The Mark VI monorail (Mk6) is a monorail train used in the Walt Disney World Monorail System and the Las Vegas Monorail. The Mark VI started replacing the Mark IV monorails at Walt Disney World in 1989, replacing the final Mark IV by 1991. [1] The Mark VI later replaced the two ex-WDW Mark IV monorail sets of the Las Vegas Monorail (then named the MGM Grand-Bally's Monorail) in 2004. The Las Vegas M-VI versions of the trains differ from the Walt Disney World trains in physical appearance and the fact that they are automated, a trait the Walt Disney World monorails lacked until their automation starting in 2014.
Like the previous Mark IV and Mark V (Disneyland) monorails, the Mark VIs at Walt Disney World are "Learjet" styled monorails (long, sleek white trains with mid-level windows). The interiors of the WDW Mk6 monorails featured grey interiors (seat material and carpet) with green bench seats which stretched the entire width of the car. There were also pink stripes located above the doors. After refurbishment, the monorail interiors were updated. The green seats were replaced with new grey ones, and the stripes and walls were changed to match the color of the corresponding monorail (i.e. Monorail Green received green stripes and walls).
Unlike the Mark IV, the Mark VIs were now accessed by automatic plug doors. There are four doors (two on each side) per car. While they still opened using a pneumatic system, they were now able to close automatically, eliminating the need for a Cast Member to walk from one end of the train to the other to manually close each door. Also unlike the previous Mark IV, Mark VI trains in use at Disney World are longer, the cabins are somewhat wider, and now contained standing room capability. Air conditioning and heating was also improved. [3] [4]
The Las Vegas monorail uses nine Mark VI trains. Although similar to their Walt Disney World counterparts, each Las Vegas MVI monorail is four cars long instead of six. The overall design is completely different. Instead of using a Learjet style, the cab ends resemble the later Innovia Monorail 300. There are only two pairs of sliding doors (one on each side) instead of the four sets of plug doors used on the WDW monorails. Inside, there are now seats that are located on the sides, allowing passengers to occupy an entire car, rather than a bench seat in the middle that prevents passenger from walking from one end to another. Each train is also painted the same black and white paint scheme, rather than with a color unique to a specific train; however the monorails are often wrapped with advertisements. The most significant difference between the Las Vegas MVI and Walt Disney World MVI is that the Las Vegas trains are driverless and fully automatic; therefore there are no pilots. The Walt Disney World trains were operated by pilots until 2014; however, pilots are still seated in the front cab to supervise the monorail in case of an emergency.
Each train has eight electric motors operating on 600 volts DC to produce 100 hp (75 kW) each. [5] The motors also serve as brakes via dynamic braking [5] and send power to resistor banks located between each car. [5] Walt Disney World's trains have been fitted with a governor which limits their maximum speed to 55 mph (89 km/h); however, Disney regulations permit only 40 mph (64 km/h). [5]
The Mark VI Suspension consists of a load tire and guide tires. The load tire is a Michelin XTE2 445/65R22.5 [6] size tire, and rides along the top of the beam and provides traction for the movement of the monorail. The guide tires are just that; they guide the monorail on the beam. They are filled with nitrogen [6] to help reduce the chance of fire in the event of tire failure.
A monorail is a railway in which the track consists of a single rail or beam. Colloquially, the term "monorail" is often used to describe any form of elevated rail or people mover. More accurately, the term refers to the style of track. Monorail systems are most frequently implemented in large cities, airports, and theme parks.
A people mover or automated people mover (APM) is a type of small scale automated guideway transit system. The term is generally used only to describe systems serving relatively small areas such as airports, downtown districts or theme parks.
The Learjet 60 is a mid-size cabin, medium-range business jet aircraft manufactured by Bombardier Aerospace in Wichita, Kansas. Powered by two Pratt & Whitney Canada PW305A engines, it has a range of 2,405 nautical miles (4,454 km) with NBAA 100 nmi (190 km) reserves, ISA. In July 2012 Bombardier Aerospace announced a temporary "production pause" of the latest variant Learjet 60XR to begin in the fourth quarter of 2012.
The PeopleMover, sometimes referred to as the Goodyear PeopleMover and WEDWay PeopleMover, was a transport attraction that opened on July 2, 1967, in Tomorrowland at Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California. Guests boarded small trains that ran on elevated tracks for a "grand circle tour" above Tomorrowland. The term "people mover", now in wider use to describe many forms of automated public transport, was first coined as the name for this attraction. PeopleMover was originally only a working title, but became attached to the project over time. The attraction was initially seen as a serious prototype for intercity public transport. The ride closed on August 21, 1995, but its station and track infrastructure—which it shared with its short-lived successor, Rocket Rods—remain standing as of 2024. A second PeopleMover opened on July 1, 1975 in Tomorrowland at the Magic Kingdom in Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida near Orlando, Florida, and is still operating today.
The Boilermaker Special is the official mascot of Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana. It resembles a Victorian-era railroad locomotive and is built on a truck chassis. It is operated and maintained by the student members of the Purdue Reamer Club. It is often incorrectly assumed that Purdue Pete is the official mascot of the university.
Disney Transport is the public transit system of the Walt Disney World resort near Orlando, Florida, United States. It offers guests a variety of fare-free options to navigate the resort, including buses, the Walt Disney World Monorail System, the Disney Skyliner gondola lift system, and watercraft. This network facilitates movement between the resort's four theme parks, its shopping district, and all Disney-owned lodging on the property. Additionally, Disney Transport operates trams, providing assistance navigating large parking lots, and the Minnie Van rideshare service, offering on-demand, point-to-point transportation.
