Construction Begins Behind Big Thunder Mountain Railroad at Walt Disney World - WDW News Today

Construction has begun behind Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, signaling the start of at least one of the multiple large projects on the horizon for the area.

In mid-October, Disney announced that Big Thunder Mountain Railroad would be closing in January 2025 and would remain closed for at least a year. This news came after construction permits were filed signaling the start of the Beyond Big Thunder project.

At D23: The Ultimate Disney Fan Event, Disney Experiences Chairman Josh D’Amaro announced that a Disney Villains land would be coming to Magic Kingdom as part of the biggest expansion in park history. Now, in an area near Big Thunder Mountain that could be impacted by both of these projects, construction equipment has arrived.

While in the attraction’s queue, we noticed that a green scrim had been added behind one of the geysers near an old rusted windmill. While the scrim is certainly in place to hide construction equipment, we still noticed a yellow excavator in the area.

Here’s a closer look at the equipment. The excavator was not operating on our visit.

From higher up, we could see that the excavator had already cleared some of the land behind the scrim and was now working near a small building.

In addition to the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad refurbishment and the opening of a Disney Villains land, Magic Kingdom will also be home to two new “Cars” rides, which will be part of a reimagining of Tom Sawyer Island and Rivers of America.

We will continue to provide construction updates for Magic Kingdom. And be sure to continue checking back for the latest news regarding the major changes coming to Magic Kingdom.

Are you excited about the changes coming to Big Thunder Mountain Railroad and Magic Kingdom? Let us know in the comments.

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