Disney-Engineered Subway Celebrates 45 Years at Houston's George Bush Intercontinental Airport
The George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston celebrated its 45-year anniversary of the PeopleMover subway system, built by Disney engineers. The system has been moving millions of passengers annually since opening on August 17, 1981.
WED Enterprises, a theme park design firm founded by Walt Disney, was exploring transportation concepts for real-world applications in the late 1960s. One idea became the PeopleMover, a continuously moving train ride that debuted at Disneyland's Tomorrowland section in 1967.
The attraction was redesigned and replicated for Walt Disney World as the WEDway PeopleMover in 1975, powered by linear induction motors. This innovation caught the attention of transportation authorities, who certified it for urban transit use in 1976.
IAH's terminal expansion led to increased passenger volume and delays between terminals. A Disney executive, frustrated with these issues, suggested that Disney build a new transportation system for the airport. WED Enterprises was selected in 1979 through a competitive bid process, and their design incorporated the same lightweight vehicles and linear induction motors as the WEDway PeopleMover.
The two-mile-long Subway later opened in August 1981, with Houston leaders attending the ceremony alongside Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck. In 2025, the system boasted a reliability rate of 99.76%.