A new lawsuit filed by a Walt Disney World guest could change operations on Main Street USA at Magic Kingdom. The lawsuit was filed by Kentucky resident Rhonda Smith against Walt Disney Parks and Resorts. The lawsuit alleges that Smith tripped and fell, sustaining serious injuries, after their foot got caught in or around the trolley tracks that run the length of Main Street USA. Walt Disney World is no stranger to trip and fall lawsuits, and we typically don’t cover them, but could this lawsuit change operations on Main Street USA?
Guest Sues Disney World After Tripping Over Main Street USA Tracks
The lawsuit claims that the incident took place around 5pm on October 24th. The lawsuit notes that the pedestrian walkway included embedded steel rails for the trolley to navigate. The lawsuit says that the rails cause changes in level, edges, and gaps where the rail meets the surrounding ground.
The lawsuit alleges that “the area lacked adequate contrast warnings, guardrails, cones, stanchions, or other measures necessary to protect guests” from what it calls “tripping hazards” associated with the embedded track.
The lawsuit says that the safety measures were not present “during nighttime crowd conditions and parade operations”. Sunset on October 24th in the Walt Disney World area was some 1 hour and 45 minutes after the alleged incident.
The lawsuit said that Smith was navigating the area when their foot was caught on or in the embedded track/adjacent paver interface. This caused Smith to “trip and fall and sustain serious injuries”. The lawsuit goes on to cover the injuries suffered, which are pretty standard for trip and fall cases and don’t necessarily shine a light on the specific injuries that Smith allegedly sustained.
Smith is suing Walt Disney World for more than $50,000 as a result of the trip and fall on the Main Street USA trolley tracks.
Where this trip and fall is different than the typical trip and fall cases that Walt Disney World faces on a weekly basis is that the hazard here doesn’t specifically appear to be just bad concrete. While bad concrete could be to blame here (along with a litany of other reasons), the lawsuit does, at times, blame the track itself.
In a worst-case scenario, this could be the straw that breaks the camel’s back when it comes to the removal of the trolley track along Main Street USA. Of course, the proceedings are very early, and it is far too soon to say whether or not there will be a case, much less any change at the theme park. That said, I thought that the lawsuit was notable as it appears to point the finger at something that is a rather standard condition for Main Street USA and has been for decades.
Who among us hasn’t had a shaky encounter with the trolley tracks at one time or another? I know I’ve seen countless stroller wheels get stuck, and, on occasion, dump a child or two after an abrupt stop. I’ve seen ankles tested (sometimes my own) after a misstep or not fully paying attention to the pavement under my feet.
With the trolley playing less and less of a role in daily operations following COVID-19 entertainment cutbacks, could this lawsuit or another future lawsuit be the reason for Disney to pave over Main Street USA and do away with the trolley completely?
I hope it’s unlikely, but only time will tell.
As always, keep checking back with us here at BlogMickey.com as we continue to bring you the latest news, photos, and info from around the Disney Parks!
I doubt highly this will do anything to the trolley and it’s tracks. OSHA, other governing bodies, and Disney know that area and track VERY well, and I’m sure safety has been all over it all the time. It’s still there after everything because it’s on the up and up. They are constantly repairing something about Mainstreet because it’s the part of the park that sees the most traffic and thus the most wear and tear. You can’t tell me they haven’t obsessed over every single mm of mainstreet, and do so every night and day.
There are safety tracks with rubber covers.
The Trolly & Tracks are part of the magic created on Main Street, I have sympathy for anyone sustaining an injury but come on how can one person kill the magic for everyone else??
The trolley tracks on Magic Kingdom’s Main Street are camouflaged by the dark gray color used for the street and the area immediately surrounding the tracks. At Disneyland, there is brick around the tracks. Not only is this aesthetically attractive, it serves as a visual and textural warning about the area. It dissuades wheeled vehicles from this more dangerous area due to vibration. This is a no-brainer improvement to Magic Kingdom’s Main Street and the absence of this “effort to warn”, given it’s in use at Disneyland, I suspect opens Disney up to some liability, that they are foregoing an obvious effort and expense. (They have installed brick elsewhere on MK’s Main Street recently and recently re-did brick at Liberty Square entrance, so brick is a paving material they are using at the park.)