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I have a few theories. None of its concrete evidence and is pure conjecture on my part. - The failure of the Swarm. We all know that Merlin were initially disappointed by the Swarms first season. Many reasons were cited (which I'm sure those in the know can find) but essentially, I think this lack of interest in the new coaster dented confidence in what the park could do. Baring in mind, 2011 saw one of the biggest years the park had and that was on the back of Storm Surge. Cheaper investment bought massive returns. - The next Big thing. I think Thorpe has fallen into the trap that Six Flags did. By appealing solely to the thrill sector you severely limit interest. Teenagers want the next big thing and in the 00s, Thorpe easily provided that thrill. Hit after hit, success after success. Coasters galore, several years where we got two flat rides. That investment was unsustainable. Now though, rides like Colossus, Inferno, Tidal Wave, Detonator & Vortex are old hat. They are unmaintained and look their age. Thorpe were unable to drum up interest with The Swarm, Derren Brown opened late and was pretty weak and the less said about the reliance on IP to drive interest the better. The park has a real image problem which leads me to.. - Branding. Thorpe has a huge perception problem. Is it a thrill park, is it a park for up for it families, do we make X a family coaster then two years later refurbish it for adults. Do we change our market to families and then close the biggest family ride we've got (Loggers Leap). Do we advertise our park in our 2019 advert or have an image of goats, donuts and a hotel room. None of this evokes excitement. It smacks of a park throwing anything, everything at the wall to see what sticks and new general managers are not given enough time to evolve/change the place before they are fired and a new one bought in. - The Smiler crash. Ironically, four years later, I feel like the crash has had this weird echoing effect at Thorpe compared to the other two main Merlin parks. It's almost like it never recovered from the initial drop in attendance whilst Alton has recovered well thanks to Wicker Man and Chessington never saw the drop because of its family audience. You could say the lack of investment is really hurting Thorpe right now but then there seems to be no steps to change this. - The park itself. It's fallen a long way since the hefty days of 2006. If they are to recover the place they need to sort out their offering. Having abandoned flat rides and log flumes standing doesn't help, neither does the game stalls or the lack of maintenance and paint jobs on their rollercoasters. The basics need to be sorted for Thorpe to recover. Chessington was exactly the same way in the 00's but that now feels like the strongest Merlin park IMO. If Thorpe can sort this then they might be able to get back to the top.

Hello guys, Been a regular of the forums for many years but decided to ask the burning question this morning... just what has happened to the park? Thorpe Park a few years ago was arguably the best park in the UK, it was going from strength to strength in terms of investments and then all of sudden we get IACGMOOH, bouncezilla, the year of the walking dead etc They even pulled The Big Top off the Fright Nights bill which from what I understand was a favourite by many I assume 2020 will be just as poor in regards to the parks line up / investments as no planning has been put through for a coaster or even a new flat ride... Any information regarding the reasons behind the decline of the park would be interesting to hear...

Some short snippets of the new Big One soundtrack, sounds great and has that trance/club style feel to it, from the short part heard I like. Much better than IMAsnore!

Oh man, it appears “future for theme parks” is reaching new levels of low today in the middle of summer. Besides from having an awful run through the attraction this afternoon, with numerous effects, audio, lighting and hardware not working, the cream of the crop goes to this:

