Goodbye FreeWay, how we will miss you so...

Now, I agree that the freeway wasn't necessary on all the rides in the park. If you know how to time your day out, you can almost always ride Wicked Twister, Raptor, Magnum with a wait that is about the same as the freeway. But for rides like Millennium Force, Top Thrill Dragster, and Mantis, the freeway was very nice. If this is purely budget cuts, then I think this is a bad move. Put the freeway back in on Millennium Force and Top Thrill Dragster where they are useful.

I think the free cut passes, (ride again passes as cp_bound called them) are a good idea. A very inexpensive way to make the day better for people who are upset.

Other than budget cuts, the only reasons that I can think of that Cedar Point would do this is 1) A reduction in the number of staff available as the season comes to a close. I think this is an unlikely reason. 2) People who didn't get the freeway passes were getting upset and making a big scene. I think that this is a more likely reason that number 1. But if this is the reason, then why didn't something happen before, and why does it continue to work for Disney?

I won't be willing to pay anything close to what SF charges for Fast Lane if CP impliments a system like it. Maybe if its under $5 bucks a person, but nothing more. *** Edited 8/15/2005 3:30:41 AM UTC by BlueStreak64***

Lame, lame, lame.

What the hell is going on up there?

Well, with the statements of other members who witnessed the lack of FreeWay paraphernalia, I see no need to expose my source...not that I would have anyway. ;)

I don't understand the reasoning behind it. Sure they will save a few dollars to staff the booths and supply the stamps/inks, but this is not how they should be going about recouping expenses. Once again it seems like they are putting a band-aid on something for a quick fix rather than fixing the actual problem.

Although it feels as though they may have spoiled us the past few seasons with FreeWay, to take it away now feels like they are cheating their guests. I hope they aren't thinking that by removing it, that guests will no longer be able to do everything they want to in one or two days--therefore persuading them to stay an extra day. That is the wrong mentality to have.

Once again the perceived value of a visit to the park takes a hit. :(

Cedar Point has been taking extreme measures to cut back costs recently, including cutting back employee hours, closing food stands early, and working with minimal staff in many positions. There are a few other things employees I know have informed me that are being done/considered but I'm not at liberty to talk about them here, especially when they could just be rumors. Small things like this are being changed in order to save money, and I suspect it's because they're getting apprehensive about lower attendance (why? could go on for hours...). I don't agree with it. The money saved from a seasonal employee's salary isn't worth the cutback you get without their service, which it looks like is being taken more and more for granted by Cedar Point with each passing year. The discontinuation of Freeway really doesn't come as a surprise to me. With all the recent discussion nothing really needs to be said--the park is making a lot of decisions that could and probably will make a lasting, negative impact in my opinion.

I think this is a very bad move on the parks behalf. If they wanted to get rid of the system, they should have at least waited until the end of the season. How much will this really save them anyways? My guess is not much at all.

I'm not really upset that CP has taken FreeWay off the menu. I mean, it was a nice bonus to have when I went to the park, since the average patron knows little to nothing of FreeWay. Yet, in similarity to what Michael Darling said, if something else such as general park improvements is boosted, then I'll be happy. I also think a monetary system of FreeWay would be a good idea for CP, but don't make it thirty dollars, make it affordable. That way a guest who just stumbles upon the find will be more willing to spend the money.

-S. Eagle

This is very sad news indeed. There was never a single time in the last few seasons that we didn't have a stamp on each hand. I'm sure some kind of pay system is on its way....

Well, I guess this will technically make the Millennium Force line move a bit faster. The "standby" line will now possibly not be so long, although I doubt it will have a huge impact on the total wait time. I have mixed feeling on it leaving.

Maybe Cedar Point is doing this to help pay for an insanely improved 2006 season by maybe building an incredible new coaster AND a new water ride.....hint hint.....(wink wink)

Man what the hell is Cedar Point doing? Every word of something new happening at the Point this season has been a disappointment. I rarely used Freeway but it's the fact that they did it. Closing food locations early, running less cabins on SkyRide (as stated by bholcomb), running only one train, no more Freeway, etc really shows a downhill trend for the park. They better pull something AMAZING out of their behinds for next season because all they have done is let us down.

