The Walt Disney World Railroad (or WDWRR for short) is a narrow gauge railroad circling the Magic Kingdom at the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida. Operated by Main Street Operations, the 3 ft (914 mm) gauge, 1.5-mile (2.4 kilometers) railroad circles the entire park with stations at Main Street, U.S.A., Frontierland, and Fantasyland's Storybook Circus (formerly known as Mickey's Toontown Fair). One of the busiest steam-powered railroads, it transports over 3.7 million passengers each year.
Attraction Characteristics[]
- Embark on a relaxing 20-minute, 1.5-mile scenic tour on board an authentic steam-powered train.
- Listen to the clamor of the engine, the chug of the wheels and the call of the whistle as you travel aboard the Walt Disney World Railroad. Offering convenient stops at Main Street, U.S.A., Fantasyland, and Frontierland, it's the perfect way to preview the magic at Magic Kingdom park and take in the picturesque scenery.
- The Walt Disney World Railroad is also a handy way to get around quickly and easily. And because the trains are scheduled to arrive at each station every four to ten minutes at most times throughout the day, you never have to worry about waiting a long time to ride one.
History[]
Trains[]
The railroad has four different locomotives and four sets of passenger cars. The four locomotives were found on the United Railway of Yucatan in Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula before they were taken to the Tampa Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company to be refurbished between 1969 and 1971. These locomotives are narrow-gauge steam, built between 1916 and 1928 by the Baldwin Locomotive Works of Philadelphia. They were all originally built as wood-burners, except for the 1928 locomotive who was built to burn No. 6 crude diesel oil in which the other locomotives were converted to burn that fuel in the 1960s. When being bought by Disney, the locomotives were converted to burn No. 2 distillate diesel oil. The general idea was to make the locomotives appear if they were built in the 1880s, which included diamond smokestacks, square headlamps, boiler jackets, as well as bright colors and polished brass.
A regular train consists of a steam locomotive, tender and five passenger cars with a capacity of approximately 365 passengers and two wheelchairs. The tender has a capacity for 1,837 US gallons (6,954 liters) of water and 664 gal (2,514 l) of fuel. The tender needs to be topped off with water every three or four trips (or circuits) around the park. The water tower is located at Fantasyland station, necessitating the trains still stop there to refill. Each locomotive uses 25 gal (95 l) of fuel and 200 gal (757 l) of water per hour.
All four sets of five passenger cars had the seats facing forward and were all based on the Excursion III train set of the Disneyland Railroad. Throughout the year, these sets were given modifications; in 1988, the front passenger car was installed with a ramp to allow for wheelchair access along with a power box added to the rear of the third car for the conductor to run the automatic spiel system. In 1999, the conductor was relocated to the fifth car's rear end to see the whole train and reminding the passengers from the fourth and fifth cars to keep their feet and legs inside the train. In the summer of 2005, the side panels were added to the outside left sides of the cars to prevent the passengers from sticking their feet and legs. [1] In August 2009, the front passenger car's wheelchair area was modified to give the two wheelchairs some more room.
Locomotives[]
Each of the four locomotives is named after those who greatly contributed to the efforts of the Disney Company and the Walt Disney World Resort.
No. 1 "Walter E. Disney"[]
This locomotive is named after the man behind the mouse, Walt Disney (1901-1966). Walt loved railroads and his parks have always displayed his love for trains.
- Locomotive Type: Baldwin Class 10-D
- Built: May 1925
- Wheel Configuration: 4-6-0 "Ten-Wheeler"
- Serial Number: 58444
- Locomotive Colors: Red cab with red boiler jacket
- Coaches Color: Red with red poles
- Coaches Number Series: 100
- Driver Diameter: 44 inches (1,118 mm)
- Boiler Pressure: 160 Psi (1.10316 MPa)
- Locomotive and Tender Weight (dry): 67,000 pounds (30,390 kg)
- Entering Service: October 1, 1971
In August 2016, the No. 1 locomotive went out of service and shipped off to the Strasburg Rail Road workshop for an extensive overhaul in Halloween 2016. This locomotive returned to the park in 2020, though it would not operate again until after the railroad finally reopened unexpectedly however on December 23, 2022.
No. 2 "Lilly Belle"[]
The Lilly Belle is named after Walt Disney's wife Lillian Disney (born Lillian Marie Bounds) (1899-1997). Lilly Belle is also the name of the scaled-down steam locomotive Disney ran in his own backyard and the parlor car of the Disneyland Railroad. It should also be noted that Lilly Belle was built in 1928, which would make it as old as Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse.
- Locomotive Type: Baldwin Class 8-D
- Built: September 1928
- Wheel Configuration: 2-6-0 "Mogul"
- Serial Number: 60598
- Locomotive Color: Green cab with green boiler jacket
- Coaches Color: Green with green poles
- Coaches Number Series: 200
- Driver Diameter: 44 inches (1,118 mm)
- Boiler Pressure: 160 Psi (1.10316 MPa)
- Locomotive and Tender Weight (dry): 61,000 pounds (27,669 kg)
- Entering Service: October 1, 1971
Between 2003 and 2010, the Lilly Belle did not run in regular operating service due to pony truck and frame issues. Instead, the locomotive was used exclusively in Welcome Show train (and was also used on the Magic Behind Our Steam Trains tour) until it was shipped off to the Strasburg Rail Road workshop in August 2010. On July 21, 2016, after an overhaul that took more than five years, the Lilly Belle arrived back on Walt Disney World's property and returned to operating service again on November 23, 2016. [2] [3]
No. 3 "Roger E. Broggie"[]
This locomotive is named after Roger E. Broggie (1908-1991), who led the effort of acquiring the locomotives for the Walt Disney World Railroad and helped build Disney's own Carolwood Pacific Railroad. Roger Broggie was also the original Disney Imagineer who worked on the EPCOT theme park project.
