Cedar Fair fast lane.

I was just talking to some friends who went to Michigan's Adventure over the holiday weekend, and they told me that fast lane at the park is $47.00? They of course didn't buy one, because they didn't need it, and thought it was pretty stupid as I do.

But, they also mentioned that they heard Cedar Point was selling different levels of fast lane, with the top level being 100 bucks? Is that true? I know that six flags was doing it for their better attractions, but, I thought Cedar Point's was one general price for all the rides.

What is next? Pay to cut in front of people who are paying less then you to cut in line. Maybe a guy in a bell hops uniform to personally escort you to your seat? Or a day when people that pay $1,000. a head get full access to the park one day out of the week, and people who can't pay get booted?

People often post that Disney doesn't like poor people.I'm beginning to think this is a theme park trend, that will hopefully go away. Parks are already getting to expensive as it is, and always finding new ways to get more money out of your pocket

They say it is to cut down on lines, and make people's visits more pleasant. You could have fooled me. The last time I was at Cedar Point, it was so busy it was unbearable. A 3 hour wait for a ride is not pleasant or fun. And to think the people who are paying to cut, are still waiting over an hour. What's good about that?

There's always one thing I'm left wondering after one of T-R's nonsensical rants: how does one make it to an advanced age of adulthood with such a feeble grasp of basic economic concepts like supply and demand?

I'm still somewhat uncomfortable about the pay-to-cut options available, but I know not to even mention it here. In some cases, I feel like if I can't afford to purchase it, I might as well not even go. They make the lines longer for everyone else. I try to avoid long lines.

Timber-Rider said:

People often post that Disney doesn't like poor people.

It's not that amusement and theme parks don't like poor people, it's that they like people with money to spend who are willing to spend it.

T-R, I looked up Fast Lane Plus for you. (Don't worry, it was easy) If you shop online, a random Saturday in June is a little over 100 bucks. A random Saturday in July is 149.00. Halloweekends Saturdays run 149.00 also. Does that tell you anything?

And again, quit complaining about that most unfortunate day you had at Cedar Point. I'm here again to assure you that every day there is not like that.

Well, it tells me that Cedar Point doesn't want to attract customers so they're charging unaffordable prices on the days people most want to go. :-)

Timber-Rider said:

...people that pay $1,000 a head get full access... and people who can't pay get booted?

If they can't afford the entrance price and are in the park, don't they deserve to be booted?

T-R is a shining example of using anecdotes to support opinions and declaring the conclusions to be facts.

Yep, there are two levels of fastlane, one has more coasters in it, I never buy either. I think it should cost a lot because really the only people I feel really need it are people from far away who have a limited amount of time and need to experience everything within a short period of time. The cheaper it is the more people will buy it which totally defeats the purpose. Personally I see no point in spending more than the cost of a season pass just for one day of line skipping but then I live within an hour of the park so I don't have to do everything in one day.

I'd be willing to bet one Fastlane plus that Cedar Point will never, ever:

1. Stop selling Fastlane

2. Sell them for less than they are selling them this season.

So basically, get used to it. They'll be more expensive in the following years.

I like that Fastlane is expensive. If less people buy it, the "standby" line is shorter. That's a good thing. The only thing better would be the parks not selling them at all.

Fun said:

I'd be willing to bet one Fastlane plus that Cedar Point will never, ever:

1. Stop selling Fastlane

Since you never clarified/qualified this point, I think I'd take you up on that. They'll eventually switch systems or change the name (maybe as slightly as adding a "+" at the end ;) ), so they will stop selling FastLane at some point, I'm sure. The question is, would the payout be in the new name/system, or just an old FastLane ticket that's worthless?

*Joking, if you couldn't tell. Not actually taking the bet.

I believe this is the 4th year that Cedar Point has sold Fast Lane+, so it is hardly a new thing at this point. They added it due to demand. They have so many rides and coasters that having just a single Fast Lane tier caused overcrowding at the most popular coasters.

Having 2 tiers of Fast Lane actually helps the GP by reducing the wait times for the most popular rides.

Having this discussion in 2016 is hilarious.

Debating the merits of line access is the enthusiast forum equivalent of, "I remember when MTV played music. Get off my lawn!"

You're just dating yourself and arguing for the good ol' days. Disney has been doing FastPass for almost 17 years now. Six Flags isn't far behind with Q-bot. There are literally adults of legal drinking age that don't remember visiting an amusement park and not seeing separate access lines.

It's done...and has been for almost an entire generation at this point.

I'm going in on this with partial information, so forgive me, but there's an interesting independently produced radio show on our NPR station called 99% Invisible. It's about design, architecture, and "the 99% invisible activity that shapes our world".
The other day I caught an episode that explored the many facets of queuing. They looked at history, changes in how people wait for things, and modern trends. As you can imagine, the virtual queue and pay-to-cut concepts were addressed at length. I found it fascinating, particularly in light of our never-ending discussions here.

So here I am in front of you desperately searching for a link to the episode and can't seem to find it. It was probably a re-run. If anyone can help me look it might be of interest to some here.

I recommend this as an interesting, partially related read:

http://www.amazon.com/Traffic-Drive-What-Says-About/dp/0307277194

Lots of good info about queues in the first chapter (how they flow, traffic patterns, perception of waits) that could apply to some of the coaster geek discussion we have. Plus, it comfirms I've done the right thing for the greater good by transitioning my driving style to become a late merger. Turns out I'm not being a dick, I'm actually being more efficient than you "polite" early mergers.

EDIT - Hell, check it out (kind of) on Google Books

Efficient for you, maybe. Quit cuttin' me off, dick.
:)

Early mergers are the worst.

I was always an early merger, then somewhere along the way something clicked and it just made more sense to use the entire lane until the merge. It's not a dick move, it's a common sense move. Utilize both lanes as long as possible and "zipper merge" at the merge point.

Turns out that's exactly the most efficient way to do it.

I get that, and if it's done politely, it's fine with me. I laugh at those who speed up as fast as possible to pass me just before the two lanes merge into one. Then they slam their breaks so they don't smash into the traffic in front of them. Then we both have to stop at the red light at the same time, and they are only one car ahead of me all the way down the road. In other words, almost causing an accident gained them exactly one place in "line."

But like always, I smile and wave at them, and call them "buddy." ;)

It seems like some people are in a big hurry. It's going to take time to get to where you are going, so why not choose to enjoy it instead of playing "Nascar Race Car Driver" with everyone else on the road?

Exactly. If you merge two miles before the merge point, all you're doing is making the backup (at least) two miles longer, and merging at random points causes people to slow down and speed up multiple times. Maintain a safe speed and merge at the merge point.