I was at DL last week with my 12 year old daughter. She had to go to CHOC that day for some tests, she has a newly diagnosed heart condition. I promised her a trip to DL after the tests, we have AP's. We were walking past Jungle Boat when a stroller rammed her from behind and caused her to fall and skin her hands and elbow pretty badly. The stroller was being driven by a young sibling. Although the parents apologized they continued to let the child navigate the stroller. My daughter was crying and visible upset requiring a trip to the first aid for band aids. Just after we left, she was again hit from behind by a stroller being driven by an adult, on Main Street, which hit the back of her ankle and caused her more pain and anguish.

I have children and understand the need for strollers, but this is ridiculous!!! I have to say she was fearful for the rest of the afternoon that she would be hit from behind by strollers. Parents need to be more cautious with strollers. I noticed for the first time that day that people use strollers to push through a crowd often with little regard for the fact that others have children that should feel safe while at the park.

On crowded days parents should consider other options to strollers, like backpacks, be careful and understand that the convenience of a stroller should be used carefully or stay home!!

Maybe DL could make a plea to those with strollers to use caution!

I can't even imagine having to use a backpack at DL. My children weigh too much. And then we'd still have a backpack diaper bag to carry, too.

I think it's very unfortunate that your daughter was hurt and I don't know if there's any "solution" to the stroller "problem." As long as anyone who buys a ticket can go to DL, there are going to be inconsiderate people, unfortunately. It's just a fact of life.

For every story about people ramming someone with a stroller, there's a story about people cutting strollers off or stepping over/around strollers. It's an ugly cycle.

Adrienne

These stories of "strollers ramming people," as unfortunate as they are, make me chuckle in a "it's not the stroller's fault" way. In the defense of the accused I can only say, it was pushed. It in no way had any control of the situation. I'm sure if the stroller had any idea it was going to hurt anyone it would have stayed in its garage. Maybe the stroller got hurt in the collision too. Think of the poor stroller!

(Not trying to make light of your daughter's injury. Just pointing out the ridiculousness of blaming it on strollers.)

Anyway, later in your post you redirected the blame onto those who push them, where it belongs. I agree. People need to use caution pushing the strollers. Also, as Adrienne pointed out, people should use caution walking around strollers, in front of strollers, and I'll add: near wheelchairs, around kids, next to adults, tables, chairs, railings, kittens, birds, and characters in big rubber heads. I think that about covers it. Of course, courteous people do these things naturally, rude people don't. And unfortunately, rude people don't care about caution signs or friendly reminders.

In the end, there's really not much that can be done. Even without strollers in the park you'll still have stupid and rude people doing stupid and rude things to ruin your day. The odds increase when it's crowded.

I CAN say this:

Young children should NOT be in control of a stroller or wheelchair. I was rammed by an out-of-control wheelchair coming from the tram to the park entrance. BIG OUCH!

Strollers are a way of life in the US today. I rarely remember being in a stroller and NEVER at DL when I was a kid. I walked most of the way. At DLP, I saw maybe 10 strollers in use. Here, we use them to their fullest extent.

We all need to be aware that strollers and wheelchairs exist and need to have courtsey. The smae goes for those pushing strollers or wheelchairs.

Things are not going to change any time soon.

Originally posted by Not Afraid
We all need to be aware that strollers and wheelchairs exist and need to have courtsey. The smae goes for those pushing strollers or wheelchairs.

I think that for the most part, this second sentence is preaching to the choir.

Frankly, I am an assertive stroller pusher in that, when I'm cut off by a pedestrian, I will say outloud, "Excuse me, that's my husband right there, and you cut us off." But from the posts on these boards, I doubt that many parents here are "unaware" stroller drivers.

Adrienne

I one time cut someone off who was pushing a stroller. One time. And it was a Padder. Mr. Bill Catherall. :D Lesson learned....it's a small world.....after all.

I've had countless pedestrians cut off my stroller when I'm pushing it, and I've been glared at by the very people who have cut me off. Am I supposed to somehow magically know that they are going to:

A. stop
B. step over my child/stroller
C. suddenly change direction

It does go both ways. I've been cut off by WAY MORE people than I've ever bumped with the stroller.

