Disney monorail could face state inspections
- An amendment to require state inspection has been introduced
- It's the latest escalation in an ongoing spat between state and park
- Disney's monorail system has been operating since 1971 with few accidents
(NewsNation) — The latest battleground between Walt Disney World and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis could be monorails.
The governor and theme park have been at odds since Disney spoke out against Florida’s efforts to prohibit teachers from discussing gender identity or sexual orientation in schools. DeSantis fired back, working to revoke privileges that made Orlando’s Disney World exempt from certain state inspections and approvals.
When DeSantis announced plans to appoint new board members to the organization governing Disney, the corporation changed their rules to dramatically limit the board’s power. It’s a contract that could last a very long time.
Now, a Republican state senator has filed an amendment that would subject Disney’s monorail system, which is 14.7 miles long and transports an average of 150,000 people each day, to state inspections.
Disney would be subjected to inspections every three years and also would need to file a yearly safety plan. The Florida Department of Transportation would also have the authority to stop the monorail from operating temporarily to conduct inspections.
Disney began operating it’s monorail system in 1971 and accidents have been rare. The most recent incident was a crash in 2009 that killed an employee. The National Transportation Safety Board ruled human error was the cause of the accident.