The Las Vegas Monorail is a 3.9-mile (6.3 km) automated monorail mass transit system located adjacent to the Las Vegas Strip in Clark County, Nevada, United States. It connects several large casinos in the unincorporated communities of Paradise and Winchester, but does not enter the city of Las Vegas proper. Built at a cost of $650 million, it was privately owned and operated by the Las Vegas Monorail Company until their 2020 bankruptcy when it was sold to the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, a local government agency. In 2022, total annual ridership was roughly 4.3 million, down from a pre-Great Recession peak of 7.9 million in 2007. The monorail is a registered not-for-profit corporation, allowed under Nevada law since the monorail provides a public service. The State of Nevada assisted in bond financing, but no public money was used in construction.
The Disneyland Railroad (DRR), formerly known as the Santa Fe & Disneyland Railroad, is a 3-foot narrow-gauge heritage railroad and attraction in the Disneyland theme park of the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California, in the United States. Its route is 1.2 miles (1.9 km) long and encircles the majority of the park, with train stations in four different park areas. The rail line, which was constructed by WED Enterprises, operates with two steam locomotives built by WED and three historic steam locomotives originally built by Baldwin Locomotive Works. The ride takes roughly 18 minutes to complete a round trip on its mainline when three trains are running, and 20 minutes when four trains are running. Two to four trains can be in operation at any time, three on average.
The Disneyland Monorail is an attraction and transportation line at the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California, United States. It was the first daily operating monorail in the world.
Test Track is a high-speed slot car thrill ride manufactured by Dynamic Attractions located in World Discovery at Epcot, a theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida. Designed by Walt Disney Imagineering in partnership with Chevrolet, the ride is a simulated excursion through the rigorous testing procedures that General Motors uses to evaluate its concept cars, culminating in a high-speed drive around the exterior of the attraction.
The Walt Disney World Monorail System is a public transit monorail in operation at the Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida, near Orlando. The resort operates twelve Mark VI monorail trains on three lines of service. The monorail system opened in 1971 with two routes and with Mark IV monorail trains. It was expanded to three lines in 1982, and the rolling stock was updated to Mark VI trains in 1989.
The Walt Disney World Railroad (WDWRR) is a 3-foot narrow-gauge heritage railroad and attraction located within the Magic Kingdom theme park of Walt Disney World in Bay Lake, Florida, in the United States. Its route is 1.5 miles (2.4 km) in length and encircles most of the park, with train stations in three different park areas. The rail line, constructed by WED Enterprises, operates with four historic steam locomotives originally built by Baldwin Locomotive Works (BLW) in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It takes about 20 minutes for each train to complete a round trip on the WDWRR's mainline loop. On a typical day, the railroad has two trains in operation; on busy days, it has three trains.
The Expo Express was a rapid transit system consisting of five stations and a 5.7-kilometre (3.5 mi) route, running from Cité du Havre to La Ronde in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Built for the 1967 World's Fair at a cost of around CAD$18 million, the trains carried 1,000 passengers each and ran approximately every five minutes.
Bombardier Transportation was a Canadian-German rolling stock and rail transport manufacturer, with headquarters in Berlin, Germany. It was one of the world's largest companies in the rail vehicle and equipment manufacturing and servicing industry. Bombardier Transportation had many regional offices, production and development facilities worldwide. It produced a wide range of products including passenger rail vehicles, locomotives, bogies, propulsion and controls. In February 2020, the company had 36,000 employees, and 63 manufacturing and engineering locations around the world. Formerly a division of Bombardier Inc., the company was acquired by French manufacturer Alstom on 29 January 2021.
The Mark IV monorail (Mk4) was a straddle-type monorail train built for the Walt Disney World Monorail System. The design was developed by Disney Imagineer Bob Gurr. Ten trains were built by Martin Marietta in 1969 at the cost of about $7 million USD each and they were used on the monorail system between 1971 and 1989 before being replaced by the Mark VI monorail, although a few lasted until 1991.
The Mandalay Bay Tram is a 2,749-foot-long (838 m) people mover that opened on April 9, 1999 on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada. It was constructed to connect three gaming hotels belonging to the MGM Mirage Group. The line carries passengers from the major Tropicana – Las Vegas Boulevard intersection, via the Excalibur Hotel and Casino and Luxor Hotel to the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino at the southern end.
Transportation in the Las Vegas Valley including the Nevada cities of Las Vegas, North Las Vegas and Henderson is a multi-faceted system. The street system is mostly laid out in a north–south/east–west system of roads. While most residents rely on cars, there is a network of bus routes reaching some areas of the county. The Las Vegas Valley, being the one of the largest tourist destinations in the world, has a mass transportation system which favors the Las Vegas Strip.
Innovia Monorail is a fully automated and driverless monorail system currently manufactured and marketed by Alstom as part of its Innovia series of fully automated transportation systems. Its straddle-beam design is based on the ALWEG monorail, which was first developed in the 1950s and later popularized by Disney at their theme parks.
The Hitachi small-type monorail is a straddle-type monorail built by Hitachi Rail for the use on the Sentosa Express. These trains are part of Hitachi Monorail line of ALWEG-based monorail. The trains were part of a project to replace Sentosa's previous aging monorail system. The trains are fully air-conditioned.
The Orlando International Airport People Movers are a set of five automated people mover (APM) systems operating within Orlando International Airport. Four of the systems, dubbed Gate Links, connect the airport's main terminal to four satellite airside concourses. The fifth, dubbed the Terminal Link, connects the main terminal to the Intermodal Terminal.