COVID-19 & Coasters: Coronavirus Impacts on the Amusement Industry

[WDWRLD]

Was reading up on the Evolv Express scanners Disney ts testing for thermal scanning as well as security scanning without bag chacks. Its pretty impressive all the features it can have. If they work as good as the website suggests I hope they are added not only to parks but resorts as well. Their informations says 1 scanner can replace 10 traditional machines and 4 guards can replace 25 with a 3600 person per hour capacity.

 

[VonDerrick]

The thermal feature was not a part of the testing. It was purely for security purposes.

 

[warfelg]

https://www.yahoo.com/finance/news/coronavirus-health-experts-ranked-activities-risk-132702304.html

Experts ranked activities you could do based on the risk of transmitting coronavirus and amusement parks can out in the second highest group.

 

[Crunchewy]

I will be living vicariously through others. What are the odds people actually adhere to physical distancing and mask use? I think slim to none in the US.

Having said that, I might drive to SFA, since it's decently close to me, and watch the coasters from the lot. And cry. Get some value out of my season pass, at least.

I will say, though, I think SFA might have a better chance of people adhering to the rules. I've been to College Park a number of times recently and I see a LOT more people wearing mask while they are out then I do here at home.

 

[Zachary]

Yeah, mask usage and social distancing are INFINITELY more prevalent up in the DC area than I’ve seen anywhere else in Virginia. Plus, I think Six Flags and Cedar Fair may do a far better job at enforcement than SEAS has been.

 

[b.mac]

Yeah, mask usage and social distancing are INFINITELY more prevalent up in the DC area than I’ve seen anywhere else in Virginia. Plus, I think Six Flags and Cedar Fair may do a far better job at enforcement than SEAS has been.

Busch Gardens Williamsburg, Kings Dominion, Dorney, and the Six Flags parks at least will have the benefit of much better regional control over the spread of COVID compared to other states which were flattening but not reducing the curve. Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and New York have had some of the best responses to mitigating COVID and those park reopenings should go a lot more smoothly compared to Florida, Utah, or dare I say California.

 

[Crunchewy]

Busch Gardens Williamsburg, Kings Dominion, Dorney, and the Six Flags parks at least will have the benefit of much better regional control over the spread of COVID compared to other states which were flattening but not reducing the curve. Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and New York have had some of the best responses to mitigating COVID and those park reopenings should go a lot more smoothly compared to Florida, Utah, or dare I say California.

I'm not clear on why it's better in these areas. It might just be luck. The governor of Maryland seems to be jumping on board the train of just open stuff up. He's even de-emphasizing mask use now. We use to have signs on the highways telling people to use masks. Now it just says, "do your part and maintain physical distancing while out and about", or something like that. Physical disctancing is important, for sure, but masks have also been shown to significantly reduce the risk of transmission, so it doesn't seem to me that de-emphasizing their use is the right move. He's not exactly saying you don't need to wear masks, but these prevalent messages now make no mention of them. And the main thing I see people not doing is not wearing masks, or wearing them improperly.

 

[b.mac]

It's also up to the parks to enforce it, since SFA is right in the DC metro area they'd likely be more inclined to follow those guidelines over say what Baltimore would be doing.

Maryland has seen a similar deescalation in positive cases as the other neighboring states, so it is not like they're an outlier in the area outside of wanting things opened up a little quicker.

 

[Mushroom]

https://www.yahoo.com/finance/news/coronavirus-health-experts-ranked-activities-risk-132702304.html

Experts ranked activities you could do based on the risk of transmitting coronavirus and amusement parks can out in the second highest group.

On the other hand, these opinions aren’t absolute. Another infectious disease expert ranked amusement parks as “low to moderate risk”, deeming them safer than other common activities: https://www.wlwt.com/article/from-c...he-risks-of-activities-amid-pandemic/32831452

 

[warfelg]

Since this is the amusement industry thread and not the politics theead


On the other hand, these opinions aren’t absolute. Another infectious disease expert ranked amusement parks as “low to moderate risk”, deeming them safer than other common activities: https://www.wlwt.com/article/from-c...he-risks-of-activities-amid-pandemic/32831452

To be fair that expert did say:

Amusement park: low to moderate risk
"It's outside, if you're social distancing, everybody wore masks," Lamarre said. "It could be a low risk activity."
A large crowd size raises the risk

He doesn’t account for time exposure or the indoor/outdoor factor it seems.

 

[Mushroom]

To be fair that expert did say:


He doesn’t account for time exposure or the indoor/outdoor factor it seems.

True, although I’m wondering this this expert was specifically talking about regional parks like KI, since it was written for a Cincinnati-area news outlet. At parks like KD or BGW, for example, I bet you’d spend very little time inside, at least compared to a Florida park full of indoor queues and show rooms.

