When
WDW was being built, Bay Lake was drained, and a bottom layer of root structures,
silt, and debris was dredged out. The Seven Seas Lagoon was also created next
to Bay Lake. More than seven million cubic yards of earth were dug up from the
lagoons and used to raise the Magic Kingdom site an average of 14 feet. This process
created a nine acre underground system of utility corridors called utilidors.
Thus, the Magic Kingdom that guests see above-pavement is actually the second
and third stories of the buildings - the utilidors aren't really underground,
they are on the first floor!
The
utilidors provide out-of-sight access to infrastructural services. In addition
to sewer lines, pipes, and cables, the utilidors house the premier United States
use of the Swedish AVAC trash-disposal system, with trash funneled underground
in pneumatic tubes to a central collection point. Also located here is the Digital
Animation Control System (DACS), which ensures that the hundreds of Audio-Animatronics
figures in the Magic Kingdom are 'on cue' during their performances, by orchestrating
more than 72,000 individual functions every second. DACS also opens theater doors,
elevates stage lifts, operates lighting and curtains, and monitors fire protection,
security, equipment failure, and power loss. The utilidors also provide a means
of access for employees out of sight of park visitors.
Costume
stores are located in the utilidors. Cast members each have an ID card with a
bar code on it, they hand the card in at the window of the costume store, the
card is scanned and the CM gets their particular costume. When they have finished
with the costume, their are special laundry bins located throughout the utilidors,
the CM holds the costume up to a scanner on the wall and then puts it in the bin.
Here
is an article on utilidors taken with permission from http://www.disfolks.com/index.htm
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The Magic Kingdom
Utilidors are a series of service tunnels built under the Magic Kingdom which
were originally created in order to allow the removal of waste materials, and
provide hidden access to various parts of the theme park. Since the tunnels are
hidden, characters, castmembers and Disney security can move around the park out
of sight of the guests. If a TomorrowLand castmember is in costume, he or she
doesn't have to cross through FantasyLand to get there, for instance, and the
integrity of the theme of each section is preserved.
The
tunnels system is the heart of the Magic Kingdom, hence, the name of our site.
It is not only a series of access tunnels; it is a whole "world under the World"
where the cast-member cafeterias, dressing rooms, costume issue and so forth are
situated. All the electrical and plumbing paraphernalia, not to mention the vast
system of waste pipes (not sewage, these are what the trash is swept into by the
custodial staff) is contained within the tunnels. Cast members can get their hair
cut, get a check cashed, or use an empty room to rehearse for a production or
parade. When school groups are invited to participate in a Disney parade, for
instance, they are brought into the tunnels, where they're able to dress and practice
before they go onstage. The tunnels are the staging area for all of the Magic
Kingdom. Once you leave one of the access doors, whether you are selling Disney
goodies at a kiosk, or running an attraction, or being a park greeter; no matter
what your function is that day, you are considered Onstage.
During
Traditions, you will be taken to the tunnels via bus (you cannot get to the main
Tunnel entrance by walking to it, there are security people posted there, and
you have to show a castmember ID when you get onto the bus). Once inside the tunnels,
the Traditions trainers will explain the waste removal system, show you pictures
of the original creation of the tunnels, and point out all the color coding showing
castmembers how to get around the tunnels.
You
will also tour the cafeteria and be shown where the locker rooms, bank, shipping
and receiving and other important functions are located. Some things you will
probably not be shown. For instance, Disney keeps track of all the parades through
sensors that are built into the streets along the parade route which correspond
to sensors built into the floats. This is done through a large control room that
you can see but will probably not be taken in to see unless, after becoming a
castmember, you get to know some of the people who work there. The people who
work in the parade control center can monitor the movement of all the floats for
stopping and starting throughout the whole parade route.
If
you are going to be working in one of the other parks, or at a resort, this may
be one of the few times you actually visit the tunnels. Each section has its own
staging areas, its own Company D store, its own cafeterias, etc., so you won't
generally find yourself in that vicinity. If you're a castmember from another
area, and you're just visiting or killing time in the Magic Kingdom, you can go
into the tunnels through one of the access doors as long as you have your ID with
you. You should go in and look around, familiarize yourself with a piece of constructional
genius and have lunch in the caf, (it's a lot cheaper).
