Originally Posted by
DMark
As I mention on my website, one of the major problems of the monorail is the location...it is only on the east side of The Strip, behind the casinos. So, say for instance you are staying in the Monte Carlo - you have to go down your elevator, walk all the way through the Monte Carlo, up and over the bridge on The Strip, walk all the way through the MGM Grand and then up the escalator to the Monorail. My best guess is that that is about 6 city blocks, at least. How is that for convenience? Three guesses why tourists tend to use the monorail once and decide a taxi isn't such a bad deal after all.
I agree. Took the monorail back in March just for kicks while we were staying at the Mirage. Had to walk out the Mirage, across the Strip, through Harrahs' casino, up a sidewalk behind the hotel and finally up an escalator to get to the station. After getting off the monorail wasn't so bad (we were headed to the MGM), but I can see why the monorail would have such poor ridership. Seems more like a "ride" than a reasonable mode of public transportation...