Jump to content

Wildlife Express Train: Difference between revisions

Edit links
Coordinates: 28°21′35″N 81°35′28″W / 28.35972°N 81.59111°W / 28.35972; -81.59111
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Browse history interactively
← Previous editNext edit →
Content deleted Content added
VisualWikitext
fix broken refs
Fixed typo
Tags: canned edit summary Mobile edit Mobile app edit
Line 77: Line 77:


==Attraction History==
==Attraction History==
Early plans for Disney's Animal Kingdom called for a railway that would have taken guests through the Savannah plains. This idea was modified, however, when concerns about the safety of the animals was raised. Instead, Disney decided to create a railway that would take guests from the Village of Harambe in the Africa section of the park to Conservation Station in the Rafiki’s Plater Watch section of the park. Imagineer George McGinnis came out of retirement to design the locomotives for the attraction. They were designed to give guests the impression that the trains had been traveling through Africa for a hundred years, collecting grime and rust along the way. Imagineer Joe Rhode stated that the team was "creating a look for vehicles that would be seen today in Africa and Asia, long after their original use in Europe in the late 1800s."<ref name="Broggie2014p385"/>
Early plans for Disney's Animal Kingdom called for a railway that would have taken guests through the Savannah plains. This idea was modified, however, when concerns about the safety of the animals was raised. Instead, Disney decided to create a railway that would take guests from the Village of Harambe in the Africa section of the park to Conservation Station in the Rafiki’s Planet Watch section of the park. Imagineer George McGinnis came out of retirement to design the locomotives for the attraction. They were designed to give guests the impression that the trains had been traveling through Africa for a hundred years, collecting grime and rust along the way. Imagineer Joe Rhode stated that the team was "creating a look for vehicles that would be seen today in Africa and Asia, long after their original use in Europe in the late 1800s."<ref name="Broggie2014p385"/>


The locomotives and rail cars themselves were built in 1997 by Severn Lamb, Ltd., at Alcester, England.<ref name= "parksblog"> https://disneyparks.disney.go.com/blog/2010/11/where-at-disney-parks-can-you-find-13/?comment_sort=asc </ref> Production of the locomotives was overseen by Imagineers Bob Harpur and Joel Fritsche.<ref name="Broggie2014p385"/> Finally, on April 22, 1998, the Wildlife Express Train opened with the rest of Disney's Animal Kingdom.
The locomotives and rail cars themselves were built in 1997 by Severn Lamb, Ltd., at Alcester, England.<ref name= "parksblog"> https://disneyparks.disney.go.com/blog/2010/11/where-at-disney-parks-can-you-find-13/?comment_sort=asc </ref> Production of the locomotives was overseen by Imagineers Bob Harpur and Joel Fritsche.<ref name="Broggie2014p385"/> Finally, on April 22, 1998, the Wildlife Express Train opened with the rest of Disney's Animal Kingdom.

Revision as of 16:40, 17 March 2018

Wildlife Express Train
Wildlife Express Locomotive
Disney's Animal Kingdom
AreaAfrica
Rafiki's Planet Watch
Coordinates28°21′35″N 81°35′28″W / 28.35972°N 81.59111°W / 28.35972; -81.59111
StatusOperating
Soft opening dateApril 21, 1998
Opening dateApril 22, 1998
Ride statistics
Attraction typeTrain
ManufacturerSevern Lamb
DesignerWalt Disney Imagineering
Duration12:00
Track gauge3 ft (914 mm)
Disabled access Wheelchair accessible

The Wildlife Express Train is a 3 ft (914 mm) narrow gauge rail transport attraction at Disney's Animal Kingdom in Walt Disney World. Its route is 1.2 miles (1.9 km) long and takes guests from Harambe Station in the Africa section to Conservation Station in the Rafiki's Planet Watch section. During the ride, portions of the Animal Kingdom backlot can be seen, including animal holding buildings for rhinos and elephants, among other animals, as well as the roundhouse where the trains are stored. It takes about twelve minutes for each train to complete a round trip on the line: seven minutes from Harambe Station to Conservation Station, and five minutes from Conservation Station to Harambe Station. The railway is built to a 3 ft (914 mm) narrow gauge, which is smaller than the 1,000 mm (3 ft 3+3⁄8 in) metre gauge currently used on East African railways.[1][2] The full journey is a 1.2-mile (1.9 km) round trip.

As part of the theming for the railway, the Wildlife Express Train is part of the fictional Eastern Star Railway, running from Lusaka to Nairobi and Kisangani.

Attraction History

Early plans for Disney's Animal Kingdom called for a railway that would have taken guests through the Savannah plains. This idea was modified, however, when concerns about the safety of the animals was raised. Instead, Disney decided to create a railway that would take guests from the Village of Harambe in the Africa section of the park to Conservation Station in the Rafiki’s Planet Watch section of the park. Imagineer George McGinnis came out of retirement to design the locomotives for the attraction. They were designed to give guests the impression that the trains had been traveling through Africa for a hundred years, collecting grime and rust along the way. Imagineer Joe Rhode stated that the team was "creating a look for vehicles that would be seen today in Africa and Asia, long after their original use in Europe in the late 1800s."[1]

The locomotives and rail cars themselves were built in 1997 by Severn Lamb, Ltd., at Alcester, England.[3] Production of the locomotives was overseen by Imagineers Bob Harpur and Joel Fritsche.[1] Finally, on April 22, 1998, the Wildlife Express Train opened with the rest of Disney's Animal Kingdom.

Rolling stock

Wildlife Express Train
Legend
Rafiki's Planet Watch
Roundhouse
(not open to public)
Africa
Bus and parking lot tram transfers
(via short walks outside park)
enlarge…

The Wildlife Express Train operates three 2-4-2T diesel-hydraulic steam outline locomotives built by Severn Lamb of Stratford-upon-Avon, United Kingdom in 1997 before the park's opening the following year.[1][2] The locomotives are all a different color: one red, one black, and one green. These locomotives are based on the L&YR Class 5 and Class 6 locomotives, designed by John Aspinall, and built in 1898 at Horwich Works in Horwich for the Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway in England, which share the same 2-4-2T wheel arrangement and body design. The builder's plates of the locomotives, however, state that they were built in 1926 by Beyer, Peacock and Company of Gorton Foundry in Manchester. Their numbers are 02594 (red), 04982 (black), and 00174 (green), with the former carrying the name R. Baba Harpoor, in honor of Imagineer Bob Harpur.

The rail line also uses two sets of train cars, each consisting of five coaches with a total seating capacity of 250 people per train.

All rolling stock were built as brand new, but were painted with a dated and weathered appearance in mind.[4]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d Broggie, Michael (2014), Walt Disney's Railroad Story: The Small-Scale Fascination That Led to a Full-Scale Kingdom (4th ed.), The Donning Company Publishers, p. 385, ISBN 978-1-57864-914-3 {{citation}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  2. ^ a b "Surviving Steam Locomotives in Florida". Steamlocomotive.com. February 14, 2017. Archived from the original on February 14, 2017. Retrieved February 14, 2017. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  3. ^ https://disneyparks.disney.go.com/blog/2010/11/where-at-disney-parks-can-you-find-13/?comment_sort=asc
  4. ^ Amendola, Dana (2015). All Aboard: The Wonderful World of Disney Trains (1st ed.). Disney Editions. pp. 158–159. ISBN 978-1-4231-1714-8.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Wildlife Express Train.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/enwiki/w/index.php?title=Wildlife_Express_Train&oldid=830908038"