Alton Towers Discussion Thread

[silenthillXD]

Edit accidental double post

[tpainrad]

Went to the park yesterday and confirmed that some of the single riders queues are gone. Rite, Air, and Nemesis are no longer single rider friendly. Thirteen was closed all day so I am unsure about that.

 

Wait times yesterday were....non-existent. The Smiler was a walk on most of the day, but still used the single riders queue.

 

The park also confirmed on Twitter of the demise of the single riders queue:

 

(Airs SRQ was gated and locked)

[KarlaKoaster]

I suppose it is down to the station layout as to why Nemesis's SRQ didn't work? Sometimes SRQs can be bit of a false economy in that it is quicker to send a train with an empty seat rather than hold back 31 riders to wait for a single rider to fight their way through the people on the exit platform.

[StealthFan]

I suppose it is down to the station layout as to why Nemesis's SRQ didn't work? Sometimes SRQs can be bit of a false economy in that it is quicker to send a train with an empty seat rather than hold back 31 riders to wait for a single rider to fight their way through the people on the exit platform.

 

The problem is though a very common complaint the parks get on busy days is when they see empty seats go out on the train and there is an hour or so queue. There is a fine line between it working efficiently or effecting operations and a lot of parks don't manage to get it to work which I do believe is the case with Alton Towers and Thorpe Park. Chessington have just installed SRQ on Dragons Fury and I will be very interested to see if that works or not.

[thedazza]

I suppose it is down to the station layout as to why Nemesis's SRQ didn't work? Sometimes SRQs can be bit of a false economy in that it is quicker to send a train with an empty seat rather than hold back 31 riders to wait for a single rider to fight their way through the people on the exit platform.

 

The problem is though a very common complaint the parks get on busy days is when they see empty seats go out on the train and there is an hour or so queue. There is a fine line between it working efficiently or effecting operations and a lot of parks don't manage to get it to work which I do believe is the case with Alton Towers and Thorpe Park. Chessington have just installed SRQ on Dragons Fury and I will be very interested to see if that works or not.

 

Yeh but now the fasttrack queue is going where the SRQ was on Nemesis. So they are quite happy to slow down dispatches as long as they are getting money for it.

Also the fasttrack queue being there can only lead to problems, now it is those with fasttracks that are going to be told what row they have to sit in. I can imagine alot of people complaining that they have paid for the fasttrack and can't choose to join the front row queue or go to the back of the train where it is more intense.

I personally think the late opening of some rides and removal of single rider queues is an attempt to sell more fasttracks. Especially in May when the big six challenge starts and people are trying to get on all 6 big coasters to get a free ticket to come back to the park. But hey, if it means they have more money to spend on a big new coaster then who cares.

[KarlaKoaster]

Oh in that case yes, you're probably right. Silly me for giving Merlin the benefit of the doubt haha.

[tpainrad]

Yeh but now the fasttrack queue is going where the SRQ was on Nemesis. So they are quite happy to slow down dispatches as long as they are getting money for it.

Also the fasttrack queue being there can only lead to problems, now it is those with fasttracks that are going to be told what row they have to sit in. I can imagine alot of people complaining that they have paid for the fasttrack and can't choose to join the front row queue or go to the back of the train where it is more intense.

I personally think the late opening of some rides and removal of single rider queues is an attempt to sell more fasttracks. Especially in May when the big six challenge starts and people are trying to get on all 6 big coasters to get a free ticket to come back to the park. But hey, if it means they have more money to spend on a big new coaster then who cares.

 

I'd like to show another point of view on this:

 

I think a park has a heavier interest in dispatching faster and getting more people out of the queues. While a guest is standing in line, they aren't spening money. I think any park has the interest of getting people on and off as fast as possible so they can buy an on ride photo, food, or play more midway games.

 

Sure a fast track system brings in money, but it's a one time flat price that very limited amounts of people will buy. Then factor in the complaints and irritated guests in a queue, I think it's a wash on the money side.

[AstroDan]

Just to clarify a few things:

 

SRQ has been removed on Nemesis because it was delaying dispatches of the trains since it was on the offload side of the platform. The Merge point has not been moved to the SRQ line. Merge point still exists for Fastrack guests. The reason it was not in use on a few days is because the park was quiet and the Merge point was not open. Typically, it will be. There will now be a batching host on Nemesis to make bay loading swifter and more effective on most days.

 

SRQ has been removed on Rita because the SRQ line was often longer than the main queue itself. The old merge point host has now been relocated to the ride entrance.

 

SRQ has not been removed from Air, as far as I know. It also remains on Sonic Spinball, The Smiler, Oblivion and Th13teen. SRQ is generally effective on these rides. On Air, for example, they batch odd numbered groups into the station with SRQ access and even numbered groups into the other.

 

[Anything]

The changes to Nemesis are relatively positive. I think the only people that have huge complaints are those that liked to re-ride all day.

[lewis97]

There have been a few somewhat exciting developments during the past few days. A planning application for an extension to Air's shop have been submitted, which will see the current building become a Rollercoaster Restaurant. Also, today a Screening Opinion was submitted by the local council which alludes to a wooden coaster/hybrid being the resort's next major investment.

