The hyperloop is indeed the transportation for the future. It is the greatest danger that airlines face in the next 10 to 20 years if it develops properly. It is a form of super fast train that can reach the speed of sounds of 760mph, about 1.5x the speed of a plane and is completely energy efficient in that it can run exclusively on renewable energy and produce enough energy to power the system in its entirety.
Most press reports have been about the company Hyperloop One, which fell into bad press due to fund misappropriation scandals. But there is at least another Hyperloop Company and it is called Hyperloop Transportation Technoologies, which attracted less media attention, but has already announced two transportation projects: one between LA and San Francisco and the other between Vienna and Budapest.
The concept of Hyperloop was first described by Elon Musk, but he said he could not possibly run the company due to his busy schedule running Solar City, Tesla and Space X.
HTT announced earlier this year that it has developed a passive magnetic levitation technology to use in its tubes benefiting from the fact that the pod levitates thanks to a force created by sets of magnets located underneath the body as well as along the tube, thus generating big energy savings.
Another innovation of HTT would be the use of an innovative material called Vibranium, which is a smart material made of sensor-embedded carbon fiber and it is eight times stronger than aluminum and 10 times stronger than steel alternatives, and transmits critical information regarding temperature, stability, integrity and more, wirelessly and instantly. It is also much lighter in weight—roughly five times less than steel and 1.5 times less than aluminum—reducing energy output to propel the capsule.
But when will we start seeing hyperloops in operations?
According to HTT CEO Ahlborn, the company could be build tracks between Vienna and Bratislava by 2020, with the greatest hurdle being having agreements at the local level. HTT said that making agreements with the countries was easy enough, but it would much tougher to get all the local municipalities approval down the line.
So the race seems to be not so much on technology and funding at this level but on efficient local authorities to embrace innovation and perhaps sacrifice their own interests in having a share in the project for the good of a greater and faster form of transportation.
Images courtesy of hyperlooptransp.com