Ride Access Pass and Disabled Access - 2026 Discussion

[Skyscraper]

Someone's started a petition on Change.org, I've just signed it;

Sign the Petition

Hidden Disabilities Still Need Support: Change The Ride Access Pass System Immediately

www.change.org

 

[Bowser]

Where does it say that?

It's buried in the Accessibility section:

Why are you not accepting the crowd symbol?
We know that crowds can be challenging for some guests, and we are committed to making the guest experience as comfortable and enjoyable as possible. We are committed to making a positive impact where we can, particularly for guests who find crowds challenging and we will provide alternative adjustments designed to ensure comfort, dignity, and an enjoyable experience for all.
Historically, I was accepted for Ride Access Pass due to my access needs meeting the requirements for Standing & queuing eligibility. What does this mean for my existing, valid RAP?
We have aligned the launch of the app with the Nimbus assessment, so any valid RAP will be able to be pre booked and used exactly as intended via the app. To be eligible, users will need one of the following symbols on their Access Card:

• Difficulty Standing
• Level Access
• Urgent Toilet Needs

If you feel you need your access card reassessing, please head to Access Card: Making access easy.
Both crowds and standing affect me. How do I access the adjustments for both?
If you have the level access or standing symbol on your Access Card, you can download the RAP app as normal to pre-book, self-manage and virtually queue via the Ride Access Pass system. Guests whose Nimbus Access Card does not display any of the three accepted symbols but does show the crowd symbol can visit Guest Services for support with their visit.
My RAP was valid for three years will you honour the remaining time?
No, as we have moved away from Ride Access Pass ID Cards, we are using Nimbus Access Cards and the new symbols of difficulty standing, level access and urgent toilet access only as eligibility for RAP.
What reasonable adjustments are you making for guests with the crowd symbol?
We offer a range of reasonable adjustments to support guests who are not eligible for the Ride Access Pass (RAP), including:

• Pre-arrival Information – Resources such as ride evacuation videos, flashcards, communication cards, and sensory guidance to help you plan. Please head to your attraction website and visit the accessibility section for more information.
• Essential Companion Ticket – Available for guests who require assistance during their visit.
• Sensory Rooms & Quiet Spaces – Designated areas for guests who need a calm environment.

Book TicketsBook Accommodation

https://www.altontowers.com/search-page/?searchterm=nimbus+symbols

Our Access card within the new Merlin app has updated since yesterday and no longer says "queue" next to it. But the fact it's still there and the bookings are still there leads me to assume we still qualify. Would be interested to hear if anyones else has updated and is displaying as no longer valid?

 

[Smiley]

As said earlier, when RAP queues become excessively long they are no longer fit for purpose. There are plenty of ways to solve that, but all involve reducing the length of the queue (and therefore the number of RAP spaces/hr and RAP spaces/day). As the number of RAP users increase, so the problem worsens.

Hopefully the app will alleviate some of these issues (here's hoping, Merlin!). As a non-RAP user, what irks most is when some RAP users queue for some rides and then effectively "fast-RAP" others; whilst some queues might be more tolerable than others due to their design, I still consider it an abuse of the RAP system (aka a virtual queue, not a secondary virtual queue).

 

[tayspru]

My take on what I think Merlin believe justifies the removal of crowds

Low crowd day = low queue times = no RAP required

High crowd day = high queue times = park environment is unsuitable and therefore we can’t fully meet your needs outside of the queues anyway

To give one example where this thought process may hold - Fireworks days would be absolutely unbearable for anyone who struggles with crowds and therefore RAP wouldn’t alleviate that. Despite quick access to rides, the park as a whole wouldn’t be meeting their accessibility needs and therefore they would suggest attending on a day with low crowds (crowd calendar anyone?) and utilising the quiet spaces in the park

 

[imanautie]

This implies the new requirements come into affect immediately, which doesn't seem to have happened for those who booked the first tranche of RAP slots?

I had assumed they would only apply it at renewal. I'd say there was a need for change, but doing the transition this way almost seems designed to cause complaints.

Edit, apologies I didn't want to cause confusion (and had at least included a link). The section that surprised me and implies a immediate change to eligibility was:

It indeed does, they have begun revoking existing app sessions and blocking new sign ins.