 

TowersTimes has reported on both:

 

http://www.towerstimes.co.uk/blog/2015/04/22/new-restaurant-plans-revealed-for-forbidden-valley/

 

http://www.towerstimes.co.uk/blog/2015/04/23/first-clues-to-secret-weapon-8-revealed/

[RyanTPM]

^Sounds a lot like RMC to me

[Anything]

RMC are definitely strong contenders!

[I305forever]

I thought they weren't allowed to build wooden coasters, like BGW.

[Dar]

They don't have restrictions on WHAT they can build, just how high and/or loud.

 

You might be thinking of the oft-quoted line that they would never get a wooden coaster because they don't score well on market research and the public thinks they're unsafe!

[StealthFan]

I still believe there will be opposition against this ride for the same reasons as always. Plus with the amount of tree removal they are looking at that will anger people. Same story as always with the park, people complain and it gets held back. Also they will bring up the roads into the park and that never ending cycle of back and fourth will go on and on and on and on........

[Bag_O_Laughs]

^ yup, when will it end. It seems like AT has been getting a wooden coaster for around 10 years now. but a hybrid could work, it would at least help the noise issue.

[Swede]

Are we reading the same article? "The new ride would have a 14.5m maximum height." For you non-metric people that's a "massive" 47 feet. I can see them advertising it as a record-breaker - The worlds smallest RMC hybrid coaster. It also mentions a "pre-show building", so this doesn't ring any RMC bells for me.

[Garet]

Are we reading the same article? "The new ride would have a 14.5m maximum height." For you non-metric people that's a "massive" 47 feet. I can see them advertising it as a record-breaker - The worlds smallest RMC hybrid coaster. It also mentions a "pre-show building", so this doesn't ring any RMC bells for me.

 

I think your misreading the height as how big the drops will be. 14.5m will probably be how high it is from the ground at it's highest point. Alton Towers can't really build above the tree-line so they have to use a low height. Look at Oblivion and Nemesis, they have height's of 65ft and 45ft each but their drops are much bigger. I believe when they say pre-show building they mean something before you get on the ride like SFMM apocalypse used to have when it was Terminator Salvation or Rock N Rollercoaster, not part of the ride itself. The pre-show will be more to do with what the park are themeing the ride as, not to do with the manufacturer. A few of the Alton Towers rides do have pre-shows.

 

Weren't the original plans that were submitted for a wooden rollercoaster to use the valley between Forbidden Valley and what was then Ug Land to get around the height limit but feature huge drops?

[Swede]

Are we reading the same article? "The new ride would have a 14.5m maximum height." For you non-metric people that's a "massive" 47 feet. I can see them advertising it as a record-breaker - The worlds smallest RMC hybrid coaster. It also mentions a "pre-show building", so this doesn't ring any RMC bells for me.

 

I think your misreading the height as how big the drops will be. 14.5m will probably be how high it is from the ground at it's highest point. Alton Towers can't really build above the tree-line so they have to use a low height. Look at Oblivion and Nemesis, they have height's of 65ft and 45ft each but their drops are much bigger. I believe when they say pre-show building they mean something before you get on the ride like SFMM apocalypse used to have when it was Terminator Salvation or Rock N Rollercoaster, not part of the ride itself. The pre-show will be more to do with what the park are themeing the ride as, not to do with the manufacturer. A few of the Alton Towers rides do have pre-shows.

 

Weren't the original plans that were submitted for a wooden rollercoaster to use the valley between Forbidden Valley and what was then Ug Land to get around the height limit but feature huge drops?

 

Ah, yes, that was obviously the "before my first cup of morning coffy" me writing. I imagined a flat piece of ground and did not take the terrain into account, nor did I think of a pre-show building like that.

[StealthFan]

^ yup, when will it end. It seems like AT has been getting a wooden coaster for around 10 years now. but a hybrid could work, it would at least help the noise issue.

 

Personally I don't even think the park need a woodie, there are plenty of other viable options the park could invest in but this seems to have become an obsession.

[Bag_O_Laughs]

Obsession is the word. I do like wooden coasters but its not like i hate steel!

 

I would like a nice smooth coaster with a good theme (don't we all). I would like to see something like they have in Dollywood, Tennessee Tornado i think its called. A smooth but thrilling coaster which wound through the trees with some good twists.

 

I mean in a perfect world a huge smooth behemoth like Shambhala (new coaster in my top 5) would be great but for obvious reasons will never happen. I can dream however.

[fudgey]

Hmm, just posted to BBC News...

[lewis97]

Following on from the above; two trains on The Smiler have collided at the bottom of the batwing element. The situation is still ongoing with ambulances and an air ambulance on site, and with X Sector and the surrounding area shut down.

 

It seems an empty train was first sent out which stalled, before a full train of passengers was dispatched, getting stuck at the top of the first lift hill before somehow being allowed to continue through the circuit.

 

[Garet]

 

Another picture Source

[coasterfreak101]

Oh, crap. The computer should've never let that train go from the lift...