“It’s not a train. It’s not an airplane. It’s somewhere in between.” That’s a quote from Dirk Ahlborn, the CEO and co-founder of Hyperloop Transportation Technologies.
You may be envisioning something akin to a flying metallic monster torpedoing its way across Texas. It’s not too far from reality.
Texas is known for its cowboy-ish culture, its role in space exploration and its leadership status in oil production. However, soon it may be known for something else: its hyperloop transportation.
Six Minutes
Hyperloop trains—yet another invention of Elon Musk’s—have garnered much attention in the past few years. The engineering specs have yet to be agreed upon, and several companies and organizations continue to research viable avenues through which it could be employed.
However, the basic premise is this: the train sits in a tube that vacuums out almost all air, eliminating the complications associated with air resistance. Think of being 200,000 feet up except in a metal tube.
Using magnetics, the train levitates to remove another issue: friction. Most experts suggest utilizing passive magnetic levitation, which involves creating a magnetic field through opposing forces.
How fast will it go? Unbelievably fast. Bus-sized vehicles should be able to zoom along at speeds approaching Mach 1, making travel from, say, Dallas to Fort Worth possible in a little over six minutes.
And it is absolutely possible. In fact, tests runs have already been underway and several areas are currently undergoing plans to implement the new technology. One state showing particular interest in hyperloop travel is Texas.
Obstacles
Of course, there are obstacles. Red tape has made applying the new technology expensive, time-consuming and frustrating.
Studies must be undergone, impacts on the environment have to be considered and then there is the question of safety.
“Traveling 250 miles per hour and experiencing a malfunction is any passenger’s idea of a nightmare,” states a car accident lawyer in Dallas. “Providing adequate safety measures is certainly a priority for this to come to life.”
Can It Work?
The idea is sound. In 2016, Hyperloop One successfully sent a 1,500-pound sled down a track at 300 miles per hour. That test didn’t even include a tube.
Other test tracks have been made in California and Nevada.
But there are still complications, and no one knows logistics. How much will this technology cost and will passengers trust it enough to use it?
A Race for Rights
As the green, speedy alternative captures imaginations across the Lone Star State, other companies are vying for their stake in Texas transportation.
High-speed rail plans are also underway for the North Texas region, spurring a competitive race between hyperloop fans and high-speed rail advocates.
David Clarke, the director of the Center for Transportation Research at the University of Tennessee, asks this of hyperloop travel: “Can it compete—from a capital standpoint and an operating standpoint and a safety standpoint?”
Only time and the whims of citizens and officials will tell.