 

[Bowser]

Someone's started a petition on Change.org, I've just signed it;

Sign the Petition

Hidden Disabilities Still Need Support: Change The Ride Access Pass System Immediately

www.change.org

"The newly implemented Ride Access Pass system should be reevaluated to incorporate feedback from the neurodivergent community and those with hidden disabilities."

I cannot for the life of me imagine this isn't something they already did. They would have at the very least had to communicate extensively with Nimbus to put these changes into affect seeing as they're using their data system.

I've always given feedback after visits when requested and i believe there have been surveys too.

It indeed does, they have begun revoking existing app sessions and blocking new sign ins.

Do you have a source for this please?

 

[imanautie]

"The newly implemented Ride Access Pass system should be reevaluated to incorporate feedback from the neurodivergent community and those with hidden disabilities."

I cannot for the life of me imagine this isn't something they already did. They would have at the very least had to communicate extensively with Nimbus to put these changes into affect seeing as they're using their data system.

I've always given feedback after visits when requested and i believe there have been surveys too.



Do you have a source for this please?

Me: I'm the source, can personally confirm I'm unable to sign in on my other tablet with an error saying I'm not eligible
I've also been sent screenshots from others who got forced out.

 

[Wilko]

It indeed does, they have begun revoking existing app sessions and blocking new sign ins.

Wow, I’ve not seen anyone have there bookings revoked yet, where have you seen this?

Edit: Thanks for confirming above. Will keep an eye on my daughters, although I also have a query in with Nimbus as her online ‘check’ comes back blank for symbols!

 

[imanautie]

Oh that's the worse bit, they aren't revoking the bookings, they are leaving them dangling, just behind the app login that you can't pass.

Wow, I’ve not seen anyone have there bookings revoked yet, where have you seen this?

 

[Craig]

As already mentioned, can we try and keep things factual please. Revoking a login session and sign ins not working does not necessarily equate to an existing booking being removed. The site is clearly being hammered at the moment, it could simply be an error as a result of this, or some other work going on in the background.

 

[imanautie]

As already mentioned, can we try and keep things factual please. Revoking a login session and sign ins not working does not necessarily equate to an existing booking being removed. The site is clearly being hammered at the moment, it could simply be an error as a result of this, or some other work going on in the background.

No but sign in literally saying you are not eligible does.

 

[Dave]

Someone's started a petition on Change.org, I've just signed it;

Sign the Petition

Hidden Disabilities Still Need Support: Change The Ride Access Pass System Immediately

www.change.org

By all means sign it but it won’t do anything.

I have no evidence for this but I think Merlin are going through a phase of trying to decrease attendance but increase take per head. I would suspect they don’t see RAP guests as being a particularly lucrative group of visitors (don’t spend on fast track, maybe more likely to picnic rather than eat on site food etc).

They also know at the moment there is a bit of a popular backlash against neurodivergency in the media, with big news outlets saying people claiming ADHD/ Autism type disabilities are just “dossers” so I suspect they don’t really have major concerns about the PR side of things.

Unless someone can persuade a judge that this is illegal (I know there is a guy trying this but he appears to be a litigant in person which rarely works well against professional lawyers), then I think Merlin will just aim to weather the storm.

 

[Bowser]

The big mistake here was making the criteria change known on the same day the bookings went live. That's just going to make people angrier. Merlin gonna Merlin.

 

[Dave]

The big mistake here was making the criteria change known on the same day the bookings went live. That's just going to make people angrier. Merlin gonna Merlin.

It’s called flooding the zone, you put all the frustration and bad comments in one short period of time rather than a repeated trickle of bad news.

Politicians do it all the time.

 

[Skyscraper]

The big mistake here was making the criteria change known on the same day the bookings went live. That's just going to make people angrier. Merlin gonna Merlin.

Absolutely this... people spent ages waiting for the slots to release, only to discover afterwards that they're no longer eligible. That's just insensitive timing.

 

[pluk]

(I know there is a guy trying this but he appears to be a litigant in person which rarely works well against professional lawyers)

It's going to the same bloke thats constantly popping on my feed, drives me mad. To me he's so misguided, I dont how he's funding all his legal swings and misses, but it must be costing someone somewhere a fortune.

Today he's apopleptic, my feed is full of it!

 

[Benzin]

100% the changes should've been communicated prior to the release of RAP slots.

