An Eco-Friendly Autopia?

So, as nothing really happens these first few months of the year at Disneyland, I kind of got to thinking.

It's no secret that Autopia, one of the most classic and beloved rides at Disneyland, isn't very environmentally friendly. You enter Tomorrowland and right off the bat you're able to smell the emissions from those gas-powered vehicles. According to Wikipedia, Autopia workers are even compensated an extra 20 cents an hour for health reasons. Something needs to change.

In the year 2000, Autopia had a major remodel. The cars were updated, they got a pretty hefty sponsorship from Chevron, and lots of waiting activities were installed. But they didn't do anything to make the engines run on a more efficient fuel than gasoline. Could we perhaps see another remodel in the future, and substitute the current Autopia cars for hybrid or even solar-powered cars?

It doesn't seem too unlikely a change. In fact, every Disney Park so far has Autopia. And they're all equally hazardous to health and the environment... Except for Hong Kong Disneyland, that is. The Autopia at Hong Kong Disneyland features electric cars.

Hong Kong Disneyland's Autopia Sign

Obviously this is a step in the right direction. But it's not like we can just drop electric cars into every Autopia. Things like this take time and money, and it seems that Autopia isn't Disneyland's top priority at the moment.

Tomorrowland needs an upgrade, everyone knows that. Autopia should be the first place to start. Environmentally-friendly cars are becoming such a major part of our everyday lives, it only seems appropriate that Autopia adapt to the ways of the future in just the same way. The aforementioned makeover that Autopia has every few decades may be ahead of us -- and alternative fuel sources should be the focus.

Hopefully we'll see some eco-friendly Autopia cars in the near future.