Yes, this is true. The reasons include: -A decrease in visitors compared to 2011. Despite the fact that 2011 was one of Thorpe's busiest and most profitable (and so, in that sense, 'best') years ever, Swarm still had to deliver an increase. It didn't, so Merlin saw Swarm as a failure, and immediately lost faith in whatever their thought process was behind that direction. -Weak brand. Swarm didn't capture people's imagination. It was very generic and not very recognisable. The end of the world vibe was overdone and it merged in with so many other things that went for that. -Experience didn't match marketing. For one reason or another, people expected an intense thrill ride, similar to Saw. Instead, Swarm offered a much more graceful experience, leading people to be disappointed. So basically, people had minor niggles about the ride, and less people visited Thorpe (which would have happened regardless). So, Merlin see it as a failure. Despite that, in the long term it's done a good job, is less generic these days and scores very highly in KPI scores, which Merlin love. So it's been a slow burner. But Merlin's model doesn't allow for slow burners. Just a couple more to add: Derren Brown's Ghost Train Going for a dark ride over a coaster was always a risk, but it was one which needed to be done in my opinion. Sadly, DBGT missed every single possible mark, which really damaged the park. It did attract attention, and it did cause attendances to rise. But it damaged the park's reputation by so much more than the worth of a few thousand visitors. Two big investments in a row that failed is a big recipe for disaster. You need a sure-fire win after that; something with minimal risk. But when everything is spiralling downwards, the pressure is even great, and the amount of risk you take has to decrease. Ultimately it leaves us in the situation we're in now: the best way to minimise risk is to not take a risk at all. Can't lose money if you don't spend money, right? Terrible Non-Big Investments You have to go all the way back to 2007 when the park added a solid non-big investment, in Flying Fish. Arguments can be made for Storm Surge (diversifies the line up and added a much needed family ride) and Walking Dead (a solid scary-themed indoor attraction at the end of the day). I guess you could say 2013 with turning X forwards but that slipped under the radar with the focus on Swarm backwards. But I think Flying Fish is the last one where someone would struggle to come up with a reasonable negative for it. Since then, we've had short term investments, based off fads or needless IPs, which have led to a mish-mash of identities and ideas, and nothing which has really improved the line up. This is coupled with a lack of general upkeep in the existing parts of the park. The bare minimum was done to rides, theming, presentation, etc., which eventually led to rides closing, theming being taken away, etc. Focusing too much on Scares Fright Nights works for the park. Regardless of its quality, it's still the busiest, best received, and most profitable time of year for the park, year in year out. The park tried to capitalise on that and make it work all year round (which, in fairness, isn't too unreasonable). It worked with Saw - The Ride, because that was handled properly. Saw Alive was a nice idea and helped absorb the busyness whilst it was full time. After that, Thorpe should have quit whilst they were ahead. Scare attractions don't work outside of Halloween in a theme park setting. Scary stuff doesn't work outside of Halloween in a theme park setting. One thing to compliment a line up, yes. But an overarching focus on it? No. Yet Thorpe didn't realise this. They didn't learn that in 2005 when Freakshow 3D was dead during summer because no one cared. They didn't learn that after Saw Alive's popularity dwindled in 2012. They didn't learn after Swarm. They didn't learn after Ghost Train. They probably haven't learnt after The Year of The Walking Dead. Keep scares for Fright Nights, and focus on a diverse line up. Not Learning Lessons Related to above, Thorpe make the same mistakes again and again. This likely comes down to management seemingly being a revolving door, especially in more recent years. A new person comes in, tries something, it doesn't work, leave. A new person comes in, tries that same thing in a different disguise, it doesn't work, leave. Repeat. They need to take a step back, look at what they've done for the past 15 years and realise what hasn't worked, and what has worked, and start building from that.

The £18 million is going on theming to fully enclose the ride so it feels like you are actually at THORPE PARK whilst at Flamingo Land. Evidently, it isn't cheap to recreate the back of XNWO's building and fill a pit with concrete, whilst also creating a lake with a SBNO old boat-come-scare maze.

I was so shocked I'm only going back to Thorpe this year if I can blag entry to the FN press night, good day to you Sir. LIKE AND SUBSCRIBE - CLICK THAT NOTIFICATION BELL

Cheers for the advice bruv.

Maybe for next year they'll refurbish it to Derren Brown's Ghost Train: Rise Of The Sneeze?!

Can’t really add to everything that’s been said already but what sticks for me is the whole sense of half arsed-ness. Abanding Big Top but changing it to a show which although was ok, is nowhere near as good as maze form. SBNO rides - never a good look even if they do shove bamboo fencing around them. Half done paint jobs - either finish the job or don’t start. It feels like Thorpe is a bit lost in what sort of park they are - 2013 (when I started visiting regularly) it was known as the nations thrill capital - fast forward a year and its “an island like no other” - shove in Angry Birds Land and appeal to younger audiences/families - great idea but then they remove the carousel and have Loggers SBNO for 4 seasons. Add to that the height increase for X which is now The Walking Dead and they’ve spited a fair few younger guests who can no longer ride it. I think I’ve visited Thorpe 5 times this season - and on one of those times the only thing I went on was the toilet - queue management even to get in was horrendous and once inside it wasn’t much better. Can honestly say I’ve had more enjoyable visits to Chessie this year - Chessie has gone through some naff times but seems to be on the up which is great whereas Thorpe feels quite stale - hopefully they can turn it around because it has such potential and the rides (most) are brilliant

Well DBGT is simply the biggest white elephant project in the history of the theme park industry. The ride will most likely be gone before it hits 10 years of operation whereas a solid coaster would have cost roughly the same (if not less) and guaranteed longevity. There lies the problem with a lot of the parks recent investments. They do NOT have a long term future. Tatty short term investment after tatty short term investment aswell as white elephant projects like DBGT as opposed to solid ride investments are a major reason behind why Thorpe are in the doldrums as much as they are right now.

