Changes to Special Access Policy

JuggaLotus said:
DJ - In scenario 1, you are only allowed to have one ride "active" on your special access pass.

Wasn't aware of that, John. But even so, the group at least gets to stay together, and really, that's probably the most important thing to most groups. Even if they don't choose to stay together all day, being forced apart isn't going to make their day any better.

Ok, first of all I feel for the people in Park Operations who have to deal with this change this year. They are going to be yelled at by the disabled guest to no end with this change. It may seem like a good thing looking at it from the outside but try to do what Marcia does in Park Op each day and stay cool and calm and now throw this into the mix..........I feel for Marcia and her staff this year, it won't be a pretty sight in that office this summer with this new change in policy.

i seem to remember a thread on here with someone GIVING HINTS on how to abuse this system to one's advantage, even if one is NOT handicapped.

maybe it was things like THAT, seen on HERE, posted by a CP employee that helped prompt this change.

thanks a lot, dorkus, as MY handicap is progressing to wheelchair stage AS WE SPEAK and now my time at CP is going to be even FURTHER comprimised.

way to go.

It's absurd to think that CP made wholesale policy change because of an enthusiast community, dorkus.

Right, cause they've never changed anything else after reading it here.

While it may not have changed due to one person putting it on this website, people do read this board and it may very well have had more light shed on it due to that statement.

I seriously doubt servo was saying that they changed the policy ONLY because it was posted here. Especially since she said, "maybe it was things like THAT, seen on HERE", that completely leaves it open for other factors also.

Whatever. Misplaced complaining (see also: whining, bitching, moaning) sucks regardless.

So did I miss part of the new policy??? What happens if a guest with a special need only attends the park with ONE other person (so there is no one else in the party to wait in line).... Then do they still get the assigned time to return to the exit to ride like it's always been? The only difference is they can only bring ONE person along?

I can't attest to the last few years, but I know for quite a while all queues for new rides were being made ADA accessable. (wider turns, wider space between rails, ramps instead of stairs) Though I'm unsure of what an individual who uses a wheelchair would do once they made it to the turnstile.

I think the new policy acts just like the old, you go to entrance and get a time. However you can only bring 1 person with you up the exit, so you have to have anyone else wait in the ride line. Theoretically, they would get to the front of the line at about the same time your time is up.

Remember, FreeWay was theoretically a good idea too.

Loopy, remember last winter when the new parking sticker plan was proposed for each vehicle? The response on this site was extensive, and just maybe gave them second thoughts. They changed the new plan and went back to the parking pass on ID right before season pass picture taking and registration. A coincidence, maybe. I agree with you who just might be viewing this site. (Hi Mr. Kinzel).

djDaemon said:
Whatever. Misplaced complaining (see also: whining, bitching, moaning) sucks regardless.

yeah, OK. whatever. when YOU need the handicapped policy as i do now, and instead of making life at CP easy and enjoyable for my WHOLE GROUP, we'll see who's whining and whether or not is is misplaced.

of course, i wouldnt wish this on ANYONE so i hope you never need it. but do keep in mind that CP people DO read these boards and things that have been said here CAN make a difference.

Loopy said:
Right, cause they've never changed anything else after reading it here.

While it may not have changed due to one person putting it on this website, people do read this board and it may very well have had more light shed on it due to that statement.

I seriously doubt servo was saying that they changed the policy ONLY because it was posted here. Especially since she said, "maybe it was things like THAT, seen on HERE", that completely leaves it open for other factors also.

thank you Loopy, for the support. i DID mean EXACTLY that...it might have been pointed out that people who didnt NEED the policy were abusing it and it was being sanctioned by a CP employee on here.

sometimes, things need to be pointed out to me noticed as happening at all and if it started by being seen here, then that is NOT my fault...

I think this is great they are addressing this system and its abuses.

If people have a problem with VIP riders....which I could see how it might be annoying if you were on the TTD loading platform for 20 minutes and seen the same group ride front row twice in that time.

I think they should just allow you to ride any attraction twice as a VIP, and then you have to go ride something else, and can come back infinite number of times. But 30 minutes at least in between each "double ride allowed".
I do feel if your chucking out $350-400 per person, your probably also spending a lot of money on food, and the hotel as well. You are definitely VIP and should not be...hassled, but being courteous to other guests by not re-riding Maverick 31 times in a row.

I dare say who else buys the $500+ a night CP hotel rooms other then people who would can also afford to ride as VIP. Even if you have a couple, who spend the night in a top notch suite, 2 VIP tickets, and then some food on site and etc. Your spending anywhere from $1600-2000 more than likely. Compared to your working class family who budgets their trip carefully, and chose the Econolodge and McDonalds for dinner.

If a ride platform is carefully managed, people hardly even notice special access or VIP people loading trains constantly. If you don't have a lot of people on the platform....
Except like MF

I think that the system is still "open for abuse" for couples. What constitutes a disability? For example I have ADHD...I always wonder if this is enough to get special access. I think anyone can basically say they get dizzy and doctors recommend they should not stand for more then 30 minutes and can abuse this system, but people always will abuse it, this just cuts down on people in lines noticing some customers get "preferred treatment".

