Disney Monorail Closure: Iconic System Now Inaccessible to Guests

Disneyland Resort is refurbishing its historic Monorail system, and it just installed a gate to prevent guests from using an unauthorized entrance.

The Monorail has transported guests between Downtown Disney and Tomorrowland in Disneyland Park for almost 25 years. But the transportation system actually opened in 1959! So, what were those first few decades like for the Disneyland Monorail?

For the first couple of years, the Monorail was an attraction that took guests on a scenic ride around Disneyland Park. In 1961, it expanded into the transportation system it is today, with a station near the Disneyland Hotel. In 1999, as Disneyland Resort built Disney California Adventure Park, the Disneyland Hotel station was demolished and replaced with the current Downtown Disney District station. The Monorail resumed operations a couple of years later.

Walt Disney imagined the Monorail as the transportation system of the future. Though it never spread across the United States (beyond airports and cities like Seattle and Las Vegas), The Walt Disney Company didn’t give up on its founder’s dream. Following the success of the Disneyland Monorail, Walt Disney World Resort and Tokyo Disney Resort built their own versions of the futuristic transportation system.

The Disneyland Resort Monorail closed for refurbishment in January and won’t reopen until March 7. However, eagle-eyed Disney Park guests might notice a new gate near the Downtown Disney station.

According to WDWNT, Disneyland Resort has installed a tall metal gate in front of a Monorail service entrance in Downtown Disney. The area was previously sealed off with a temporary chainlink fence, which did little to stop confused guests who assumed they could board the Monorail from that walkway.

Previously, guests accidentally walked into the backstage area, following the brick guest walkway toward the Monorail. Signs on a lamppost past the new gate direct guests to Downtown Disney, but guests walking from the Pixar Pals Parking Structure often miss them.

The new fence has black mesh material on the interior side, preventing guests from pushing anything through it. It extends to nearby bushes, completely blocking guests from the backstage area.

Will this gate stop confused Disneyland Resort guests? We’ll find out when the Monorail reopens on March 7!

Have you accidentally walked through the Monorail service entrance in Downtown Disney? Share your story with us in the comments!