Disney’s Most Anticipated New Ride Is A Huge Disappointment
Disney's upcoming Tron Lightcycle ride at Disney World is being blasted on social media for having seats too small for most people to fit comfortably.
Whenever an amusement park debuts a new attraction it’s always a big deal and when it’s Disney World, the largest and most popular park in the world, the anticipation is magnified ten-fold. Unfortunately, Inside the Magic is reporting that Disney’s Tron ride, the latest roller-coaster addition to the classic Tomorrowland section of Disney World, is a huge disappointment. Tron Lightcycle is supposed to let guests take part in the best part of the classic franchise but one thing is stopping most riders from enjoying their time: the seats are too small.
Disney usually excels when it comes to accessibility for guests with mobility issues except when it comes to the Tron ride there are reportedly very limited accessibility options. A Disney insider shared that only two out of the seven trains on the ride have accessible seating. Most rides in the theme park have options on every train for accessible seating and while other roller coasters also have limited options, that is typically not an issue at Disney World.
In addition to the mobility issues guests that are the size of the average American are reporting the standard seats are uncomfortable and don’t fit. Disney’s Tron ride also has no planned protocol for riders that make it to the loading zone but find that they can’t fit on the ride. According to reports, riders that are “too large” will have to walk all the way back up through the queue to safely exit the building.
Commentators on social media have tried to defend these decisions by pointing out that the ride is currently only available as a “preview” with its full public opening still coming in a few months. The thought is that the preview period is to identify problem areas like small seats and a lack of accessibility options. Others insist that Disney has run out of time to functionally adjust the Tron ride given the scale and cost of operating a major attraction.
Perhaps the most insightful observations come from this explaining the background of Disney’s Tron ride, which is a copy of the original ride in Disney Shanghai. There’s a dramatic difference between the size of the average Chinese citizen and the average American, so if a large billion-dollar corporation decided to cut costs and directly translate a ride from one location to another, mistakes might have happened. According to the latest health data, U.S. citizens are 50 lbs. heavier on average for males and 30 lbs. for females.
Older attractions from the debut of Disney World in 1971 have been retrofitted over the years with modern seating, from new safety features to increased sizes, making an oversight this large especially unusual for the House of Mouse. Thankfully the rest of the Tron Lightcycle ride has been receiving praise from parkgoers that can sit on the ride without being uncomfortable. That’s at least good news that the new attraction will avoid the fate of the nearby Universal Studios fully accessible, but boring and dull, Fast and Furious ride.
One of Disney’s classic franchises, Tron is poised to make a comeback soon through the upcoming ride and a new film starring Jake Gyllenhaal. Unfortunately the return to the Grid is currently as awkward and uncomfortable as trying to actually jam yourself into a desktop computer.
