2. The WEDWay

Walt Disney longed for an overhead transportation system that could offer people a rapid overview of an area in a city. In 1964, he set Imagineer Bob Gurr to work on creating one. The result was the WEDWay, also known as the "PeopleMover".

The chief innovation of the WEDWay was that the vehicles never stopped moving. Instead, guests boarded via a circular moving walkway, which dramatically improved the loading speed when compared to a linear walkway. This was coupled with a set of small trains that were pushed along by rotating tires that were embedded in the track every nine feet, each with its own electric motor. The cars themselves did not have motors, and the breakdown of any of the spinning tires would not cause the entire system to break down.

Like the monorail, the WEDWay was to play a vital role at EPCOT. The city would have a simple design, not dissimilar to the famous hub-and-spoke layout employed by Disneyland. At its heart would be a 50-acre urban complex, with an enormous, 30-story hotel at its center. At the base of the hotel would be an international shopping district, with stores representing countries from all over the world.

Surrounding the central area would be a series of three further "rings" in a radial system. The first would host high-density apartments. The next would be a greenbelt hosting parks, playgrounds and schools. The final ring would be a low-density residential area, complete with houses that would see their furnishings and appliances replaced constantly with newer versions.

Residents would commute to work via WEDway trams, just like those planned for Disneyland. Automobiles and trucks would be restricted to underground tunnels, and to a one-way road that circled EPCOT - so the PeopleMovers would enable the city to become a more-or-less car-free zone. Walt believed that this would provide a model for cities all over the world to follow - he was not impressed by the impact that motor vehicles had had on Los Angeles, where Disney was based.

Walt hoped to bring representatives from cities and shopping malls to see the first WEDWay system once it opened as part of Disneyland's New Tomorrowland makeover in 1967. However, he died before he had the chance. Without Walt as a cheerleader, the system never caught on. However, it is still in use at the George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston, Texas. It was also updated in the 1970s for the Walt Disney World version, which employs linear induction motors to propel its vehicles.