I think those with disabilities should be given every chance to ride these rides like we do, and wait in line for these rides like we do, and wait for it to run again if its been raining or broken down just like we do.

I am surprised no one hasn't contacted the American with Disabilities or I am blanking on the name, but that organization that fights for equal access to special access guests.
I suppose you could say CP is being nice and allowing you to ride next to your partner of choice basically with this system. By law I bet they only have to work with the disabled person.

What ride benefits from having a party of 4 hit the platform at the same time anyways? Raptor, Mantis, and Gemini. Those two are the only one where groups of 4 reallly get to ride next to eachother and look over to one another.

I have to say even my girlfriend and I do not really care if we ride together. If front row is open on TTD and I hear SINGLE RIDER....I lift my hand up haha.

Its just like 2 minutes and 30 seconds of your life.

Speaking of handicapped, last year at CP, I saw a poor guy in a manual wheelchair navigating himself down the midway, when 3 or 4 teenagers decided it was "cool" and "punk" to sneak up behind him, grasp the handles and start running.

I thought the guy was going to have a heart attack with how much he was screaming for them to stop. Stop, they did. Only they let him keep rolling. It was really sad, and they just stood there laughing at him. I wanted to kick each of their asses myself, but unfortunately all I could do was yell at them, and make sure the guy they shoved was doing OK. (He was fine, and just rolled away...)

If you are disabled I think they should suggest....your family go VIP.

Because you are disabled, you are an extra important person right?

Not only the fact that you could have more fun being VIP as a disabled person, but you could have the VIP host be trained in helping load and unload disabled customers.
True disabled customers would also appreciate having such helpful people right by them. To find shortest routes, and avoid lengthy lines for common things such as food and water....

Those things help someone disabled much more then getting to the front of the line fastest.

While I realize it's a "suggestion", I'm pretty sure the ADA would have some issues with that.

"Most" people with disabilities have spent plenty enough as it is on leading as normal a life as they possibly can that "most" couldn't afford a VIP experience or I'm willing to bet more would take the park up on it now.

e x i t english said:

I thought the guy was going to have a heart attack with how much he was screaming for them to stop. Stop, they did. Only they let him keep rolling. It was really sad, and they just stood there laughing at him. I wanted to kick each of their asses myself, but unfortunately all I could do was yell at them, and make sure the guy they shoved was doing OK. (He was fine, and just rolled away...)

People are sick.

servo said:
yeah, OK. whatever. when YOU need the handicapped policy as i do now, and instead of making life at CP easy and enjoyable for my WHOLE GROUP, we'll see who's whining and whether or not is is misplaced.

Since you obviously failed to notice, I was admonishing this policy change, not celebrating it.

The only thing I had a problem with was you whining about the people here being the cause, when if you want your complaints to not be wasted, you should probably talk to, oh I don't know, maybe someone who works at the park?

While they do read stuff here, why not go directly to the source? Too much effort?

djDaemon said:

servo said:
yeah, OK. whatever. when YOU need the handicapped policy as i do now, and instead of making life at CP easy and enjoyable for my WHOLE GROUP, we'll see who's whining and whether or not is is misplaced.

Since you obviously failed to notice, I was admonishing this policy change, not celebrating it.

The only thing I had a problem with was you whining about the people here being the cause, when if you want your complaints to not be wasted, you should probably talk to, oh I don't know, maybe someone who works at the park?

While they do read stuff here, why not go directly to the source? Too much effort?

never said i wasnt gonna go to ths source. never SAID i was WHINING. i was just NOTICING that things happened in a strange way...

just saying that is seemed AWFULLY coincidental that someonbe HERE who WORKS at CP, told people here to abuse the system for their OWN gain and now we have a policy change.

so, considering that YOU are probably able-bodied and healthy and dont NEED a policy like this, and considering that *I* am 40 years old and heading for being that guy on the Midway who got pushed by those teeneagers in his wheelchair, lets ask who has a RIGHT to whine?? about a change that MAY have, just MAY have come from some INKLING of someone reporting what they had seen HERE and CP putting a stop to it. im not saying it TOTALLY came from here. all im saying is it COULD HAVE and so what if it did?

First of all, people usually don't claim that they're whining. Whining, to the whiner, probably feels more like level-headed complaining.

And secondly, because you're disabled, you have more of a right to whine than others? Wouldn't that be reverse discrimination?

I don't deny that there could have been a connection, I only said that assuming that the change was made solely because of what was said here seems a bit of a stretch.

see, thats where YOU made the mistake.

i NEVER said that the change was made solely becasue of this place. you ASSUMED i did. big difference, buddy. BIG. re-read my post. NO WHERE did i say it was SOLEY becasue of here.

and when YOU are handicapped, we'll see how "whiny" you are!! try a day in MY shoes at CP and see how LITTLE i actually complain!! i actually ESCHEW the disabled program because i feel there are those who need it more than me. unfortunately, my MS has decided i cannot make that choice anymore. so when you are disabled, TRULY disabled and in need, then we'll talk about who is handicapped, who is whining, and who is entitled to a little bit of a rant once in a while. especially when a policy is changed because it has been (RIGHTFULLY SO) brought to the attention of the park that abuses were happening..

it doesnt matter HOW they found out, the point is that they DID.