I’d also argue that time exposure, while a valid concern, is a little unfair. Of course you’re more likely to be exposed to the virus if you spend a full day at an amusement park versus a half hour in a grocery store. I think when people want to assess their risk of going somewhere, they’re more interested in the minute-for-minute risk than the obvious fact that more time in public = more risk of exposure.

 

[warfelg]

True, although I’m wondering this this expert was specifically talking about regional parks like KI, since it was written for a Cincinnati-area news outlet. At parks like KD or BGW, for example, I bet you’d spend very little time inside, at least compared to a Florida park full of indoor queues and show rooms.

I’d also argue that time exposure, while a valid concern, is a little unfair. Of course you’re more likely to be exposed to the virus if you spend a full day at an amusement park versus a half hour in a grocery store. I think when people want to assess their risk of going somewhere, they’re more interested in the minute-for-minute risk than the obvious fact that more time in public = more risk of exposure.

I don’t see how the time exposure is unfair. If you are ranking risks then it absolutely need to be included in what makes it risky.

I dived a bit deep into the unscientific poll a touch more and these were concerns listed for amusement park in how guests handle themselves on rides that could be a huge risk as the ride itself is not supervised the way the station is.

 

[Mushroom]

I don’t see how the time exposure is unfair. If you are ranking risks then it absolutely need to be included in what makes it risky.

I dived a bit deep into the unscientific poll a touch more and these were concerns listed for amusement park in how guests handle themselves on rides that could be a huge risk as the ride itself is not supervised the way the station is.

Factoring in time exposure makes it more difficult to objectively compare amusement parks to other daily activities. It’s obvious the more time spent in public, the higher your risk of being exposed. But I think I and many others want a clear side-by-side comparison of risks at any given moment. For example: am I more at-risk by spending two hours at the amusement park or two hours at the grocery store?

I am definitely worried about how guests will handle themselves on rides though. I’ve already seen complaints of guests taking masks off once the ride starts. My best hope is that parks will be vigilant about confronting guests when they return to the station if they notice something happened. When I was at KI a few years ago, a guest had their phone out on the Beast, and when we returned to the station a security officer was waiting to greet them. Realistically, I don’t expect this to happen often, but in a perfect world, that would be how I’d want parks to deal with people who don’t conduct themselves properly on rides.

 

[rswashdc]

My guess is that SFA will be the worst of the mid-Atlantic parks for mask wearing, but will be best in class for social distancing.

 

[Murphy]

Purely anecdotal, but customers in my store are probably close to about 60% on wearing masks, then once they step foot in the store and see that I'm wearing one, that number jumps up to about 80% of mask wearers. I'd love to see it be more, but if I'm honest this is better than I expected. Hopefully guests at the park can be convinced that these are the necessary steps to be able to have the parks back. But I won't be holding my breath on that.

 

[VonDerrick]

From my own personal observations; mask use is generally high. Visiting CityWalk close to its reopening, everyone had their mask on except those eating. It was a weird experience, but nice to see. Visiting Disney Springs more recently, the vast majority had a mask; however, it seems to be an even split on if people wore them correctly or not. Most were traveling with food or drinks, but there were many that just had it around their chin or just plain holding it.During my visit, there were only three CMs of the mask and social distancing team that I saw and they didn't even actually attempt to do anything but stand around. I will also disclaim that I visited literally the last hour of operation, so with things closing that may have had an affect on the mask wearing.

Overall, I see most people will have a mask, and then will use it when approached and talked directly to. However, when not directly approached, most people seem to just let it hang wherever. So in summary, if parks were to actually enforce the masks required rule, I have no doubt that we would see a great deal of compliance from just CMs directly addressing it one on one with guests. Obviously, I would still expect a very small bit of hold outs that will fight the system. In those cases, I agree with @Zachary 's 'Kick'em Out!' strategy but I don't think that would truly persuade people any differently.

 

[rswashdc]

Probably one of the influences on employees enforcing mask compliance will be whether or not someone working at the park actually gets sick. If employees get sick you can bet they will be pretty strict, but if no one they know is getting sick, you'll probably see pretty lax enforcement over time.

 

[Gavin]

Purely anecdotal, but customers in my store are probably close to about 60% on wearing masks, then once they step foot in the store and see that I'm wearing one, that number jumps up to about 80% of mask wearers. I'd love to see it be more, but if I'm honest this is better than I expected. Hopefully guests at the park can be convinced that these are the necessary steps to be able to have the parks back. But I won't be holding my breath on that.

I’m actually guilty of this, but not on purpose! I work outside all day by myself, so I’m not usually wearing a mask. Every time I go inside somewhere, I always seem to forget my mask in my truck so I end up doing an immediate 180 and go back to get it. It’s not that I don’t want to wear it, it’s just I forget to

 

[Zachary]

Updates on VA Phase III details coming Thursday.

 

[mtorange]

Phase 3 will NOT begin on Friday like some expected due to surges in other states. However, Governor Northam will announce details on Phase 3 this Thursday.

Edit: Jinks!