Alton Towers: STARGAZING PODS, WICKERMAN, DUNGEONS, CUCKOO RE-THEME? Chessington: CAROUSEL, TIGER ROCK + AREA RE-THEME, GRUFFALO, ROTB, NEW ROADS Legoland: CASTLE HOTEL, NINJAGO RIDE, MAD HOUSE, JUNIOR COASTER Thorpe Park: used flats, twd:tr, half day operational dbgt:rotd

Funny that - it's almost as if they haven't put a new coaster in for 7 years!

Most of what the posts above me say are completely correct, but here's my two cents. Lack of image: Thorpe Park don't really have a clear audience now. At least back in 2012 they had a image and demographic, in 2019 the park have huge indentity problems and the new adverts and tagline just scream soul-less. Chessington and Alton are not perfect but any means but they have a clear brand and a clear target market which they both do well, Thorpe is the vanilla ice cream of branding at Merlin. IP's that make no sense: Gruffalo and Room On The Broom make somewhat sense. IAC, Angry Birds, and TWD literally felt just Thorpe picked their IP from a hat. Do we need a half arsed area themed to Angry Birds? HELL NO. IAC was another example of Thorpe slapping on a short IP for a short lived attraction that shouldn't exist in the first place. Poor small, medium, and large investments: For small investments we got IAC and a bunch of reused unthemed little flat rides which were placed pretty blindly.. For medium investments we got Angry Birds and the best family ride re-themed to something scary, for large we got DBGT- one of the biggest fails in Merlin history. 13 million spent on something that probably won't make it past ten years of operation. Neglected parts of the park: Colossus's new concrete look, Swarm's wood in the station, Inferno's queueline, Old Town in general, Slammer.. The park feels so neglected, Thorpe right now feels like the unwanted redhead child of Merlin.. I think what Mark said was very true in that Chessington was in a similar position for a while, things can change. Though I feel like Thorpe really has a dug itself a hole and its going to take some hefty investments and clean up to recover what is the current mess of the park. I think replacing Loggers and Slammer with new attractions would be a good first step, that area is crying for a refurb, its needed a refurb for like 4 years now..

Sadly I think the key thing in their decline was DBGT, they created such a hype for something that is pretty much a sit down VR experience you could get at home with some Halloween maze like acting thrown in the middle to break it up a bit (I haven't experienced the new version, so I assume its similar but better themed for the ending) They threw alot of money into a project that just simply didn't return the profit or the hype for the park even after an essential do over attempt. Then there's the fact old town has been a dormant area for years now with Loggers left SBNO for such a long time with no actual word and mixed social media messages angered alot of enthusiasts because its such an iconic ride (at least they had the decency to admit Slammer wasn't coming back) an area that now houses a couple of kids rides in whats marketed as a thrill park falls flat They then choose a sinking ship of an IP in the walking dead that's been ravaged by bad reviews, much of the main cast being lost/going and fast dropping viewing figures to overlay a ride that had already actually been given a new lease of life and was making progress and adding another dark and depressing theme to a dark and depressing park tbh. These IP events like love island lates and walking dead etc scream of latching onto something in desperation. Part of what has made our theme parks great in the past is creating unique immersive environments for rides that aren't bogged down by and IP and it feels like we are losing that, rather than being imaginative and daring the park seems to be latching onto BLANK the ride just to create buzz which evidently is only fleeting. I wouldn't mind if we got something to the quality of Harry Potter World etc (I KNOW I'M DREAMING HERE) but a walking dead re-theme that involves dark corridors a video and a couple of screens on the ride falls incredibly flat imho. What they really need is a line of strong new additions to really draw people back to the park and stop disregarding unique immersive themes for IP's for a quick fix that obviously isn't lasting. I fear that if they don't announce something soon the park is just going to fall of the map, the UK industry as a whole tbh really needs a kick up the ass right now, look at Eftling for example going from strength to strength great new additions and feedback essentially going head to head with DLP if our parks actually tried to compete with the better offerings out there like you see at Florida with Disney and Universal our theme park industry would improve vastly but being all owned by one company there sadly really isn't any competition that's why I pray this London Resort eventually happens and they actually start competing so they put some effort again into their offerings.