- Locomotive Type: Baldwin Class 10-D
- Built: May 1925
- Wheel Configuration: 4-6-0 "Ten Wheeler"
- Serial Number: 58455
- Locomotive Colors: Red cab with green boiler jacket
- Coach Color: Yellow with red poles
- Coach Number Series: 300
- Coaches Status: Operational
- Driver Diameter: 44 inches (1,118 mm)
- Boiler Pressure: 160 Psi (1.10316 MPa)
- Locomotive and Tender Weight (dry): 67,000 pounds (30,390 kg)
- Entering Service: October 1, 1971
- Driver Diameter: 44 inches (111 cm)
This locomotive was originally planned to be named after Roy O. Disney so that the Walt Disney and Roy Disney engines would be alike. But it was given that Roy humbly did not want his name attached to the locomotive nearly identical to the No. 1 named after Walt Disney, so the No. 3 was named after Roger Broggie instead.
In the summer of 2019, it was shipped off to the Strasburg Rail Road workshop. It later returned to the park in late 2023 and underwent some extensive testing before returning to service on February 21, 2024.
No. 4 "Roy O. Disney"[]
The Number 4 locomotive is named after Walt Disney's brother and business partner, Roy Disney (1893-1971). Roy saw the completion of his brother's dream after Walt's death in 1966 due to lung cancer and completed the construction of the then named "Disney World". Roy renamed the resort to "Walt Disney World" in Walt's honor and died soon after the Magic Kingdom opened on October 1, 1971.
- Locomotive Type: Baldwin Class 8-C
- Built: February 1916
- Wheel Configuration: 4-4-0 "American"
- Serial Number: 42915
- Locomotive Colors: Green cab with red boiler jacket
- Coach Colors: Blue with blue poles
- Coach Number Series: 400
- Driver Diameter: 46 inches (116 cm)
- Boiler Pressure: 160 Psi (1.10316 MPa)
- Valve Gear: Stephenson valve gear
- Locomotive and Tender Weight (dry): 51,000 pounds (23,133 kg)
This locomotive predates the Magic Kingdom's oldest purpose-built amusement attraction: the Prince Charming Regal Carrousel, built in 1917. It was the only WDWRR locomotive that wasn't ready for its service entry date on October 1, 1971 until two months after the Magic Kingdom park opened, along with the rest of the resort, to make a major repair to its frame. After Roy's death on December 20, 1971, The Walt Disney Company was finally allowed to name the locomotive in his honor.
As of early 2024, the locomotive has been temporarily shipped to the Strasburg Rail Road workshop to be overhauled for the next few years, making it the most recent locomotive to be overhauled.
Narration Spiel voices[]
- Ron Schneider: (1988-2002)
- Earl Boen: (2002-late 2010)
- Darryl Pickett: (Late 2010-late 2018)
- Corey Burton: (2022-present)[1]
Before 1988, the train's conductor narrated the trip live. The music loops that were heard before 2010 were Caderas, Ballad of Pecos Bill, Colors of the Wind, Night Fire Dance, and Goodbye, My Coney Island Baby. For the 2022 narration, circus music was added for arriving at Fantasyland station, while additional music can also be heard while traveling past Adventureland and inside the tunnel through Tomorrowland.
In the 2022 narration, while traveling between Frontierland and Fantasyland, the voices of Peter Pan (Blayne Weaver) and Wendy Darling (Hynden Walch) are heard on a stretch of track through a part of the park that is still undeveloped. A voice belonging to a TRON supercomputer (Faren Collins) is also heard scanning the train as it passes through a newly-built tunnel at TRON/Lightcycle Run.
Trivia[]
- Imagineer Roger Broggie didn't like the sound of the bell on the #3 locomotive (before it was named after him), saying that it, "sounded like a hammer hitting an old frying pan." So, George Britton decided to swap out one of the riverboat's bells (which was still under construction) and today the No. 3 locomotive ended up with the clearest-ringing locomotive bell on the WDWRR.
- There is a wooden leg labeled "Smith" amongst the "Lost and Found" at the Frontierland Train Station as a nod to Mary Poppins.
- The original Frontierland station was demolished and replaced by Splash Mountain, with a new one built further north.
- In 2001, the window reading "Walt Disney World Railroad Office, Keeping Dreams on Track, Walter E. Disney, Chief Engineer" was added to the front of the Main Street U.S.A. station. This was the only window tribute that can be seen from outside the park.
- The fifth locomotive that Roger E. Broggie and Earl Vilmer purchased was a Pittsburgh built 2-6-0 Mogul. Built in 1902, it was deemed in very poor condition to be restored and was sold to an unknown locomotive broker in California. It was most likely scrapped afterward.
- On December 3, 2018, the Railroad was temporarily closed to accommodate construction of the TRON Lightcycle/Run roller coaster attraction.[4] It finally reopened on December 23, 2022.
Gallery[]
.jpg "Walter E Disney builder's photo (1925).jpg (31 KB)")
See also[]
- Disneyland Railroad
- Disneyland Railroad (Paris)
- Hong Kong Disneyland Railroad
- Western River Railroad
References[]
- ↑ "Walt Disney World Railroad" (April 12, 2007).
- ↑ "The Lilly Belle is home" (July 21, 2016).
- ↑ "Lilly Belle Train Returns to the Walt Disney World Railroad" (November 24, 2016).
- ↑ "Disney: Last call for Magic Kingdom train rides — for a while" (November 29, 2018).
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