Monorail is one of Disneyland's signature attractions. As you travel the monorail away from the Magic Kingdom main gate, there's plenty to see from the front seats. The Disney World Monorail opened in 1971, serving the Magic Kingdom and the Transportation and Ticket Center. Since 1971, when the loop at the Magic Kingdom was built, the monorail has traveled the equivalent distance of twenty-one trips around the world. The monorail track has remained almost exactly the same aside from small alterations while Disney's California Adventure and Downtown Disney were being built. When a second theme park was added to the resort in 1982, the Epcot loop was added with additional trains. The trains themselves have received multiple updates; the most recent was in 1987. Walt Disney World Monorail has three routes: Express, Resort and Epcot. The first runs in a counterclockwise direction on the outer track, making stops at the Magic Kingdom and the Transportation and Ticket Center; the second runs clockwise on the inner track stopping at the Magic Kingdom, the Transportation and Ticket Center, Disney's Polynesian Resort, Disney's Grand Floridian Resort and Spa and Disney's Contemporary Resort. The third route is a local service that runs between the Transportation and Ticket Center and Epcot. By special request it is possible to ride in the cab with the operator, and to tour the entire system takes about 60-90 minutes. There are a total of 12 trains for the Disney World Monorail. Each train is 6 cars. The cars are permanently coupled with articulated joints between each. There are two rows with 5 seats each at each end, as well as two rows of 5 seats in the middle of the car. The Disney World Monorail trains, contrary to popular belief, are not automatically driven nor do they have the capability to run automatically. There is a single lever controller with five points for accelerating and five points for braking. From the ground, it looks like there are two rails. But, upon careful inspection, you realize that one of the rails is the "third rail", providing power for the train. The other is the one actually guiding the train. The train merely rides above the top of the beam.
The next Disney World Monorail update will be around 2006 or 2007. The monorail shuttles visitors between two stations, one inside the park in Tomorrowland and one in Downtown Disney. It follows a 2.5 mile long route designed to show off the park from above. Three generations of monorail trains have been used in the park, since their lightweight construction means they wear out quickly. Three monorail trains - Monorail Red, Monorail Blue, and Monorail Purple, are in regular service. A fourth train, Monorail Orange, was removed from service. Disneyland had signed a contract with the Alweg company which required the Alweg name to be displayed on the monorail. This conflicted with the contract with the Santa Fe that only their name could be on the monorail. This eventually caused the breakdown in their relationship and the removal of Santa Fe sponsorship from the Disneyland Railroad.