But I've also been hit by a stroller, and it hurts. I was not hit by Bill Catherall's stroller though. :D Whew. But he didn't know me at the time. Now that he does, I have no doubt that I would get hit.

strollers the silent killers... I have also been hurt by strollers more than once in one visit...

Here is a semi nutty suggestion... maybe put bells or some low key sound device on a stroller so people can hear it coming, and jump the heck out of its way... Disneyland should make manditory jingly bell kitty collars for strollers. LOL:D

And so we come full circle back to: Strollers are all bad and people pushing them are all rude so we better do something to protect everyone from strollers and parents.

Adrienne

Originally posted by adriennek
And so we come full circle back to: Strollers are all bad and people pushing them are all rude so we better do something to protect everyone from strollers and parents.
Adrienne

NOOOO.

Blanket sterotypes again. I'm sure EVERYONE has run into a rude or idiot stroller-pushing parent. That doesn't make ALL stroller-pushing parents bad.

However, strollers seem to either be getting larger or are used more often at the Park (and other public places). ALL parents need to be careful not to run into people, block doors or aisls for a great length of time, and be concientious of most of the people around that do not have strollers. The majority of people who do not have strollers need to be more cautious of strollers that may be below their field of vision. (I have almost run over a darting child on more than one occasion because they are waaaay down there).

Maybe stroller-wielding Moms can do a PETA-style action at Disneyland.

;)

See, when I read something like: "Maybe Disneyland can issue a caution" and "Maybe people should be required to put bells on their strollers," I'm sure that these authors are not intentionally generalizing but as someone who will have spent over 10 years pushing strollers at DL, I'm kinda tired of defending "the other side."

1- Seriously, what's DL going to do? Back to my earlier point that Bill repeated, no matter what DL does, you're going to encounter stupid rude people at the park.

2- So they tell me to put bells on my stroller? Then we can go back to my point about people being more aware before stepping in front of strollers- or stopping in the middle of the road. Bells to warn people I'm coming? Because I'm a big ol' mean evil stroller? Or because people are too lazy to pay attention? Either way, someone's insulted and what if I decide to disable the bell so I can push the stroller with a sleeping baby in it? Will the Disneyland police come after me? How are they going to enforce it?

Short version: it's a fact of life. In France, people smell because they don't use deodorant. In Anaheim, we have strollers. ;)

Adrienne

How about recommending that people wear ankle-high hiking boots to prevent such injuries? :D

Originally posted by Bill Catherall

In the end, there's really not much that can be done. Even without strollers in the park you'll still have stupid and rude people doing stupid and rude things to ruin your day. The odds increase when it's crowded.

Exactly. Some people are rude and some people are considerate. Sadly, it's the rude ones that stick in our minds--we don't remember the person that stopped courteously with their stroller to let us pass by as we go on our merry way.

It is a pet peeve of mine to see parents allowing their children to push strollers with no supervision. Of course they are going to crash it into someone! "But they liiiike to!" :rolleyes: Get a grip. Let them push it in the Esplanade, if you must--not in Adventureland.

Originally posted by adriennek
Because I'm a big ol' mean evil stroller? Or because people are too lazy to pay attention?

Short version: it's a fact of life. In France, people smell because they don't use deodorant. In Anaheim, we have strollers. ;)

Adrienne

NO. Because strollers are big and below the sightline. That's why I have triped over them in the past. I KNOW when they are blocking the door. That's not dangerous, just annoying. But, it happens. Just be careful if you're pushing a stroller. I am.

P.S. I never accounted anyone in France that smelled more than the smelly people I encounter here.:p

Originally posted by Lani
How about recommending that people wear ankle-high hiking boots to prevent such injuries? :D

I love you, Lani. :)


NA: That was my point- I am careful when I push my stroller and I really don't know many people who aren't. And I'm sure we all have our moments when we aren't at 100% and have accidents, but we're trying. I'm sure the "victims" can say the same thing. Like lisap, I don't let my child willy-nilly push the stroller. Today at the mall he INSISTED on pushing the stroller and I was there, guiding it, holding on to it, and taking over when the walkway got too crowded for a 5-y/o to handle. It's just common sense.

