ADVERTISEMENTAre you tired of your commute?
Londoners travel for an average of 84 minutes to and from work each day. In Zurich there is an average of 41 minutes.
For all those undertaking this gruelling daily regime, Hyperloop, which could take as little as 29 minutes to cover 320 kilometres, might be the answer.
What is it?
Based on an idea from inventor-entrepreneur Elon Musk, Hyperloop promises underground travel at airline speeds using a system of magnetic levitation.
Hyperloop, explained. pic.twitter.com/ZHY3iBjhjL
— Hyperloop One (@HyperloopOne) August 2, 2017
It is billed as ultra-fast, on-demand, direct, emission-free, energy efficient, and quiet, with a smaller footprint than other modes of high-speed transport.
It could reach speeds of over a thousand kilometres per hour. Despite this, Elon Musk has been keen to suggest that passengers will be very comfortable.
To be clear, a Hyperloop passenger version wouldn’t have intense light strobe effect (just for testing), nor uncomfortable acceleration
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 28, 2017
US routes
It’s hoped there’ll be a line taking passengers from Washington DC to New York.
Talks are already underway on a section of that route, in Maryland, but the biggest brake might be red tape, with the proposed route passing through multiple states, dodging rivers, sewers and underground utility lines.
Digging is underway in California, too, with hopes that there will eventually be a tunnel joining San Francisco with Los Angeles.
A European version?
In Europe there is a London to Edinburgh hyperloop under consideration.