ride or attraction and would also electronically encode that time on the ticket. This machine would be interconnected with others throughout the park and in this way would “know” how many people are in the electronic line for that ride. As people get on the electronic line the time that the next person would be allowed to enter the ride would be changed. For example, if the average capacity of the ride is 20 persons per minute then every time 20 people “enter” the line one minute would be added to the time for the next person to enter the ride. In this way instead of physically standing in line the person could wander around, sit in comfort, have something to eat or go to the bathroom, that is anything that is more enjoyable than standing in line. People would only be able to use the ticket to wait on one electronic line at a time. Once the person has finished with the ride, she could then enter a line for another ride. The machine could also display the wait time for various rides so the person could then use that information to choose which ride to go on. Smart phones could also be used as a ticket in which case the person would not have to use a machine. Now, nothing is perfect, and I would not expect these machines to be perfect in anticipating when a space would be available for a person to enter the chosen ride. Because of this there most likely would be a short wait once the person arrived at the ride at the designated time, but it would be much shorter than currently. If there is a problem with a ride the system could be adjusted to take any such delays into consideration and if the person had a smart phone they could be notified. Not all rides would have to have this system. Rides what are not that popular could be on the current “stand-by” system. Also, there would be no “stand-by” or “Fast Pass” for rides on the electronic system. There is a problem with this system, which I plan to address that in my next post.
Tom,