It was early in 2018 that the first work began on Tron: Lightcycle Run, a brand new roller coaster at Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom. Nearly five years later, the attraction is still not quite ready. We know approximately when the attraction will open, spring of next year, but that rough date now feels a lot closer after learning that Disney World is in the process of hiring Cast Members for the ride, and now I think I know when we’ll finally be able to ride it.
When a new attractions open at Walt Disney World, current Cast Members who work in the parks have the ability to request a transfer from their current position to the new one. Because a lot of people usually want to work on whatever the new hotness is, there are usually more people interested than there are spots to fill, so getting picked is a big deal. Today Walt Disney World released a fun, and surprisingly emotional video on Instagram, where Cast Members who were chosen were told of their new gig.
At the end of the day, you can’t open a brand new attraction at Disney World without the staff to run it, and those people need time to get properly trained. This makes this step a key part of Tron: Lightcycle Run opening to the public. After all this time, the roller coaster is finally starting to feel like it's close to actually being here.
Applications for transfers to Tron: Lightcycle Run had to be in at the end of September, so while we don’t know exactly when these videos were shot, it was fairly recently. This is important because it might give us a bit of a clue as to when the new coaster might actually open.
When Tron: Lightcycle Run Could Open At Magic Kingdom
Cast Member transfers were reportedly approved for Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind, the most recent attraction opening, and another significant new roller coaster, in mid-January of this year, and Cosmic Rewind opened at the end of May. If we give Tron the same buffer, then we’re looking at it opening up in mid-March. Since new attractions usually open on Fridays, then we’re looking at a date of about March 17, 2023. Feels like a good choice.
Disney World has officially gave Tron: Lightcycle Run a date of “Spring 2023” for its opening. The first day of Spring will be March 23, so technically, this will be prior to spring, but Disney World called Cosmic Rewind’s opening a “Summer 2022” event, and it opened at the end of May, so the seasons are a bit flexible in Orlando.
Even in Tron: Lightcycle Run opens a bit later than my guess, in the actual spring of 2023, this announcement made today would clearly indicate that the new ride will open early, rather than late in the season. This follows considering there were many who hoped the Tron coaster might even open this year. That’s good news for fans excited for this, as it will have been over five years since ground broke when we finally get a chance to experience The Grid.
