Note: This entry was originally written on August 30, 2009. Some of the information has changed. For example: there are now 12 cars in the fleet including Monorail Teal and Monorail Peach. The information presented is accurate (to the best of my abilities) at the time.
The post as it appeared on 8/30/2009:
There are currently ten cars in the fleet. It was 12 but, well, two are out of service and their colors will be retired. Those two were Pink and Purple. (Purple contained the pilot that was killed in the accident.)
The 10 colors are: Lime, Red, Yellow, Orange, Coral, Gold, Silver, Black, Green, and Blue.
They do not have specific routes. In fact, they change their routes almost daily. There are three different monorail lines: Resort, Express and Epcot. All meet at the Ticket and Transportation Center. Epcot goes to Epcot. Express goes to the Magic Kingdom. Resort goes to the Polynesian, Grand Floridian, Magic Kingdom, and Contemporary (Bay Lake Tower). Because cars are brought in, taken out, or changed during the day; there are times when there are 10-15 minute delays on some of the monorail lines. No one can move while the track is switching.
The resort line is the highest priority because the Disney Vacation Club just opened up a resort that connects to the Contemporary. Because of this, there is a lot of traffic on this monorail line. A whole lot more than their used to be, so take note.
Generally, they will run a 3-3-2 during non-peak season. This means three on Resort Beam, three on Express Beam, and two on Epcot. Epcot has the least amount of traffic because it serves no resorts and there is parking at the park itself. All Magic Kingdom guests have to arrive by monorail, ferry boat, or possibly bus (if they are at a Disney resort not on the monorail line).
There is a way to tell which train is running which route if you pass it by and don't happen to know what beam you're looking at. At the front and back of each car are two flashing lights, one on top and one on the bottom. The bottom is just a safety beacon. The top is the line indicator: red for Epcot, amber for resort and green for express.
Each car has it's own personality. Black is by far the best. Quick getting up to speed, smooth speeding up and slowing down. Perfect. Coral is horrible. Constant problems and it's bumpy no matter what. Lime is also pretty rough while Red is generally good.
They are replacing the two monorails to bring the total back to 12. Currently, they are taking suggestions on what colors to have. Any ideas?
Personally, I like white and bronze. We don't have either and since we have red and blue, white is a natural. Same with gold and silver. Plus, there's nothing brownish in the fleet.
Helpful hint when identifying green from lime: the sides have little diamonds cut it it.
So, what is it I exactly do?
Well, my main goal is to keep the trains moving to get guests where they need to be and to prevent the trains from having to stop out on the beams waiting for further traffic clearance. This is timely and annoying to guests on those trains just waiting out there.
Plus, I look after the safety of each guest. Should they do something stupid or potentially dangerous, the power to the beam can be shut off in less than a second. Each beam is 600 DC Volts of power. (I don't know what that exactly means, but it can certainly be fatal.) Each platform has one master control panel with a kill switch. There is also at least one "kill pack" worn by someone that loads guests that also kills the power. So if a kid or someone wanders over the six-foot safety line, the power can be killed quickly. It's not all that difficult to bring it back up so we are encouraged to cut the power when necessary. There are always gates and such to stop people, but they can be climbed over if someone really wants to.
Each method of cutting power is tested daily. We also test all of the intercom phones in each part of the cars daily along with ensuring the fire extinguishers are properly charged. Each car also has an anti-collision system built in which is also tested each time a car is brought into operation.
A car will stop at a station and basically be in neutral. This way it is set to take off quickly. The following train will then be instructed to proceed at a slow pace towards the other car. If everything is working properly, an amber alarm will sound in the forward moving car. This indicates for the driver to stop. If they proceed (like they do in the checks), the car will have a red warning alert and automatically stop.
Should the system fail, both a person on the platform and the driver of the resting train are watching the trailing train's position. If it becomes apparent the system has failed, the immediate depart signal is given and the train goes forward to prevent an accident.
A reverse check is done in the same manner.
By the way, I can't comment on what happened regarding the accident with guests. NTSB is still investigating. But I can say that at the moment, no persons other than the pilot can ride in the front cab. Frankly, they don't talk about it for that very reason: I can't accidently slip up and say something I shouldn't. Of course, people still ask to sit up front and some ask about the accident. Mum's the word.
I will learn more about the actual driving system when I pilot one. I know there are certain hold areas that you can't cross if there's traffic in front of you. I know the top speed of a train is 40 mph. And I know that the pilot controls everything essentially. He doesn't just open and close doors. It is not an automated system at all. That's actually for the benefit of the guests.