Sounds like the Bush Administration has jumped into the Amusement Park business.

Even if the cutbacks were in direct correlation with preparing for something expensive next year (which I doubt it), the primary concern with management should be giving guests the best possible experience, THEN providing them with improvements through investments. Attractions and improvements only serve to get people into the park and up the value of a visit. If people get there and have an awful time, they won't revisit. If people have a bad experience this year, they won't revisit next year. I think our society underestimates word of mouth. Cedar Point seems to be thinking in black and white mode lately, and I have no idea why. It's not so much that we need Freeway, it's the fact that they consider it such an expendable commodity (like most of the recent cutbacks) when in fact it was a helpful tool for guests and made their day easier/more enjoyable, and at the expense of how much money? Very little, I'm sure.

^What was the point? Seriously.

CP is starting to get really annoying with all this stuff. Its getting out of control, why can't they go with what makes them great? Only relying on your coaster collection and nothing more is not a good move, when other parks are beginning to challenge that collection... Freeway may not have been the greatest system in the world, but just the idea that things around the park like this are disappearing is kind of sad.

This sucks butt. Very dissapointing news.
I have a feeling I won't be doing the Millienium line much the remainder of the year.

The free water is next.

I always thought that the FreeWay system was a cheap "band-aid" type of solution to appease the guests who were used to Disney FastPasses (I can't rave enough about that system) and other similar systems. Hand stamps that blur to the point of illegibility if you should happen to break a sweat? Give me a break.
That being said, it's an awful shame that they're taking the FreeWay out because despite its many obvious shortcomings, it was a (sometimes) convenient way to beat the lines for the big rides. However, CP probably figures that the average once-a-year or once-every-few-years visitor won't even notice the difference. Especially since they always seemed to give out all of the stamps so quickly. I can't remember the last time CP made a change that I agreed with or that seemed logical to me.

And P.S. to those who were commenting on the discontinuation of the free water: Please, Please, don't put ideas into their heads.

I thought one of the main selling points of freeway was to get guest out of line and spending time elsewhere, like eating food, buying merchandise and playing games.

I’d like to see this meeting… “Hey….. Let’s cut those 8 or so minimum wage workers to save on payroll expense, plus we’ll stop using that darn expensive stamp ink. This way we can make our guests wait plus piss away revenue. Brilliant!”

A better idea would have been to cut back on some unnecessary freeway expenses. Like stop using it all together on Magnum and Mantis which are lineless. Stop giving stamps for after 4 or so for Raptor and Wicked Twister when there are no lines. Then perhaps have a centralized freeway cart, where you only have two people giving out stamps for every ride instead of having to staff 6 carts scattered all over. That would cut the operating cost of freeway by half at least, yet you would still have the program.

Hey Dick, wan't me to send in my resume? Because it's obvious your paying people who don't think on their feet. When the boss says "cut cost, revenue is down" that doesn't mean to stop working at sell the park

Goodbye Millennium and Dragster rides. 90% of the time I rode them it was only because I had a Freeway stamp.

I think what Italics said about word of mouth is dead on. "Regular" guests are noticing this stuff too. Anyone I've heard from that has been to the park this year doesn't come home talking about how Maxair was a great new addition or how they had a really fun day. Instead it's complaining about $9 parking, rude employees, $3 pop, how someone in their group couldn't fit on (Insert MF, TTD or WT here) and lines that move much slower than they used to.

It feels like CP is heading into a dark time right now, and it really really saddens me.

The thing that disappoints/annoys me the most is that the next confrence call will be lots of raving about how they "slashed operation costs by 20%!" In reality, they slashed guest happiness 2000%.

I just can't see this being a good idea. Maybe(Hopefully) they've got something magical up their sleeves.

I have never used the Q-Bot system, so know nothing about it, beyond that its a pager system that alerts you when your "held" place in line nears the station. Does it not work as well as it should? Are there problems with it?

It would seem like a better idea to use something like that, and charge a fee for it. While some would never even consider spending extra $$ to save time in lines, there are others (like me) who would gladly fork over some cash (up to $25-$30) to be able to ride some things without having to wait in line all day.

I just hope this cutback isn't a sign of things to come, as far as customer service/satisfaction is concerned.