Detroit People Mover's Surprising Connection to the Ford Motor Company

The Detroit People Mover has a surprising connection to the Ford Motor Company. In fact, its technology was originally designed as a theme park attraction to promote the Mustang at the New York World's Fair in 1964.

Ford enlisted Disney to design a massive pavilion for the fair, which included the Ford Magic Skyway ride. This slow-moving ride took guests 'through time' while they sat in actual Ford vehicles moved along a track by motorized tires.

When the fair closed in 1965, Disney brought several attractions back to Disneyland, but not the Magic Skyway. Instead, its technology was repurposed to create the PeopleMover, which debuted at Disneyland's Tomorrowland in 1967.

The original concept of the PeopleMover was a continuous transit loop of multi-car trains propelled by the track itself, designed to run nonstop around Tomorrowland. This technology eventually attracted attention from transportation planners worldwide and led to the creation of several people movers, including the Detroit People Mover, which opened in 1987.