Stealth down again then? I guess @MattyMoo broke it again recently after a fair share of beer/lager probably.

Very interesting read up as always Whilst Kings Island to me is not a park to travel all the way to America for on its own, it is most certainly worth a visit when combined with days at Cedar Point. I actually enjoyed the atmosphere at the park when I visited but certainly not an atmosphere on the level of Cedar Point. Mystic Timbers to me was by far the star of the show at this park. Whilst front row on it isn’t really that great, the back row felt utterly frantic and the ride at night is sentastional and as such made it my number 1 wooden coaster (even ahead of Wodan and Balder) I do think Diamondback is probably one of my least favourite B&M Hypers but I was quite lucky to have had some solid rides on it airtime wise. I do agree that that trim is utterly stupid though. Banshee...where do I even start!!?? Can somebody please tell B&M that NOBODY LIKES THOSE DAMN VESTS!! Honestly was it not for those vests, it could have been up there with Raptor and Montu as one of my favourite inverts. Thanks to those vests it’s possibly my least favourite and that includes Nemesis Inferno!! I do think the park desperately needs a true WORLD CLASS/ELITE level stand out coaster to go with the current line up. Hopefully the 2020 Giga coaster will give them that.

I dont really have much to add, other than the fact I just did Hex for the first time and... oh my god. Its incredible. The theming in there is unlike anything Ive ever seen, I dont know where to start. We even went on a second time, in which the whole group on our side walked straight through the vault and didnt experience the madhouse itself. One of the funniest things Ive ever seen at a theme park.

More Creek Wood construction!

So this is how the Ghost Train ends, not with a Screaming Roar. but with a Cough

“And I believe this represents the future for spreading a cold across the world!!”

Having flashbacks to our routine on every visit of rides, then eating lunch, followed by waterbus to Thorpe Farm, train back to Canada Creek and then more rides.

WHO ARE YOU AND WHAT THE HECK HAVE YOU DONE WITH MARHELORPE!!???? 😮

Haven’t been to Chessie yet this year (even though I’ve wanted to!) 😭 Some people moan about it/aren’t bothered about going because “It’s always busy” but I always manage to have fun there 😁 I don’t get that with Thorpe, instead I just feel let down. Yes, I have a MAP and can go whenever, yes, I’ve done the rides hundreds of times. That’s not the point. The lack of fun/relaxing, less busy attractions like Logger’s and CCR is a problem IMO. I’m not just being sentimental, it’s something the park needs.

For a recent example, Untamed cost €12m. Assuming a ground-up RMC would cost more, and then take into account Merlin inflating prices, a brand new RMC would probably be slated to cost between the £18-20m mark. Hardly cheaper than a 'big' manufacturer. Sure, Freespins would be a nice idea, but they'd be pretty low down on my list of rides I'd like to see go to Thorpe (or Towers really). It wasn't too long ago the idea of one them (or a similar-ish Intamin Zac Spin) would have been shot down for being ridiculous, due to their average throughput. Now it feels like that option would be brilliant because it's something. It definitely is. Alton did that with B&M in the 90s to be fair. Six Flags seem to have done it with RMC. But for every successful partnership, they'll be unsuccessful ones. Sure it's not coaster-related, but Merlin/Simworx is a prime example. Parque Reunidos work closely with Gerstlauer, but they've gotten very little out of it. It's a gamble, especially with smaller manufacturers, so it doesn't always pay off.

Yeah, the one with the Gerstlauer trains.... 10 Million probably sounds more like a accurate price but that is still way cheaper than most coasters. Especially on the scale of New Texas Giant. Sure it was a conversation, though conversations aren't much cheaper than ground up RMC's anyway.. RMCing a coaster literally just re-uses parts of the layout and parts of the supports.. Outlaw Run (groundup RMC woodie) cost 10 million too.. (according to RCDB)..

Nice! Maybe the loud lift hills are unique to the hyper RMCs! Blimey! No wonder Thorpe aren't getting one, it is probably too noisy to get planning permission haha.

