TLHFLA From United States of America, joined May 2003, 584 posts, RR: 1 Posted (6 years 6 months 16 hours ago) and read 3294 times:
I found this amateur video on YouTube that someone shot when they had a tight connection at ATL and the train was out of service. Looks like they got their fair share of exercise!
DeltaGuy From , joined Dec 1969, posts, RR: Reply 1, posted (6 years 6 months 15 hours ago) and read 3185 times:
I was thinkin about that the other day- that airport would be a complete mess if all the trains were OTS for a few days. Maybe it's a good way to slim down a fairley overweight America?
Aviator27 From , joined Dec 1969, posts, RR: Reply 2, posted (6 years 6 months 10 hours ago) and read 2957 times:
I've had to do this walk before. Talk about good exercise. Its quiet long if you have to go from Main Terminal to Concourse D or E. The moving walkways do help.
DeltAirlines From United States of America, joined May 1999, 8771 posts, RR: 13 Reply 4, posted (6 years 6 months 7 hours ago) and read 2741 times:
I've had to walk from the main terminal to B before when the train was down...that wasn't a great way to start my Monday morning at 5:30 a.m. or so...
Then again, on longer layovers, I sometimes walk the concourses to get some semblance of exercise (I've done all 5 concourses in about 90 minutes before...not a bad bit of walking).
Litz From United States of America, joined Dec 2003, 1745 posts, RR: 0 Reply 5, posted (6 years 5 months 4 weeks 1 day 19 hours ago) and read 2522 times:
Did anyone notice the new signs in the transportation malls?
They list the distance, in feet, to each conourse ... T to E is listed as 5000 feet, with each concourse 1000 feet apart in between.
TLHFLA From United States of America, joined May 2003, 584 posts, RR: 1 Reply 6, posted (6 years 5 months 4 weeks 1 day 19 hours ago) and read 2479 times:
I haven't seen the new signs yet, but it's definitely a good hike from one end to the other. Whenever I have a delayed flight, I sometimes walk the transportation mall as a means of exercise and a way to kill time...that's a workout that can't be beat!
N766UA From United States of America, joined Jul 1999, 7994 posts, RR: 27 Reply 7, posted (6 years 5 months 4 weeks 1 day 13 hours ago) and read 2291 times:
I've done the concourse E to A walk before. If you get a move on and pass the E station when there are still 2 mins left on the monitor you can actually beat the thing.
Mikey711MN From United States of America, joined Nov 2003, 1380 posts, RR: 8 Reply 8, posted (6 years 5 months 4 weeks 1 day 13 hours ago) and read 2272 times:
Somewhat relatedly, anyone know what the backup plan is if the terminal tram at DEN ever failed? Has it ever?!? Huffing it isn't even an option there IIRC.
Granted, that airport doesn't have the sheer number of passengers nor inter-terminal connections, but still......
Litz From United States of America, joined Dec 2003, 1745 posts, RR: 0 Reply 9, posted (6 years 5 months 4 weeks 1 day 11 hours ago) and read 2186 times:
Quoting Mikey711MN (Reply 8): Somewhat relatedly, anyone know what the backup plan is if the terminal tram at DEN ever failed? Has it ever?!?
If you notice, every airport train system runs two different tracks for efficiency ... one train to take passengers in one direction, the other to take them in the other.
In an emergency situation, a single train can run both directions ... it would just be vastly slower service since it can't reverse until the end of the line, or somewhere there's a switch so it can cutover to the other track.
It's not much different than managing a subway when similar problems crop up.
In the case of a total outage (ie: power goes out, something like that) I would imagine they would have to bus people across the tarmac, kind of like the shuttle bus that takes people to the Comair terminal at CVG.
ATL's design was pretty forward at the time, allowing for pedestrian traffic in addition to the train system. Not many airports that have added trains since then have opted for the same, for some reason.
TLHFLA From United States of America, joined May 2003, 584 posts, RR: 1 Reply 10, posted (6 years 5 months 4 weeks 1 day 11 hours ago) and read 2151 times:
I remember reading an article about the design of the current ATL airport and the original plan called for only a train and not having the option of using an walkway in between. The airlines ultimately complained about this and pushed for the walkway in case the train broke down...smart move it turns out.
In the case of some airports such as TPA and MCO, the only way between the landside and the airside terminals is via the elevated shuttle system. There are two tracks, so whenever one train goes down, there is a back up. There is a walkway between the tracks, but it is only used in the event that both trains brake down. In the case of MCO, it's an especially long journey to have to make by foot.
AAflyguy From United States of America, joined Apr 2006, 350 posts, RR: 2 Reply 11, posted (6 years 5 months 4 weeks 1 day 10 hours ago) and read 2092 times:
I remember a few years back hearing that the train system at DIA did go down, and it was for a period of hours, IIRC. Anyone trying to get to/from the Jeppesen Terminal and Concourses B & C had to be bused. You can imagine that this was a major headache, especially being that this was not, of course, a scheduled shutdown. Scores of flights were delayed throughout the day, because of the lengthy time it took to get passengers out to the concourses. Actually, DL & EA demanding that ATL provide an alternate means for passengers to access the concourses was genius, in retrospect. The space between the tracks was already planned to be there, so it was a relatively simple addition (or correction, most would agree). Thankfully it came at a point early enough in the planning and design stage.
A couple of the original designs of ATL's Midfield Terminal were vastly different from what was ultimately built. One dramatic difference is that more than one offered an at-grade train system? It would have been exposed to the elements. What I recall reading is that after a freak ice storm in DFW that paralyzed its people mover system, the architects went back and devised a way to submerge the train @ ATL, so that weather would not be a factor. Again, genius.
While the train @ ATL may go down from time-to-time, it's typically not for more than several minutes, and that Transportation Mall is always available. Thankfully.
I haven't seen the new signs, either, but will check for them next time I fly to or via ATL.
COERJ From United States of America, joined Dec 2005, 238 posts, RR: 0 Reply 12, posted (6 years 5 months 4 weeks 1 day 6 hours ago) and read 1969 times:
Quoting TLHFLA (Reply 10): In the case of some airports such as TPA and MCO, the only way between the landside and the airside terminals is via the elevated shuttle system. There are two tracks, so whenever one train goes down, there is a back up. There is a walkway between the tracks, but it is only used in the event that both trains brake down. In the case of MCO, it's an especially long journey to have to make by foot.
A while back when I was at TPA one of the trains was broken, and they still opened up the outdoor emergency walkway between both trains.- Absolutely awesome, you get to hike over the road ways, parkinglots, past tarmac, into the terminal. It's a shame they dont open it up to the public and put out benches- it would make great spotting.
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