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Skyride General Discussion

They used to have an inspection platform parked on the DF loop. I think that was lost in the fire but the track might still be there? There are also transfer tracks to the garage at TS, these involve running gondolas directly through the queue so cannot be used whilst the ride is open. I don't think they consider stopping the system for a few seconds to allow wheelchair boarding makes much difference to capacity though. They could improve capacity far more by just putting all the gondolas onto the system - there always used to be absolutely loads sitting unused.

A few years back they split the DF queue in two to create a separate RAP entrance, prior to that point a wide, level queue was considered fully accessible. I imagine when they made that change they would have considered whether changes were also needed at the other stations but they decided not to bother.
 
Ash said:
Things like this is fine.

But they should always aim to keep the mystery as much as possible dependent on the attraction, project horizon, thirteen, TCAAM etc

Being able to take people on a journey is great
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Completely agree, but if it’s something such as a planning application going in, or a ride testing, or the Topspin being assembled - things that fans will be able to see and announce before the park, I far prefer to see it first announced direct from the horses mouth.
 
It’s great to see it testing after being sat dormant for so long! I push my cousin round Towers in his wheelchair every Scarefest and these past 2 years have been an absolute killer particularly when he’s heavier than me! Will be a massive welcome break again to get around easily!
 
As others have said, fantastic to see a piece of key infrastructure and an attraction in its own right back open.

I do hope though the separate RAP queue is knocked on the head unless it’s needed for access, as imho given the frequency of gondolas it’s a farce.

If someone can’t wait the minute or so they, I’d sincerely question whether being in a theme park, or getting in an enclosed space for 3 minutes 100ft up in the air is the right thing.
 
Some members have rightly shared their frustration over the Skyride's closure and at times there's been some great discussion about it. Regardless of what people consider Skyride to be, its closure has clearly affected a large number of people who have mobility issues, leaving navigating the park more difficult.

What is a shame is that as soon as some positive news comes around about the Skyride's reopening, there's a number of members who have taken to chucking out jibes about those frustrations and concerns.

Might I remind everyone who took to posting of our member expectations:

Respect other members​

Please treat others how you wish to be treated. Everyone is entitled to an opinion, and although things can get heated, avoid getting into direct arguments with others and ensure you contribute in a mature and sensible manner. If your behaviour is brought to the team’s attention, we might need to contact you to discuss further and/or edit or remove the problem posts. Repeat offenders may risk changes being made to their posting rights – and we wouldn’t want to do that!
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So please, think before you post. Put yourself in their shoes for a moment and think how your day at the park may be affected by the closure of the Skyride.

We've already had to point this out within this topic, and we shouldn't have to keep pointing it out - especially for such regular posters.

Any further posts directed toward specific members with such jibes will be deleted and warnings will be issued.
 
Ash said:
I do hope though the separate RAP queue is knocked on the head unless it’s needed for access, as imho given the frequency of gondolas it’s a farce.

If someone can’t wait the minute or so they, I’d sincerely question whether being in a theme park, or getting in an enclosed space for 3 minutes 100ft up in the air is the right thing.
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Pretty sure the queues at both DF and FV can be very long at peak times. Even with the frequency, the issue at FV station has been mentioned with the inconsistency of people disembarking.

Also not helped if staff aren't filling the Gondolas up to capacity.

Zero chance of RAP queues being removed on the two sides that actually have them.
 
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I don't think I've ever queued for Skyride for more than 20 minutes (and that was on peak busy days). I think capacity got worse over the years as fewer gondolas were in use.

Hopefully, part of this investment has involved fixing existing gondolas or buying new ones to increase capacity. Ideally, nearly all gondolas should be on the system at all times, with a handful of spares/extras to allow rotation for maintenance purposes.

Although it's probably an unpopular opinion, I think a RAP queue for the Skyride is unnecessary. It just affects operations, and I feel having one singular accessible queue allows for quicker operations.
 
James said:
I think capacity got worse over the years as fewer gondolas were in use.
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The refusal of groups to share with people they didn't know, similar to the operations on Congo River Rapids in recent years, doubled down with fewer gondalas in use, really restricted capacity.

Similar to how Hex is being introduced to a new generation of park visitor, due to the reopening after a lengthy closure, I can see a heightened interest in the use of the Skyride in the 2025 season. Here's hoping they introduce a revised and modern operations plan to cope.
 
It’s great to see the Skyride back as one of the many attractions at the park. I would be interested to see what the opening times are, I know Towers are fairly reticent to class it as a transport ride due to capacity, so I really do see the logic in opening at 11am so it doesn’t suffer from the opening rush
 
For one final time. Could we have a discussion in here where people debate politely and without it getting so heated. Could we also ensure people read a post and respond only to what has been said, rather than making assumptions which were not in any way pointed out in their posts. Thank you.
 
As much as people are still being negative about this in some aspects, the fact does remain that given the age of the system, a point in time would have come where it needed taking offline for an extended period of downtime. Even if it was maintained more thoroughly throughout its service life.

The fact is, it is a piece of mechanical equipment from the 1980's that has been run hard all it's life.

Great to finally see it running.
 
DistortAMG said:
As much as people are still being negative about this in some aspects, the fact does remain that given the age of the system, a point in time would have come where it needed taking offline for an extended period of downtime. Even if it was maintained more thoroughly throughout its service life.

The fact is, it is a piece of mechanical equipment from the 1980's that has been run hard all it's life.

Great to finally see it running.
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This is true and has has been evidently clear they didn’t expect the significant work it needed as they where gearing up for opening in 2025 with the new signs.

Glad it’s opening, although I have no truck with the notion Towers have a legal obligation to operate the Skyride, it is undoubtedly a benefit for people with poor mobility and it is an ironic ride at the park.
 
Tell me if I’m talking nonsense but could the result of the sky ride being open make ques for rides longer? As people get around quicker and spend less time walking long treks in between rides?
 
TBoy535 said:
Tell me if I’m talking nonsense but could the result of the sky ride being open make ques for rides longer? As people get around quicker and spend less time walking long treks in between rides?
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I would imagine it would be a mix,

nemesis and gal may get longer as they often were quite low in comparrison to wickerman and smiler this year, presumably due to the walk over there meaning less people did it as frequently

the smiler, wickerman, rita and 13 may get shorter as people can easily move to nemesis, where queue were lower.

although I would guess it also depends on the throughput of the sky ride if it is able to move the number of people to make much of a differnce.

another thought I had is that the queues may also get shorter, as some capacity is taken up by the sky ride (less people in queue and on the sky ride.
 
TBoy535 said:
Tell me if I’m talking nonsense but could the result of the sky ride being open make ques for rides longer? As people get around quicker and spend less time walking long treks in between rides?
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Theoretically, if people moved across the park according to which ride they wanted to get on next, unguided by present proximity or time to the next attraction, then yes.

In reality that's not how it is tho. People will move between areas more with a pleasant manner of being lazy available to them than they would if they had to schlep it themselves.
 
Wouldn’t the queues get shorter, if anything?

The Skyride is another attraction, as much as its primary purpose is transportation. It’s still absorbing additional crowds and capacity.
 
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