Skyway (Disney)
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In 1959, a major renovation added The Submarine Voyage, the Disneyland Monorail, the Matterhorn (now a Fantasyland Attraction), and the Motorboat Cruise, but when the Matterhorn was planned it was designed to be built right in the path of the Skyway, so without a single closure of the Skyway, they tunneled through the Matterhorn.
One day a passenger on the Skyway stood up in his bucket, struggled with his door, finally managing to open it, fell from the ride, landing in a tree outside of the Alice in Wonderland attraction and survived.
The Disneyland Skyway was removed in November 1994 because it was too costly to make safety upgrades. Also, people would throw objects and spit off the buckets as they went overhead. At Disneyland, the Fantasyland Skyway station remains, but the Tomorrowland station has been mostly removed and was at one point a service area for the 1998 attraction Rocket Rods. In 1998, Tokyo Disneyland closed their Skyway attraction and the Fantasyland station was removed to make room for Pooh's Hunny Hunt, while the Tomorrowland station was remodeled into a candy store. At the Magic Kingdom, the Skyway was removed in 1999. The Tomorrowland station is off-limits to guests, while the Fantasyland station is now used for stroller parking. When the Disneyland Skyway closed, the holes in the Matterhorn were filled in and the supports were dismantled within weeks.
Another key reason for the decision to remove the Skyways was because they were in technical violation of the Americans With Disabilities Act. It was very difficult to load and unload mobility-impaired guests (one must step up when boarding and down when de-boarding), and this usually required having to stop the ride. Furthermore, wheelchairs could not be loaded onboard because the vehicles were too small.
Attraction facts
Disneyland
- Grand opening: June 23, 1956
- Closure date: November 9, 1994
- Designer: WED Enterprises
- Ticket required: "D" (One-way)
- Ride system: Aerial gondola ride
Magic Kingdom
- Grand opening: October 1, 1971 (Opened with Magic Kingdom park)
- Closure date: November 10, 1999
- Designer: WED Enterprises
- Ticket required: "D" (One-way)
- Ride system: Aerial gondola ride
Tokyo Disneyland
- Grand opening: April 15, 1983 (Opened with Tokyo Disneyland park)
- Closure date: November 3, 1998
- Designer: WED Enterprises
- Ticket required: "D" (One-way)
- Ride system: Aerial enclosed gondola ride with automatic loading and unloading
External links
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