So I don't get what the point is that this keeps coming up. The people who need to hear it... don't listen.

Adrienne

Probably because you're always going to have one ot two French people who still smell.

Originally posted by Not Afraid
Probably because you're always going to have one ot two French people who still smell.

Can we put bells on them? :p

When we were down last month I saw as many, if not more, people oblivious to the stroller they were cutting off as there were pushers oblivious to the person in front of them. But the time to let the kids push is on the empty sidewalk near your house, not in a mob at DL.

Sorry your daughter got run into by a stroller. I know what you mean. My son is tall (47") and I am short (5'2"). One evening, I was carrying my sleeping son out of the park, and nearly fell over a wheelchair. Now you think that people would be perceptive enough to realize that it isn't easy to carry a child who is nearly as big as oneself,but the yahoo in the wheelchair gave me a look like I intentionally ran into them. I apologized, but, common sense and courtesy dictates being aware of one's surroundings--ie, not tripping people carrying large loads.

OK Adrianne I apologise if that sounded bad... but I added the LOL and smiley for a reason... I was kidding. I realize its a impossible situation there isnt much that can be done about it short of banning strollers (which isnt an ideal situation to say the least.) SOmethign I dont understand though is why people feel they have to rely on strollers so much these days. Strollers were a much rarer thing to see in the local mall or Disneyland or ANYWHERE when I was growing up. I dont have kids, so correct me if I am wrong but it seems to me like the old "tv is a babysitter" kinda thing... people dont want to put as much effort into watching their kids, so they just pile them (and practically every little belonging they own) into a stroller... viola dont have to watch them as much, no having to see if they took off somewhere, no holding hands, no checking to make sure they grabbed things off the shelves. I know I know I am generalizing which is what Adrianne hated in my first post... but please fill me in on why people have the need to take strollers everywhere? Is it perhaps just consumerism? I dunno it puzzles the heck out of me when in previous time periods (heck even as recent as late 70's) strollers were an option not a necessity, and few people used them on a daily basis... what changed?

All of that said, since they are here, and more than likely here to stay, something I think Disneyland does need to do is make small "corrals/parking garages" for the strollers at each major attraction... they could even add the theme of the attraction to them making them something to see in their own right. Example: HM could have a bricked in small square area that looks like a rundown garden (simular to the fastpass area). Something to make it so people are less likely to trip on the huge crowd of strollers, perhaps even somehow having attendants for the areas to make sure the strollers stay secure (no one robs from them). You could even go so far as to have benches on the sides (inside the square) with privacy intended for breast feeding areas.

You know, I'm a *nice* person. So it should be obvious how many times I've been smacked with strollers, arms, and small children.

I can forgive people who cut me off or smack into me. ONCE. But it's the people who do it over and over again that drive me nuts. Again, not much to do about it, unless Disneyland wants to start accepting citizen's arrests for assault & battery.

But I tell you this... the Hoveround crowd really is getting me down. I'm more than willing to share the road. SHARE. But come on, be honest. Your hoveround has rubber wheels and a motor. I have big feet and a poor metabolism. Of the two of us, who's working harder?

As I was trying to get into Innoventions today (don't ask why) there were three people in their Jazzies. Though they were instructed, not ONE of them could figure out that they needed to aim themselves at the BIG BLUE DOOR. They took so long to get in position, and then so long to get inside the big blue doors, that those big blue doors started to shut on me and about five other people, trapped behind them.

At WDW, I was walking along the extreme right of the path from World of Energy to MouseGear, and some Hoverounder with a leering voice called out "I don't WANNA have to run you over." I almost yelled out to him "You don't HAVE to! You've got at least ten feet to my left!" My sister had to pull me out of harm's way before the guy and his squeeze, riding side by side, ran me over.

Once again, I honestly don't know what to do. I walk with others single-file in crowds, I stay where it seems other people aren't traversing, I wait patiently for others to pass, yet people making right hand turns at intersections and people in motorized vehices in theme parks look at me and say "Ten points for hitting the tall dude. 20 if he screams."

