Ever wonder what a MICKEY MOUSE bus really is? - PassPorter - A Community of Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Disney Cruise Line, and General Travel Forums
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I have. For quite a few trips, so I finally decided to ask. And I learned way more than I ever hoped to.
For starters, I was told there are DONALD DUCK and MINNIE MOUSE buses as well, although I've never personally seen any.
I was going to save this for my trip report but I don't think I'm ever gonna write one, so now's my chance to document what I've learned before I forget it entirely, so here goes.
There are three models of buses used on WDW property. They are RTS, Nova and Gillig.
RTS is the original model of buses used on property, some as old as 20 years or so. They can be identified most easily by their rounded corners at the top of the bus
They also have the leveled seating across the entire bus (as opposed to the other models which have raised seats in the back, as well as two seats facing the driver in the front).
These are being phased out of the fleet. According to my 'tutor,' these buses are becoming increasingly more expensive to maintain as parts have to be found overseas.
The later models are the Nova, which make up a relatively small percentage of the fleet. These are basically buses that were tried out to replace the RTS. The Nova is most easily identified by the sharper corners at the top as well as the A/C unit (or whatever it is) on top of the bus:
reportedly, these are also the widest body (or at least provide the widest aisles).
finally, the Gilligs. Identified easily by the sharp corners at the top with no unit on the roof:
Now where MICKEY MOUSE comes in. This is essentially the default marquee display for the bus, used most often when a bus has no specific route/destination. Essentially being used when no other destination specific location applies (and when it's not being used to transport cast members, in which case the bus reads VIP CAST MEMBER).
The significance of MICKEY MOUSE? it will tell those who need to know the specific version of the software the bus has installed. MICKEY MOUSE means the original software is installed and the RTS's will pretty much all have this software as they're being phased out and it's not likely they'd be upgraded. DONALD DUCK means a newer version of the software is installed and MINNIE MOUSE means an even newer version still.
(hopefully i got that all right, my apologies for any inaccuracies i may be reporting)
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I'm guessing due to the age & photos that the RTS's have steps going in to them and that the Nova's and Gillig's don't and are what is commonly refered to as a low floor.
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That's cool Brad -
I'd like to add that we love the new buses (Gillig?), because they are ALL wheelchair accessible. We used to have to wait through 4 or 5 buses before one that could take a wheelchair would show up - now, it's usually the first one!
Now storing in random Disney information brain section...ahhhh. "Bus information, I'd like you to meet monorail storage, oh, and don't forget M.T. Lot" I love this stuff!
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info Brad!
for sharing as I love learning all the little details about Disney.
Kris
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