Disneyland Railroad | |
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![]() The attraction poster for the DRR | |
Disneyland | |
Coordinates | |
Status | Temporarily closed Preview warning: Unknown value in "Status" parameter. |
Opening date | July 17, 1955 |
Ride statistics | |
Attraction type | Heritage railroad |
Manufacturer | Baldwin Locomotive Works |
Designer | WED Enterprises |
Speed | 10–15 mph (16–24 km/h) |
Vehicle type | Train |
Vehicles | |
Duration | 18:00–20:00 |
No. of tracks | Single |
Track gauge | 3 ft (914 mm) |
Track length | 1.2 miles (1.9 km) |
Sponsor | Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway (1955–1974) |
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The Disneyland Railroad (DRR), formerly known as the Santa Fe & Disneyland Railroad, is a 3-foot (914 mm) narrow-gauge heritage railroad and attraction in the Disneyland theme park of the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California, in the United States. Its route is 1.2 miles (1.9 km) long and encircles the majority of the park, with train stations in four different park areas. The rail line, which was constructed by WED Enterprises, operates with two steam locomotives built by WED and three historic steam locomotives originally built by Baldwin Locomotive Works. The ride takes roughly 18 minutes to complete a round trip on its main line when three trains are running, and 20 minutes when four trains are running. Two to four trains can be in operation at any time, three on average.
The attraction was conceived by Walt Disney, who drew inspiration from the ridable miniature Carolwood Pacific Railroad built in his backyard. The Disneyland Railroad opened to the public at Disneyland's grand opening on July 17, 1955. Since that time, multiple alterations have been made to its route, including the addition of two large dioramas in the late 1950s and mid-1960s. Several changes have been made to its rolling stock, including the conversion of one of its train cars into a parlor car in the mid-1970s, and the switch from diesel oil to biodiesel to fuel its locomotives in the late 2000s.
The railroad has been consistently billed as one of Disneyland's top attractions, requiring a C ticket to ride when A, B, and C tickets were introduced in 1955, a D ticket to ride when those were introduced in 1956, and an E ticket to ride when those were introduced in 1959. The use of E tickets stood until a pay-one-price admission system was introduced in 1982. With an estimated 6.6 million passengers each year, the DRR has become one of the world's most popular steam-powered railroads.