Five Things to Know About the Tomorrowland Transit Authority PeopleMover

How often do you get three for the price of one these days? Especially at Walt Disney World? Well, let me introduce you to a WDW 3-for-1: The Tomorrowland Transit Authority PeopleMover! It’s a ride, a travel brochure, and a transportation system all in one! Bonus fourth item: it’s fun!! Intrigued? Keep reading – or if you’re in a hurry, skip straight to the Nuts and Bolts to get the whats, wheres, and hows of the PeopleMover.

1. You’ll queue up retro-style.

The entrance for the Tomorrowland Transit PeopleMover is right underneath Astro Orbiter. And it’s totally old-school. By which I mean it’s simply a series of switchbacks. No long dark halls, no interactive features, just a queue. Which is also totally outdoors. Totally. There are no umbrellas for shade, so on hot days, if the line is long, you’ll be hot. On rainy days, you’ll get wet. But because it uses a continuous load system, the queue moves along at a good clip. You’ll wait just one and a half minutes per 100 people in front of you. In the meantime, you can entertain yourself in the old-fashioned way: take in the smells, the sounds, and the colorful sights of Tomorrowland.

You hop onto a moving conveyor belt that takes you up to the loading area. And what I love most about the ramp is this: it’s built at such a steep incline that you can stretch your tired calf muscles nicely as you rise up to the board ride itself. Plus, it feels sort of old-timey retro-future to step onto a moving walkway as tram cars are circling around nonstop overhead. At the top of the moving walkway ramp, guests are level with the continuously moving PeopleMover trams.

2. The ride is retro-futuristic. And the views are terrific!

The Tomorrowland Transit Authority PeopleMover offers you a gentle, 10-minute ride that provides an elevated tour of Tomorrowland. Think of it as Tomorrowland’s version of a double-decker bus tour—only here, the vehicles ride smoothly along 5,484 feet of track powered by Linear Synchronous Induction motors (more on that later). It’s leisurely, relaxing, and a great way to take in everything around you, without having to do more walking.

You board your tram car from a continuously moving platform at Rocket Tower Plaza. As you leave the station, you’ll get a great bird’s-eye view of Tomorrowland before heading into a tunnel.

Inside, you’ll see a large model of Walt Disney’s Progress City. (This was Walt’s vision that inspired EPCOT.) As you continue back outdoors, you pass by the Star Traders gift shop, peeking in from overhead. Then it’s past the Tomorrowland Speedway, and alongside TRON Lightcycle / Run.

Back into the dark, and you go through Space Mountain – you can hear the screams as you ride by. One truly cool thing: if you’re riding while Space Mountain is down for maintenance, you can see the roller coaster’s track fully lit up.

Back outside, then it’s views of Astro Orbiter, the Carousel of Progress, and into another tunnel where you pass Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin and see a futuristic salon scene.

Finally, you’re back outside, where you get a great view of Cinderella Castle and glide above the queue Monsters, Inc. Laugh Floor as you head to the station to disembark.

The ride is smooth and family-friendly. The maximum speed is just under 7 mph with brief moments of acceleration and some quick turns. Outdoor segments of the ride are covered but open on both sides; interior passages can get very dark—dark enough that you may not see your hand in front of your face.

3. It’s the third evolution of its kind.

The PeopleMover is more than just a relaxing ride through Tomorrowland – it’s a piece of Disney history that goes back to Walt Disney himself. Walt loved trains, but he was also fascinated by futuristic transportation. He believed cities of the future would need efficient, people-friendly systems to keep moving. For the 1964 New York World’s Fair, Walt’s Imagineers worked with Ford to create the WEDway PeopleMover system. (“WED” referred to Walter Elias Disney.) This early version was designed to provide “transportation as an attraction” and gave guests an elevated tour of the Fair.

The Imagineers took what they learned at the Fair, and in 1967, Disneyland unveiled its own PeopleMover as part of “New Tomorrowland”. Sponsored by Goodyear, the system used more than 500 Goodyear electric drive wheels between the tracks to push the cars. Goodyear also provided the conveyor belt that transferred riders to the second-story loading platform.