I too managed to catch a quiet day at Oakwood last Saturday; due to the weather, and it's forecast, evening fireworks had been cancelled and the park was to close at 6p.m., Speed and some other items were closed due to high winds. Megaphobia is the biggie and in the damp she was flying, and lack of customers meant a run of 9 rides without getting off during the afternoon. Bobsleigh I think is an entertaining ride when with each turn one tries to get that bit faster, without falling off, and there was a spell when me and colleague were able to ride again without going round the queueline as there was nobody there. People do add to the atmosphere of a park but sometimes, lack of them is a bonus.

Merlin should just sell Thorpe if they don't want to invest in it any more. Preferably while it still has value before they completely run it into the ground.

Thorpe was incredibly busy today, long queues and what seemed to be a lot of people at guest services at the end of the day complaining about the reduced opening hours...

Wickerman in the back row is just plain amazing. I really hope Merlin decide to build more GCI's

Couldn't agree more Joshua. You hit it on the head. Thorpe need to become a "good amusement park" rather than a theme park. Hit the Six Flags / Cedar Point model and you're onto a winner by being different enough to Chessie and LEGOLAND just around the corner..

Is that not what they did with the ghost train?

You also have an element of Global business strategy going into play here too: 1. Nick V will only invest if it guarantees 25% return on investment (as quoted in an interview he did last year). This was not the case for the last 2 big investments, so there is an element of caution with Thorpe. Once bitten, twice shy, third time reluctant. 2. The strategy of Merlin is to add bedrooms and hotels. This is where the majority of the investment is happening because this is where the majority of the capital comes from - the rest of the investments are kept low key where possible and the parks hardware investment has ground to pretty much a halt except for special circumstances. It is safe business / revenue generation. Thorpe is limited to what it can do in this space because of location, available space etc. Compare Thorpe Shark to the hotels at Windsor, Chessie, Alton and Gardaland. As a result, you have a park that seems neglected because they aren't getting huge investments for hardware (other than DBGT) nor are they getting the hotel investments either. 3. IP's generally work. When you get the right one. Peppa Pig in Europe has been a massive hit at the parks and the World Of Play new openings are huge around the world. Sadly, Merlin will never have the UK license so has to settle for other IPs instead. Saw broke the mould and was a success. But piggy-packing on some-ones IP is less risky than creating your own - arguably the lazy, "quick win" option, but if it works you're a fool to not exploit it. 4. Thorpe seem to be becoming the Six Flags option of Merlin. They are going down the generic, lifeless, soul-less way of running a park as an experiment because they have no specialism - Chessie with the zoo; LEGOLAND with, well, Lego; Alton and the Towers, Gardaland being a bit like Disney, Heide Park being beautiful etc, Thorpe has no anchor and while it is so close to Chessie and LEGOLAND I don't think it ever will have one. But, they are now stuck in a rutt of this way of working doesn't work andno-one is willing to give up the capital to break them out of the cycle because of the toxic "you must perform financially in order to be given money to better yourself" attitudes that modern businesses have. I'd love it if Merlin were to just say "Right, here's £100 million. Sweep the entire park and make it great again within a year so that we can ramp up profits next year" but it won't happen. 5. I have a feeling that the new "owners" will not be as restrictive as playing shareholder politics. They are going to be investing for the strength of their business and not the perceptions and opinions of shareholders. This may see an uplift in investments in due course. But, don't hold your breath 6. MMM seem to play it safe with investments and there are no rumblings anywhere of us working with pioneering or elite ride manufacturers. And while Merlin have the perception that rollercoasters bring in more people than flat rides (which are by large more expensive to maintain for the investment they require in comparison), we will always see the decline in flats and ramping up of coasters of varying quality. Maybe if they were more daring, we would see an RMC spring up at Thorpe.. or a Mack Launcher at Chessie.

Reload by Sebastian Ingrosso & Tommy Trash? I think they played the instrumental version in X.

Sorry who are you and what influence do you have? I only listen to the lord and saviour TPWW Alex.

Yikes, that's truly shocking to pull them at such short notice once people will have already booked accommodation and planned their visits etc. Have Thorpe been taking lessons from Pleasure Beach? Although in a way this is worse!

