Virtua Tennis wrote:I hate mesiness and bottlenecks. I hate em I hate em I hate em, ish. To accomodate FastLane, singles, and handicapped riders in my opinion they'd have to either build a seperate path. The exits are much to thin to accomodate 2 lines (handicap and singles, in different lanes). Wheelchairs would never be able to get up. So they'd have to build a new lane up to the exit side of the station.
They have to do even more then that for either the exit OR entrance queue. As mentioned, it would take a ton of work to do it the RIGHT way. That doesn't mean they won't do it the WRONG way and simply route it through Fastlane or the Exit. That's if they adopt this program at all; which is a pure "what if"
I would love to see new queue structuring including better Fastlane queues and the addition of Single Rider Lines. I also would love to see a pie-in-the-sky mega park. I don't think either will happen.
I don't understand what your trying to propose as the WRONG way. You said yourself that it cannot be routed through Fastlane and with the handicap line up at the station wheres the single rider line go?
Please explain more staff? The ride ops can handle the single riders line - It would take two seconds. It would cost a lot of money to put in new lines and I feel a year without a new coaster is worth the time I would save with single rider. We have gotten to the point where we expect a coaster every year and if the park would just put some money into "crowd control" it would make the park experience better.
Six Flags has been known to take someones idea and do it the wrong way. Fastlane is a joke and I can not stand it. I am not a big fan of Disney's Fast Pass either, but at least it is free. It also has a time control factor so it is not over used. Six Flags was looking for a quick buck and it just isn't worth it. Now that Disney is ripping out some Fast Pass at Disneyland it will be interesting to see what Six Flags does.
DejaVu The Ride wrote:DejaVu doesn't and would not be able to use a single rider line. For one, it's rows are in fact 2 across, and 2, it has a blocker, who should in fact pair single riders to the same row.
Single Rider lines would just create confusion and a mess.
This is incorrect.
The grouper does not find single people to fill single seats. The grouper, correctly; keeps parties spread out, keeps the station from forming deep lines, and making sure each airgate has some-sort of group waiting behind it. As someone who has stood in hour lines for the ride and has had nothing better to do than observe the operations of the crew and coaster, I can elaborate on over 50 times I have seen an empty seat somewhere on the train. So, by it's nature, a Single Rider Line would improve efficiency with or without a grouper/blocker.
Groupers did help (on most rides) efficiency when they were widely used. However, they never aided to the effect on efficiency that Single Rider Lines now allow.
Lastly, all seats on DejaVu are accessible to guests from load or unload, I think your comments of doom and gloom are a little overboard.
Single rider lines would be just as adequate for DejaVu as they would be in YOUR mentioning of Iron Wolf, in which, in my opinion, would be a larger mess. As I mentioned, there is no current ride that could handle Single Riders lines in a great fashion. That doesn't mean it can't or won't happen and it certainly doesn't mean that DejaVu isn't a very viable candidate.
What I said is that the grouper should pair up single riders. Since the ride already usually has a grouper, than why not make that the way to increase capacity than making a whole other line just for single riders?
As others have said, single rider lines would just usually mean the use of more money and more staff. Great America doesn't have the resources to do so at this time. Yes, I know sometimes it would be nice, but it just isn't going to happen anytime soon.
The problem is that the grouper IS NOT currently maximizing all of the seats. They really shouldn't have to, it's a lofty ideal. The Single Riders Lines as they are at Disney and Universal are not meant as replacements for the grouper, but as a tool for the grouper to use. This is where I think we aren't connecting.
Single Rider lines cause no larger operating cost. It would only be an upfront cost for infrastructure. The regular crew would simply adapt and allow single riders to board the ride vehicle.
I also agree that it doesn't appear to be on the forefront, but I would disagree with the idea that a grouper is mutually exclusive of a single rider line.
Virtua Tennis wrote:I don't understand what your trying to propose as the WRONG way. You said yourself that it cannot be routed through Fastlane and with the handicap line up at the station wheres the single rider line go?
The WRONG way is normally the easiest way, a route that the Six Flags parks have been known for in the past.
The WRONG way would be to try to cram and jam a single rider line solution into the existing make-up of any of the park's queue and exit systems. That doesn't mean that when the time comes for a program to be put in place that that won't be the exact way they do it.
To do it the RIGHT way I would direct you to TestTrack, Mission: Space, & MIB
You don't even need a new "single-rider queue". All you need is for single riders to enter through the exit ramps, like on Raging Bull's Fast Lane. However, they wouldn't merge into the regular queue before the stairs; they'd take the ramp all the way up to the station. The other solution is to create a "ghost" row (the singles row) next to the airgate rows, and use that as the singles line. The only problem is that it may not fill up quickly enough. (How many single riders are in the station at once?)
/\ That contradicts the point, which is to fill the seats .
like on Raging Bull's Fast Lane. However, they wouldn't merge into the regular queue before the stairs; they'd take the ramp all the way up to the station.
The operator already has to worry about the handicap riders, with that and exit traffic plus on busy days single rider line may even extend down with another FL line, theres no way to even try that..
That's why I said to use the exit ramps. It would take less time for the operators to say "You go to Row 2, you go to Row 5" than to waste more time checking restraints, dispatching another train, etc.