I have no evidence for this but I think Merlin are going They also know at the moment there is a bit of a popular backlash against neurodivergency in the media, with big news outlets saying people claiming ADHD/ Autism type disabilities are just “dossers” so I suspect they don’t really have major concerns about the PR side of things.

Sadly I think this is certainly an issue.

 

[Ash]

It's going to the same bloke thats constantly popping on my feed, drives me mad. To me he's so misguided, I dont how he's funding all his legal swings and misses, but it must be costing someone somewhere a fortune.

Today he's apopleptic, my feed is full of it!

Comes across as an unhinged lunatic.

It appears to me as an illness to want to behave like that.

Sadly it seems like with the success of system, it must be recognised it has to come with limitations some of which may change.

Pushing for less restrictions, increases the number of people which REMOVES opportunity for people to wait in no queue which they desperately need.

I understand people have difficulty comprehending that, but it’s a fact.

What next, not running thirteen on 3 trains is disability discrimination as it reduces capacity, including RAP capacity, restricting access and is therefore discriminative?

Sensible heads must prevail

World First Major Study Launched to 'Unlock the Magic' of Theme Parks for the Neurodivergent Community

A groundbreaking new research partnership has been announced today, aiming to rewrite the rulebook on how theme parks and visitor attractions are designed.

www.katapult.co.uk

Interesting timing

 

[GooseOnTheLoose]

I have no evidence for this but I think Merlin are going through a phase of trying to decrease attendance but increase take per head. I would suspect they don’t see RAP guests as being a particularly lucrative group of visitors (don’t spend on fast track, maybe more likely to picnic rather than eat on site food etc).

It's likely the core of the strategy, an attempt of premiumisation of the park experience, executed with the subtlety of a sledgehammer.

Reducing RAP numbers doesn't just improve the queue times for those who remain eligible, it also frees up capacity on the rides for the guests who are paying for Fastrack. Every seat filled by a RAP user is a seat that cannot be sold as a Fastrack upcharge. Merlin effectively reclaims that capacity to monetise it, by tightening the RAP criteria.

The big mistake here was making the criteria change known on the same day the bookings went live. That's just going to make people angrier. Merlin gonna Merlin.

Maximum chaos, minimum warning. It is almost impressive how consistently they manage to snatch a PR disaster from the jaws of an operational improvement.

What next, not running thirteen on 3 trains is disability discrimination as it reduces capacity, including RAP capacity, restricting access and is therefore discriminative?

Sensible heads must prevail

I appreciate the hyperbole, but this touches on an interesting point about reasonable adjustments. The adjustment is access to the ride, not a guarantee of a specific throughput or a frictionless day.

The previous system was collapsing under its own weight. At that point, the adjustment has failed. It was no longer mitigating the disadvantage, it was just replicating the main queue experience in a different location.

Something had to give. The blunt truth is that Merlin has decided to prioritise physical access needs over sensory / cognitive ones in this specific mechanism. They are betting that the legal definition of "reasonable" will support them in arguing that a virtual queue is necessary for someone who cannot physically stand, but not mandatory for someone who finds crowds distressing, especially when quiet zones exist.

Whether a judge agrees is a different matter, but I suspect Merlin’s lawyers have done their homework.

 

[Plastic Person]

I have no evidence for this but I think Merlin are going through a phase of trying to decrease attendance but increase take per head. I would suspect they don’t see RAP guests as being a particularly lucrative group of visitors (don’t spend on fast track, maybe more likely to picnic rather than eat on site food etc).

They also know at the moment there is a bit of a popular backlash against neurodivergency in the media, with big news outlets saying people claiming ADHD/ Autism type disabilities are just “dossers” so I suspect they don’t really have major concerns about the PR side of things.

The first bit of this is surely true, the second, unfortunately, more than likely.

I typically stay well out of this topic, but I have myself been diagnosed as neurodivergent since my last contribution! When I broke this news to friends and family, almost none of them were surprised, and at least half of them inevitably joked, "Finally, the excuse you've been looking for to skip the queues at Alton Towers", or something similar. If only I knew that the beginning of my 'journey' was such a bad omen for the RAP community at large...

For reference, I've queued happily if not wearily for decades, and I don't think I'd ever take up RAP even if it were available to me. I don't tend to feel anything approaching sympathy for debt-leveraged multinational corporations, but the situation regarding this service has obviously become untenable.