New permits filed for interior work at TRON Lightcycle Run in Magic Kingdom and when we may see the new coaster open

Disney has filed two new permits this past week for work on the interior of TRON Lightcycle Run at Magic Kingdom.

Tron concept art

Filed by Walt Disney Imagineering, the work is to be carried out by Icarus Exhibits, a company that has most recently performed similar work on 'Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind.' Thanks to danlb_2000 on the WDWMAGIC Forums for locating the permits.

Although we still don't have any opening timeframe for TRON at Walt Disney World, the pace of construction appears to have picked up in recent weeks.

Work on the exterior canopy is nearly complete

The opening of the new Magic Kingdom rollercoaster is likely to come down to a marketing decision of when to use the new ride to promote visits to Walt Disney World. With EPCOT's 'Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind' set to headline the marketing drive for the summer and fall, it would seem the earliest we could expect to see TRON Lightycle Run debut would be very late 2022, or more likely Spring 2023.

A wildcard in the opening roadmap is Genie+, which offers Disney the opportunity to monetize a ride's queue directly, which has not been available before paid Lightning Lane access. The temptation for Disney to begin earning Lightning Lane revenue may override any marketing decisions and move TRON's opening forward.

TRON concept art

TRON Lightcycle Run was announced almost five years ago on 16 July 2017, with an original opening set for Spring 2021. Construction began in May 2018, but then was put into a lengthy holding pattern when COVID-19 closed the parks in 2020.