With a week to go until the Tomorrowland PeopleMover is scheduled to reopen, BlogMickey.com has learned a bit more about the problems that have kept the Tomorrowland PeopleMover closed for more than a year.
Back in March 2020, the Tomorrowland PeopleMover faced multiple days of unexpected closure leading up to the closure of the Disney Parks worldwide due to the COVID-19 pandemic. While it wasn’t clear at the time, the Tomorrowland PeopleMover would have a lengthy and unexpected refurbishment when the theme parks would reopen.
When Magic Kingdom reopened in July 2020, the Tomorrowland PeopleMover remained closed. At the time, BlogMickey.com was told that Disney was performing work on the linear induction motors that power the ride vehicles. While the actual work that took place may have changed, there was no doubt that the refurbishment would be as extensive (much more, actually) as we were told.
Now, as nearly daily testing continues, we’ve learned a bit more about what Cast Members have been told about the changes that were made.
According to Cast Members, Disney has installed new sensors on the ride vehicles and around the length of the track that allow Cast Members to ensure that there is proper spacing between the cars. The changes were reportedly made to eliminate the possibility of the cars slamming into each other. Earlier this year, we were the first to report about the cars slamming into each other during testing – something that Cast Members say was part of the troubleshooting process.
Cast Members indicated that the new sensors will allow the attraction to be far more automated than in years past. Back in December 2020, we caught Cast Members testing the sensors along the track during a push test.
As a part of the upgrades, and as a result of the attraction not being open for more than a year, Cast Members are going through extensive training of the new system, and retraining of operating procedures.
Disney has faced multiple lawsuits over the years as a result of the Tomorrowland PeopleMover cars running into one another. These new changes will reportedly mitigate the risk of further lawsuits and bumping of PeopleMover ride vehicles.
As of publish time, the Tomorrowland PeopleMover is scheduled to reopen on April 4th, but Disney has not yet loaded operating hours into their website.
As always, keep checking back with us here at BlogMickey.com as we continue to bring you the latest news, photos, and info from around the Disney Parks!