Photo by Werner Weiss, 1974

Brightly colored PeopleMover trains

How about a leisurely, elevated 16-minute ride through Tomorrowland? Head over to the PeopleMover station on the second level of the landmark Rocket Jets tower in the heart of Tomorrowland.

Unlike the free attractions sponsored by Monsanto, General Electric, and the Bell System, this Goodyear-sponsored attraction requires a “D” coupon. Sorry.

Photo by Chris Bales 1990

PeopleMover loading area from the ground level

Photo by Werner Weiss, 1995

A different experience at night

Take the moving ramp up to the PeopleMover loading area. Step onto the rotating loading platform. A friendly Cast Member directs you and up to three others in your party to an empty car in one of the 62 four-car trains.

Take a seat quickly. The PeopleMover trains never stop. The doors close automatically.

You’re on your way.

Photo by Chris Bales, 1990

Loading below the Rocket Jets—with Matterhorn mountain hidden by fog

Photo by Chris Bales, 1995

Loading below the missing Rocket Jets (removed for maintenance)

Your PeopleMover train doesn’t have a motor—the motors are on the track. This may sound like a joke, but it’s true. Every nine feet or so, you’ll pass over an electric motor turning a genuine Goodyear tire. The tires turn against the bottom of your vehicle, propelling you forward.

There are 517 of these motor-driven units on the 3/4-mile elevated “glideway.” They range from 1/3 to 3 horsepower each because the “glideway” sometimes goes uphill or downhill. Your speed ranges from 1 1/2 to 7 m.p.h.

Photo by Werner Weiss, 1974

Mary Blair murals on both sides

Take a good look at the tile murals by artist Mary Blair on either side of your train. You get a perfect view from up here.

The first building that you enter houses Adventure Thru Inner Space, Presented by Monsanto. There’s a great view of the queue and the Mighty Microscope, which initiates the shrinking process. Before you know it, you’re looking down into the Character Shop. When you exit the building, look to your right for a view of the Tomorrowland Stage and to your left for a view of the Rocket Jets.

Photo by Chris Bales, 1993

The Lunching Pad below the PeopleMover loading area

You enter another pavilion. It’s the General Electric Carousel of Progress. You get a panoramic view of “Progress City,” above the rotating theaters.

The ride speeds up as you travel over the Tomorrowland Autopia and the Submarine Voyage.

Photo by Roger J. Runck, 1968, courtesy of Robin Runck

PeopleMover track going over the Skyway!

Photo by Chris Bales

Moving faster above the Tomorrowland Autopia

Photo by Werner Weiss, 1969

Submarine Voyage lagoon with the PeopleMover

Photo by Chris Bales, 1989

Above the Submarine Voyage waterfalls

The last pavilion you enter is America the Beautiful, Presented by the Bell System. You can’t see into the CircleVision theater, but you get a good view of the colorful pre-show room.

Photo by Chris Bales, 1995

Passing the Monorail station

The PeopleMover is a high-capacity attraction. The hourly capacity is up to 4,885 guests!

Photo by Chris Bales, 1995

Returning

Finally, you head back into the PeopleMover Station.

The next time you’re at Yesterland, ride the PeopleMover again. As Tomorrowland changes, so does this ride.

Photo by Bill Nelson, 1973

Entrance to Tomorrowland in 1973

Photo by Chris Bales, 1995

Entrance to Tomorrowland in 1995

The PeopleMover, Presented by Goodyear, opened on July 2, 1967 as part of the New Tomorrowland at Disneyland.

Disneyland souvenir map © 1968 Walt Disney Productions

Excerpt from 1968 Disneyland souvenir map showing PeopleMover route.

It was a bit surprising that a major tire company would sponsor an attraction that encouraged public transportation. On June 29, 1967—just a few days before the PeopleMover opened—Bob Thomas, Auto Editor of the Los Angeles Times, wrote about the seeming conflict:

Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. demonstrated Wednesday that it may be working at cross-purposes with itself—that is, infringing on the market for its primary product, the automobile tire—with a new transportation concept.

And it happened in the fantasy atmosphere of Disneyland.

Nevertheless, the nation’s No. 1 tire producer Wednesday previewed a new and very tangible automated transportation system, the PeopleMover that offers potential for relieving traffic congestion in major cities... at the expense of the automobile.

At least that was the opinion expressed by Russell DeYoung, chairman and chief executive officer of the company, who also admitted a possible conflict of marketing interests.

“It presumes some curtailment of the use of automobiles--and autos use tires!” he said about the PeopleMover. “You may ask, isn’t your business really tires? The answer is simply that Goodyear is basically in the transportation business.”

Tires represent, he further explained, 55% of the company’s total business.

Although many guests called it the Goodyear PeopleMover until the very end, Goodyear’s sponsorship only lasted until December 31, 1981—roughly half of the attraction’s 28-year life. In 1982, the PeopleMover, Presented by Goodyear became simply the PeopleMover. No other sponsor replaced Goodyear.

When the Carousel of Progress show closed in 1973, guests on the PeopleMover could still see “Progress City” on the upper floor of the building—even after America Sings opened below it.

Photo by Chris Bales, 1995

“World of Tron”

The PeopleMover closed for a lengthy upgrade on January 5, 1976. When it reopened on May 27, 1977, the ride went into the brand new thrill ride, Space Mountain. And on the upper level of the Carousel Theater, “Progress City” was gone. Instead of hugging the inside edge of the building, the track took a new route through the Superspeed Tunnel—wrap-around movie screens on which high-speed footage of race cars gave the illusion of speed.

The World of TRON, replaced the Superspeed Tunnel film on July 2, 1982. This time the illusion of speed came from a projected light cycle race.

The PeopleMover closed permanently on August 21, 1995.

In March 1996, Disneyland announced that the slow PeopleMover would be replaced by a new, fast attraction, Rocket Rods, as part of a complete renovation of Tomorrowland. (The Rocket Rods attraction didn’t last long.)

Photo by Werner Weiss, 2007

Tomorrowland Transit Authority PeopleMover at Magic Kingdom Park

If you still want to take a ride on the PeopleMover, you might consider a trip to Walt Disney World. Although the vehicles and the means of propulsion are different, the California and Florida attractions shared the same name and provided a similar experience. In 1994, the PeopleMover in Florida was renamed to Tomorrowland Transit Authority. In August 2010, new signage included the Tomorrowland Transit Authority and PeopleMover, with PeopleMover as the primary name.

Instead of using Goodyear tires embedded in the track to propel the trains, the Florida ride uses linear induction. The cars don’t have roofs. Instead, the entire track is roofed over. The track in Florida is entirely flat—not unlike the state itself.

Photo by Werner Weiss, 2009

PeopleMover / Rocket Rods track in 2009

Photo by Werner Weiss, 2015

PeopleMover / Rocket Rods track in 2015

Will it ever be possible to ride the PeopleMover again at Disneyland? The track is still there. And Disneyland could use another high-capacity attraction, especially one that can be enjoyed over and over. Maybe the fact that the track was never removed means the door is open to a return of the PeopleMover some day.

Okay, it’s unlikely—but at least it’s more likely than the return of the Rocket Rods.

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Updated January 1, 2021