I agree and disagree. I was at SFGAm on Wed. It was busy for a weekday, but not as busy as I expected. The front area of the lot was full, so I thought the lines would be hell (for a weekday), so we bought the Fast Lane ticket. It turned out, that the lines were actually pretty short, except for a few rides. We got on Raging Bull in 20 min, maybe less without the pass. I was starting to think the pass was a waste of money...
Well, for low capacity rides, like Giant Drop, and V2, it is almost essential ! The price is reasonable, only $2.50 per ride to eliminate about 4/5ths of your wait, sometimes more (we got on Giant Drop after 2 cycles !) When else can you say you've ridden a brand new ride 4 times in a day, and still rode everything else in the park twice ?!?!? It's also great if you want to wait for the front car, as you will still wait less than you would for a regular seat without the pass.
As for it clogging up the line - it doesn't. They only allow a few Fast Line people at a time. Currently, they are only selling 2000 Fast Lane tickets a day (or so I've been told). Even on a weekday, they sold them all (the ticket window was closed later that afternoon). And from what I could tell it didn't affect the wait for non-Fast Lane patrons much, if at all.
Sure, I'd rather see a Virtual Que, where you get a timed "reservation" for a ride, but that is a complex system that would cost a lot of money for Six Flags to set up, and would probably end up costing everyone money when they raised General Admission prices to cover the cost. This way, if you want the benefit, you are the only one who pays. Besides, if you are looking for value, get a season pass, a Twicket, or a discounted ticket (you can get $10 off by bringing a Coke can - that pays for your Fast Lane right there !). By the way, if you didn't notice, SFGAm lowered their General Admission prices this year. You are already saving money.
As long as it doen't get out of hand, and they start selling so many that it affects the waits of normal patrons, I'm all for it (remember, I was originally against it, but seeing it in action has converted me) !
*** This post was edited by Joe Carroll on 6/29/2001. ***