New Alton Towers director responds to fan complaints
Alton Towers director Bianca Sammut responded in 2023 to fan criticism about ride availability, capacity and reliability. Skyride was named among the attractions that had remained out of use all season.
More context
In May 2023, Bianca Sammut, only a few months into her role as managing director of Alton Towers, publicly addressed mounting criticism from theme park fans. In an interview with vlogger Shawn Sanbrooke, she acknowledged that the resort needed to improve its ride offer, capacity, food and beverage, entertainment and events.
For Skyride, the key point was the operational context. Looopings named the cable car alongside Hex as attractions that had remained out of use throughout the season, while Spinball Whizzer had also recently been closed for more than a month. Sammut said increasing capacity and reducing technical downtime were priorities, but also pointed to limited budgets, rising costs and supply issues.
For visitors, this was about more than one unavailable ride. Skyride is a transport system across a large park, so a prolonged closure affects walking routes, crowd flow and the confidence that the resort has its attraction line-up under control. The article therefore places Skyride's downtime within a wider period in which Alton Towers was under pressure to become more reliable.