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Did Mickey & Minnie's Runaway Railway open at Disney's Hollywood Studios in 2019, as Disney first said it would?

The Roadmap Reckoner · Mickey & Minnie's Runaway Railway, Disney's Hollywood Studios, Walt Disney World Resort (Orange County), Florida · last checked 2026-11-08

Verdict	DELIVERED LATE, by 64 days past the year Disney first named
Promiser	The Walt Disney Company (Disney Parks), on the Disney Parks Blog, post of February 11, 2018
Place	Mickey & Minnie's Runaway Railway, Disney's Hollywood Studios, Walt Disney World Resort (Orange County), Florida
Promised	2019 (a year, no month): "is opening in 2019" (Disney Parks Blog, February 11, 2018). Disney's blog gave "spring 2020" on April 19, 2019
Delivered / status	Opened to the public March 4, 2020, 64 days after the last day of 2019 (counted by the entry); against Disney's later 2020 statements the ride was on time
Last checked	2026-11-08

Verdict: DELIVERED LATE, by 64 days past the year Disney first named. The Disney Parks Blog said on February 11, 2018 that the ride "is opening in 2019" and that Bob Chapek "announced the opening year" at D23 Expo Japan [C16, C17]. The blog repeated it on June 29, 2018: "planned to open at Disney's Hollywood Studios in 2019" [C18]. On April 19, 2019 the blog gave a new time, "spring 2020" [C22], and D23 gave "in 2020" [C3]. The ride opened to the public on March 4, 2020 [C7, C8, C28]. That is 64 days after the last day of 2019 (counted by this entry; 2020 was a leap year) [C16, C18, C32]. Against the later statements the ride was on time: it opened inside 2020, and on the date Disney's blog gave on December 3, 2019 [C26]. This entry rules against the first year Disney named.

Last checked: November 8, 2026.

The promise. "is opening in 2019", Disney Parks Blog, February 11, 2018 [C16, C17]. Repeated on June 29, 2018 [C18] and in D23's post of November 17, 2018: "We can't wait to ride on Mickey & Minnie's Runaway Railway in 2019" [C19].
The slip. On April 19, 2019 the stated time became "spring 2020" on Disney's blog [C22] and "in 2020" on D23 [C3]. Neither Disney page that gave the new time calls it a delay or mentions the earlier year (see the next section). A local news outlet did: "Disney delays debut of 'Runaway Railway' ride at Hollywood Studios" [C23].
The date. Disney's blog of December 3, 2019: "will open March 4, 2020" [C26]. The ride opened that day [C7, C8, C28]. It opened 64 days after the last day of 2019 (counted by this entry) [C16, C32].
After the opening. Disney's 2020 annual report says Walt Disney World Resort "closed from March 16, 2020 through July 10, 2020", 12 days after the opening date (counted by this entry) [C14]. The ride's own reopening date was not read.
The money. No Disney page this entry read gives a cost for the ride.
Today. Disney's ride page, read when this entry was checked, places the ride at Hollywood Studios and lists operating hours for that day [C12, C13].

The promise

The promiser is The Walt Disney Company, through its parks business. The first year it gave was in the Disney Parks Blog post of February 11, 2018, which says the ride "is opening in 2019" and that Bob Chapek, Chairman of Walt Disney Parks & Resorts, "announced the opening year" during D23 Expo Japan [C16, C17]. Disney's three July 2017 pages on the ride, from the D23 Expo 2017 presentation, name no opening year [C31, C33]. The promise names a calendar year with no month.

Disney repeated it on June 29, 2018 [C18] and D23 repeated it on November 17, 2018 [C19]. Two outlets reported what Chapek said at that event: WDWInfo, "Runaway Railway will open in Fall 2019." [C20], and Travel Weekly, "Runaway Railway will open at Hollywood Studios in about a year." [C21]. No Disney page this entry read says fall 2019 for this ride, so those two are reported only.

Timeline

July 2017. Disney's blog titles its post on the ride "First Mickey-Themed Ride-Through Attraction"; the blog and D23 pages from the D23 Expo 2017 name no opening year [C15, C31, C33].
February 11, 2018. The blog: "is opening in 2019" [C16, C17].
June 29, 2018. The blog: "planned to open at Disney's Hollywood Studios in 2019" [C18].
November 17, 2018. D23, writing about Destination D, repeats 2019 [C19]. Outlets add "Fall 2019" [C20] and "about a year" [C21].
April 19, 2019. The blog, in a post about the Disneyland version: "spring 2020" [C22]. D23, same day: "will debut at Disney's Hollywood Studios in 2020" [C3]. The D23 page's data also lists an update on July 17, 2019 [C1].
August 25, 2019. Disney's company release: "coming to Disney's Hollywood Studios at Walt Disney World Resort in 2020" [C4, C5].
December 3, 2019. The blog: "will open March 4, 2020" [C26].
March 3 and 4, 2020. Disney's press release, dated March 3, says the ride is "opening to the public Wednesday, March 4" [C6, C7]; the same release as carried by PR Newswire says "The new attraction opens to the public March 4, 2020." [C8].
March 16, 2020. Walt Disney World Resort closes, 12 days after March 4 (counted by this entry); the annual report says it was closed "through July 10, 2020" [C14].
When this entry was checked. Disney's ride page lists the ride at Hollywood Studios with operating hours for that day [C13].

What changed, and why, in the record's own words

The year. From 2019 [C16, C18, C19] to spring 2020 on Disney's blog [C22] and 2020 on D23 [C3], on April 19, 2019. Disney's company release repeated 2020 on August 25, 2019 [C5]. No Disney page this entry read gives a reason for the move.
How Disney described the move. Disney's blog post of April 19, 2019 is about the Disneyland version and mentions Hollywood Studios in one sentence [C22]. D23's post of the same day is about the Disneyland version too [C3]. Neither calls it a delay, and neither mentions 2019.
The scope. In July 2017 the blog called it the "First Mickey-Themed Ride-Through Attraction" [C15]. In March 2020 the release called it "the first ride-through attraction in a Disney park dedicated to Mickey and Minnie" [C9]. Disney's ride page today says it is "the first ride at any Disney park that stars Mickey Mouse and friends" [C12]. The three descriptions are worded differently; this entry does not rule on whether they differ in meaning.
The closure. It came 12 days after the opening, and the promise was about the opening [C14].

What it cost

No Disney page this entry read gives a cost for the ride.

What this entry did not check

Why the date moved. No Disney page this entry read gives a reason.
A Disney page that says fall 2019. This entry read none. It read no video or transcript of Chapek's talk of November 17, 2018, so "Fall 2019" and "about a year" are the outlets' reports only [C20, C21].
Other Disney Parks Blog months. This entry looked at the blog's archive for July 2017, August 2017, February 2018, November 2018, April 2019, May 2019, December 2019 and March 2020 only. It did not list other months, so another Disney statement could exist.
Fan-site targets. A fan site's November 2017 report, citing internal documents, gave an earlier target. It is not a Disney statement, and no claim here rests on it.
The opening day by an independent record. The opening rests on Disney's own pages [C7, C8, C28, C29, C30]. This entry read no attendance, wait-time or ride-hours record from March 4, 2020.
When the ride reopened after the closure. The annual report gives the resort's closure dates [C14]. The ride's own reopening date was not read.
Cost, permits and construction. Not searched beyond the Disney pages and the annual report. This entry did not search SEC filings, county permits or news.
The Disneyland version. Out of scope.
Today's operation. This entry read Disney's ride page only [C13]. It did not read the Disney app or any wait-time source, so it does not say the ride is running today.

Sources

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