In 1975, the PeopleMover was added to Tomorrowland in the Magic Kingdom. And this version was groundbreaking! Instead of using the Goodyear tire system, it utilized linear induction motors: 629 electromagnets that use pulses to move the cars along the track. (Because of this change, Goodyear would not sponsor the new attraction.) The advantage of this system is that it eliminates all moving parts except for the trams themselves!

In 1994, the PeopleMover was given a refurb, new narration, and a new name: the Tomorrowland Transit Authority. (Sadly, the Disneyland version closed in 1995.) Then, in 2010, it was renamed to the Tomorrowland Transit Authority PeopleMover. Most recently, in 2022, the narration was updated. It includes references to attractions that no longer exist, such as If You Had Wings and The Timekeeper, and new rides like TRON Lightcycle / Run.

4. Some tea about the TTAPM.

⭐ As mentioned above, the track length is 5,484 feet; for comparison, Space Mountain’s track is 3,196 feet. For most of the ride, you’re on a single track. The only place where there is “two-way” traffic is the section near Space Mountain.

⭐ At one point on your ride, you’ll also hear the narrator say, “Paging Mr. Morrow, Mr. Tom Morrow. Please contact Mr. Johnson in the control tower to confirm your flight to the moon.” Tom Morrow 2.0 was the mascot of Innoventions in EPCOT until 2007. And Mr. Johnson was the flight director of Mission to Mars, which closed in 1993, and the former attraction Flight to the Moon which closed in 1975.

⭐During the 2022 revamp, some new signage was put into place. On the back of the sign with boarding instructions is a small logo that most don’t even notice. It’s the logo for WED Transportation Systems, Inc.! This was a subsidiary of the Disney company created in the 1970s, when they hoped to use the linear induction system nationwide. Alas, the only system ever installed was at Houston’s George Bush Intercontinental Airport. But it’s still in use today!

⭐ There is at least one Hidden Mickey you can spot from the PeopleMover. It’s in the scene of the hair salon. The alien who is having her hair done is wearing a belt with a red buckle – with a black Mickey face on it. It’s quite tiny and only visible from the tram for seconds, so look quickly!

5. The Nuts and Bolts.

The entrance to Tomorrowland Transit Authority PeopleMover is next to the Lunching Pad and under the Astro Orbiter, across from the Carousel of Progress. The queue consists of a few switchbacks, a turnstile, and a steep moving walkway ramp. While weather rarely affects the PeopleMover, if the queue extends much beyond the moving walkway ramp, you will be exposed to the elements while you wait.

The trams consist of five cars with two benches facing each other. The cars have no safety restraints and the seats themselves are hard benches with a high back. Each seat can accommodate two, maybe three guests, depending on the size of the riders.

Guests must be ambulatory to experience this attraction; there’s a small step up from the moving walkway into the moving vehicle. There are no health and safety advisories for the PeopleMover and no height restrictions to ride. To make the attraction accessible to as wide an audience as possible, Handheld Captioning and Audio Description aids are available – ask a Cast Member.

For you early risers, the Tomorrowland Transit Authority PeopleMover is open for Early Theme Park Entry, and is a terrific option if the rest of your party is heading to Space Mountain. The views are great after dark, but sad to say, it’s not open for Extended Evening Theme Park Hours. The TTAPM does not have a Lightning Lane entrance, but wait times aren’t generally too long and the loading speed is fast.

The Bottom Line.

We think the PeopleMover is both nostalgic and forward-looking at the same time. It’s a great way to get off your feet, see the sights, and relax for 10 minutes. Leisurely and fun, we think everyone who visits Tomorrowland should make time for a ride on the PeopleMover.

What are your thoughts about the PeopleMover? Not very exciting or not to be missed? Let us know in the comments below.

(Originally published May 25, 2023. Last updated/republished September 4, 2025.)