I would agree with Virtua Tennis in this regard. Your reasoning on the exits ramps and the merges are something I would also disagree with. It would be a headache because they weren't designed for that kind of useage. Most of them weren't even designed for wheelchair access
FastLane uses exit ramps, and there's never a problem with overcrowding. Remember, singles won't have a line, they'll just get onto the next available seat. How many single riders do you really think there are at Six Flags?
twixmix0303 wrote:FastLane uses exit ramps, and there's never a problem with overcrowding.
Fastlane only uses exit ramps on water rides and it has caused overcrowding at times. The only thing that makes it bearable is that it isn't a highly demand ride.
I think you are not grasping this concept. If you were you wouldn't be making such unrealistic comments like having single riders blend into the normal load queue area.
twixmix0303 wrote:How many single riders do you really think there are at Six Flags?
I wish you guys would stop ammending your posts so I wouldn't have to double post.
There would be a ton of single riders if the option was there. More-so than single riders at Disney or Universal. Guests who visit a SF park are going to be more likely to seperate from their party for the sake of a quick line then families at Disney.
chimike wrote:I think you are not grasping this concept. If you were you wouldn't be making such unrealistic comments like having single riders blend into the normal load queue area.
I never said that, please get your story straight next time.
Let me repeat myself:
twixmix0303 wrote:However, they wouldn't merge into the regular queue before the stairs; they'd take the ramp all the way up to the station.
It really wouldn't cost that much to "rework" lines for a single line structure.
If ever the fastlane system was replaced with the single rider idea on SUF, V2, IW, and RB, how much would you have to do? Let's see. On IW, you would have to do nothing. On SUF, V2, and RB, all you would have to do is separate the stairs in half and actually connect the fastlane line to the regular line. On top of that, you are not adding anymore ops to the ride because you are using the fastlane people.
Otherwise.
I would say that using exits would not be a good idea. Create a new line right next to the exits or the fastlane line that would connect to the original line, and split at the stairs. This would work very well for D Vu, V2, RC, RB, and SUF. IW and BTR would be difficult to do this though because you have to add more stairs.
"I've been staring at the world, waiting. All the trouble and all the pain we're facing. Too much light to be livin' in the dark. Why waste time? We only got one life. Together we can be the CHANGE. So go and let your heart burn bright"
Ilovthevu' wrote:Let's see. On IW, you would have to do nothing. On SUF, V2, and RB, all you would have to do is separate the stairs in half and actually connect the fastlane line to the regular line.
Again, I would like to see Single Rider Lines materialize, but I don't see it happening anytime soon.
To your point,
Iron Wolf you would have to do ALOT, at least add space to the southwest corner of the load side so single riders can funnel up fastlane and then be seperated. V2 shouldn't have single riders, in my opinion.
RB & SUF could have reworked stairs but those stairs would need a straight shot to the fastlane queue and the fastlane blockers would need to be repositioned. Easier for SUF, not as easy for RB.
It could work, like I said more of a pipe dream though
I had wished that Deja Vu would have a single riders line, but this line would have the lowest capacity of any single riders line in history: 3-4 persons every 5 minutes (36-48 persons per hour). Considering that this ride doesn't cater well to families that stick together, I could easily concieve of a situation in which people that line up in the single riders line wait longer than people in the regular line.
I propose a profitable $olution for Six Flags and single riders with dough. Add FastLane to Deja Vu, but stipulate that FastLane has assigned seating as singles.
Some Six Flags parks don't give FastLane users a choice of seats (by using blocked off rows). The assigned seats here would be whatever's available. It's better for FastLane users than not being able to use FastLane at all on Deja Vu. Plus, it would not extend the wait of regular riders.
Actually, I don't think it is. Most other virtual line systems are free. For SFGAm to restrict their pay-for system like that reeks of bad-will.
Virtual line systems are a double edged sword. For SF, there isn't as much bad, because SF gets direct revenue from the use of the system. For a park's operation, only Single Riders lines will increase Efficiency. A Fastlane, Express, or Fastpass system is only a shell game for efficiency and doesn't improve anything for the park's operations. If anything it further burdens it. Once again, SFs has direct revenue from their system so there is an upside.
In any situation though, a Single Rider Line system will improve an operations Efficiency which is a VERY good thing for the guests and the park.
A single riders line would be a great addition but as everyone else has said it would be way too confusing and the single rider line might be longer...
Now what people should do instead is use their brains.... I don't know how many times I've had to wait longer because a single rider went on and then another single rider went. Or two people go on and then two more people go on the next train in the same row.
Onetime my friends and I went to Six Flags in a six person group and when we went on Superman we split our group 3 and 3 so we had one small group in one line and the second small group in another line. I was in a line that had two people waiting in front of us so we sent one person to the other line giving that group four people. And me and another person stayed in the same line and just went on with the two people in front of us. This is one way to solve the empty seats problem.
Too bad it doesn't always work out that way. I once saw a 20 something girl refuse to get on Viper because she wasn't going to be in the same row as "her man". So it was left completely empty. Someone else should have just gone, but what can you do?
If they really wanted to make a singles line work, what they could do is paint [1 2 3 4] spots in the station then put single riders to fill in the blanks. Of course this requires a grouper, which SF seems to have problems with.
Yeah it would confuse things up. Once this lady was a single rider and she waited an hour for bull and she was right behind us. When she got on she got on with us, and after the ride was over she started yelling at the the ride op for sending out empty seets. Some people are really stupid.
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