I was on park yesterday. Stealth has been closed since last week and is not going to be back up any time soon due to new parts required. Apparently Thorpe have recently fired the AM engineer for Swarm, as such they can not operate it until the PM engineer is on site at 16:00 (whom lives far away). Make of it what you will, but sure enough Swarm opened bang on 16:00, with only one car and an immediate 2 hour queue line. Source: ride operators on park

Interesting heading your thoughts on this park. I actually found my visit there in May very enjoyable as it seemed clean, pretty and houses one pretty entrance. It’s not my favourite park and definitely no Cedar Point beater, but still has things going for it. I honestly found Banshee disappointing, the layout didn’t feel like it did much despite it’s length and the vests cement this for me. The classic arrow coasters there are great, especially Bat. I actually adored the Beast. The whole prospect of going into the unknown is simply immense and probably one of the best coasters to do at night. I didn’t notice the trims. Mystic Timbers was very good I thought!

Hex is a great attraction, I love it. It's a brilliant exhibition of the ruins, it gets it just right and leaves a great impression. But it's really very basic, some props in the Towers ruins with a tried-and-tested ride type as a finale. I'm not wanting to downplay Hex, it's perfect, but I find it a bit overblown whenever fans say it's one of the best themed attractions in the continent. Definitely the best themed madhouse. I think its atmosphere is the best thing about it (because of the Towers). But there are way more detailed, creative, well crafted, entertaining (whichever way you want to cut it) dark rides out there on their own merits. Not necessarily bigger or more flash. I think enthusiasts put it on such a high pedestal because most great dark rides in Europe are for families. Hex has a more serious tone because of its incredible real life setting and enthusiasts like this. I first did Hex when I was young and I thought it was great, it was much better when it was newer too (some of the subtleties lost in recent years). But that's mostly owed to the incredible Towers I feel. It's a shame to overlook the incredible craft and creativity that's gone into better dark rides out there at parks like Efteling for example. By the way, dont let me rain on your parade @ChessingtonSam , since you've just done it first time. It really is great. I'm more talking about the pedestal it gets put on by many enthusiasts in the UK.

Just chucking in a few more pictures, form the Xtreme Coaster Network on FB...

So this was officially announced a little while back; slight differences to what was posted previously: https://buschgardens.com/williamsburg/roller-coasters/pantheon/ Key stats: 3 launches (including swing launch) Maximum speed of 72mph 95 degree drop Maximum height of 178ft 2 inversions True testament to how much roller coaster engineering has developed recently that rides like this are possible and becoming more of the norm.

RAP

Awesome Old Tv show Bodger and Badger Series 4 was filmed at the park. This rare clip shows some of the park including Dragon River from the 90s. It ironically shows issues from todays maintaining of effects at Merlin parks 😂

However, how do you enjoy a day out with friends if you have a disability? I think your maybe missing the point that not every disability is one visible etc, in the event of an evac the carers/friends are there to help with the evac etc. You simply cannot put a definition to what a carer should be or look like, as everyone is completely different in terms of needs and help needed and in most cases it will be friends and family that help out... be it in the case of panic attacks, mental health etc. Some users of wristbands may seem completely normal to the bare eye, that could be there calm at that point due to the aid the system can bring. Some people can flip very quickly from seeming completely normal to hell breaking loose for example the stress, anxiety etc some people have with confined spaces large numbers of people in a small area. These are only examples I'm sure there are so many triggers for people. If it means they get to enjoy a day out that they otherwise wouldn't be then I dont see an issue with the pass provided its used correctly

The other issue on top of that is some disabled people will require two people to transfer for whatever reason... 3 is an ok number of accompanying carers, but it needs to be flat out adhered too...

I will buy everyone on this forum a drink at the local spoons if Big Top returns. I will actually go through it butt naked if it did. Time to just accept that it’s gone for good. *sees the lineup announcement for Fright nights. Well guess that’s me sticking to Alton Towers Scarefest and Tulleys Shocktoberfest

No because at fairs it's only a bouncy castle or slide, not an obstacle course. It is generally well received by the public.

Yeah Europa (and Germany) have essentially removed such a system since 2014 unfortunately... I think now that Blue Badges are being issued to non-visual disabilities such as Autism it would make things much easier... With the right level of PR preparation it could be changed easily (but the base response to any complaints being, "we've changed this to ensure fair and equal treatment blah blah") and hopefully the mistreatment of the system can be removed... Of course they would need to consider temporary situations such as broken legs but they could do a DLP and have a tiered system for that... The parks just need to sort it out because it's an utter pain in the arse for those who need it...