Boring Company commits to 600 mph Hyperloop and tube network
Every time you think Elon Musk has a great idea, he comes back into the news about something just as cool. As you have heard, Musk is heavily investing his time into his Hyperloop project. When you think of a Hyperloop, you might thing about these giant monorail-type structures holding it up as it whisks passengers 600 mph in a tube. What about if it was all to happen underground? That is what Musk’s Boring Company is planning to do.
Musk is committing to build a high-speed network of tunnels to accommodate the Hyperloop supersonic transport system. One suck tunnel would connect New York and Washington DC. By car, that’s a 4 hours drive without factoring in heavy traffic. With that Hyperloop, you could be there in less than a half an hour.
Related: Watch Hyperloop One Hit Phase 2
This isn’t just a dream, no, Musk has gotten permission from the government to build a Hyperloop from NYC to DC. I imagine people living in both locations would be ecstatic they could travel back and forth so quickly. Living in Detroit, I don’t even like driving 20 miles on the freeway, but that’s another tale.
This isn’t a done deal, sadly. Officials from Maryland, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, New York, Baltimore, Washington DC, the US Congress say that Musk doesn’t have the approval just yet. It’s not a big surprise. a 220 mile+ tunnel under major cities could bring up a lot of safety concerns. And since the Hyperloop has yet to be a 100% proven public transport system, it will still need to undergo a lot of testing.
The Boring Company, despite all the things that need to be clear for it to happen, has unveiled plans for both long and short distance travels.
“At the Boring Company, we plan to build low-cost, fast-to-dig tunnels that will house new high-speed transportation systems. Most will be standard pressurised tunnels with electric skates going 125+ mph.” the state company states. “For long-distance routes in straight lines, such as NY to DC, it will make sense to use pressurised pods in a depressurised tunnel to allow speeds up to approximately 600+ mph (AKA Hyperloop).”
Whether or not this will be realized is still quite a bit far away to know. If Musk sets his eyes on a high-speed underground Hyperloop like his SpaceX set its eyes to the stars, a new way of travel shouldn’t be that far off.
(Via The Guardian)
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Jeff Sorensen is an author, writer and occasional comedian living in Detroit, Michigan. You can look for more of his work on The Huffington Post, UPROXX, BGR and by just looking up his name.
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