There is a weight/size limit for luggage on plane flights. There is a size limitation for carry-on because of space limitations. There is obviously a space limitation currently at DL. Why not limit the size of strollers? If that four-child-wide SUV of a stroller is required for medical reasons - get a exemption sticker at City Hall.

I have nothing against strollers. I've used them myself many times (pushing, not riding) in DL. But I had the common courtesy to obtain a small single-rider stroller because of the space limitations. It is nothing short of rude to have a two or three seat wide stroller, and these inline behemoths are not much better.

What it boils down to is entitlement issues. Some folks feel entitled to have a tiny little space to walk in and to not have to step across a parking lot full of strollers to get to a ride entrance, and some folks feel entitled to take up the maximum amount of space humanly possible with one small child, six four-cubic foot diaper bags filled with provisions for a week-long incursion into enemy territory in a device the size of an assult vehicle.

I'll take the smelly French anyday...

I think one important change is the fact that extended families are fading away, and it's way too expensive to hire a sitter every time you want to go to the mall. And let's remember, it wasn't so long ago that there WERE no malls. Want milk? The milkman comes to YOU.

We have invented a lot more little tasks to live our daily life, so it's necessary to bring Jr. along for the ride much more so than it was before.

Of course, there are people who use strollers until the kid can drive, it seems. Follows the general trend that there's always someone who has to abuse the system and botch it for the rest of us.

As many times as I've been assailed by strollers, this IS a family-oriented themepark. (Ignore my signature for a sec, OK?) A stroller ban does seem a little harsh. And unrealistic. But, I will say that something like a movie theater should keep babies from entering R rated movies (heck, I'd even extend that to PG). If society starts having a few boundaries again, people might get the hint, and pick up a little common sense that they can apply elsewhere as well.

I don't hang around this board much, but brought this issue to people's attention because I was shocked that my 12 year old daughter was injured twice within a short time span by strollers being pushed by people. Disneyland should be a place of happy memories and a place that we can get a way from it all. I didn't realize that it was such a sensitive issue with you Addriene. I am sure that it is not you that is injuring peole with strollers, but how can the fact that this seems to be an increasing problem just be chocked up to a "cycle". Where your children ever injured by someone "cutting" off your stroller? Probably not they were safe in side. I have nothing against the use of strollers of wheelchairs or any devices that assist people to be able to enjoy a day at Disneyland. I think you would feel the same way if you saw your child laying on the ground, bleeding with the wheels of a stoller half way up her legs!!

Okay, I can't stay outta this one.

First, strollers are not like a babysitter. Someone mentioned that. Most parents use a stroller for PROTECTION against other people. I posted once before that my son and I got separated by someone that cut in between us at DL. The stroller prevents this from happening in crowded areas. The rest of the time (mostly at DCA) he walked.

Next, I really don't think strollers are that much more used today then they were 10 years ago. I think more stoller incidents are happening b/c there are more PEOPLE. Parks are more crowded today then they were years ago. Parents are taking their kids w/them instead of leaving them w/a sitter, taking younger kids, etc.

I've been to DL once w/my kids (and stroller) and once by myself. Neither time was I annoyed by stroller pushers (even the one that smacked into me while waiting to get into the park) or by rude people that stepped on me, cut me off, or just pushed by me in a crowd. Why? Because it's like 5 seconds out of the WHOLE day. Even if I have several incidents. It still doesn't overshadow my fun at the park.

Now, in the OP a young child was hurt. That I don't excuse and is awful that it happened. There are rude people everwhere you go and I'm sorry this family ran into so many in one day.

Finally, on the topic of letting small children push strollers. Here's my story. This summer we were at the zoo. We saw a child (maybe about 10) pushing a stroller w/a little girl (about 2 years old) in it . There was a large diaper bag hanging from the handles. The boy pushing decided to push the stroller ahead of him thus letting go of the stroller. The stroller flipped backwards and the little girl went back and hit her head hard on the concrete. So no I'm not in favor of letting children push storllers w/o an adult hand on it as well.

Strollers don't kill. People do. :)