Construction crew members are busy working on the queue of Big Thunder Mountain Railroad and have laid some fresh concrete in our latest construction update.
Big Thunder Mountain Railroad Construction Update
With Big Thunder Mountain Railroad still closed for its lengthy refurbishment, the tall crane still looms over the entire back section of Frontierland.
Instead of the usual flying dumpster or a piece of new track, this time, the crane was being used to transport a cement mixer.
While the front facade and queue of the attraction are usually pretty quiet, there were several construction crew members actively working on both sides of the building covered by tarps.
To the right, crew members were in the process of moving some wooden beams and tools up the path near the building. It appears that wood is being used to prop up something behind the green tarp, but the rest is covered.
More crew members were also walking the path on the left side of the queue. All of the wood panels, planks, and tools on this side have been recently added.
As we saw in our most recent update, several new sections of track have been installed in areas all around Big Thunder Mountain. These new track sections are relatively easy to spot, because the silver and black metal is much darker than the old track.
The curve leading into the Big Thunder Mining Co. building had new track installed last week. Since then, metal scaffolding has been erected around the track and underneath the building’s roof.
More of the new track pieces have been installed in the town of Tumbleweed. This is the location where we photographed some rock work taking place at the beginning of the project, so the ground here was likely being prepared for the new track.
The track in this section already appears complete, and more metal scaffolding has already been erected on the left side. The other props and buildings in the town look unchanged so far.
One section still waiting for new track to be installed is this far right curve near the Rivers of America. The only structures visible are the wooden planks for the track’s general outline and the scaffolding.
Moving into the area where crew members were digging out the concrete supports, work has begun on pouring new concrete. A nearby Cast Member confirmed that the work for the past few days has been mainly focused on the concrete pouring around the supports and new track.
We have seen several of the track supports in this area of Big Thunder Mountain being unearthed for the past few weeks, but work has now progressed to actually repairing the supports and pouring new concrete.
Between the scaffolding, we can see where several of the support columns and wooden beams have been replaced with new supports and joints.
The cement mixer being moved on the crane was likely being used to help pour the new concrete around the repaired supports. This area was previously covered with dirt that had been dug out around the base.
Further along the track, not all of the new concrete is complete yet. Several more of the open trenches have now received metal framing for concrete to be poured soon.
The same is true for the large holes carved into the curve inside this cave. All of these open spots will likely receive new concrete before the track installation can be completed.
Finally, this curve to the right of the barn is another area where the new track was installed last week, and new metal scaffolding has now been erected over the top.
The scaffolding inside the barn is also new, so we may finally see the tagged props in the barn moved to a new location.
Big Thunder Mountain Railroad will remain closed until at least 2026, and Disney has said the attraction will have “a little bit of new magic” when it reopens.
What do you think of the ongoing Big Thunder Mountain Railroad refurbishment? Let us know in the comments.
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