Hyperloop Announces 35 Winners Getting Closer to Futuristic Transit

They're vying for 700 mph-plus.

A model of the Hyperloop One project is displayed at a November 2016 news conference in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The city-state announced a deal with Los Angeles-based Hyperloop One to study the potential for building a line linking it to the Emirati capital of Abu Dhabi. (AP Photo/Jon Gambrell)

This is your first of three free stories this month. Become a free or sustaining member to read unlimited articles, webinars and ebooks.

Become A Member

The Hyperloop, Elon Musk’s futuristic tube that would supposedly “move people and things at airline speeds for the price of a bus ticket,” came one (magnetized) inch closer to development last week with Hyperloop One’s announcement of 35 semifinalists in its Global Challenge.

“The Global Challenge kicked off in May 2016 as an open call to individuals, universities, companies and governments to develop comprehensive proposals for using Hyperloop One’s disruptive transport technology in their region to move passengers and freight point-to-point, swiftly, and on-demand,” the company explained in a release. Hyperloop’s design calls for people to board pods that are whisked through a tube from Point A to B — think the pneumatic tubes at a bank drive-through.

The 35 semifinalists were picked from a sea of 2,600 and represent 17 countries, with 11 teams chosen from the U.S.

One winning team hails from Columbus, Ohio. Implementation there, the Columbus Dispatch reports, could move residents “to Chicago in 30 minutes or to Pittsburgh in 15 minutes at more than 700 mph. You could work eight hours every weekday in Columbus but live in Chicago or Pittsburgh.”

Hyperloop One’s announcement follows a rocky 2016. After publicly testing its technology in the Las Vegas desert to much fanfare, the company was sued by former CTO and Co-Founder Brogan BamBrogan (no, that was not the name on his birth certificate), who alleged nepotism and mismanagement on the part of another executive.

But, scandal aside, the company’s wildly imaginative people-mover could have major implications for cities — from transforming city-to-city relationships (between, say San Diego, Fresno and Sacramento) with speedy between-routes, to reimagining how open-source transportation gets made.

For now, the 35 semifinalists await a next round of judging. According to Hyperloop One’s press release, which also promises “the world’s first full-scale test of a Hyperloop” in 2017, the remaining teams will now be reviewed by a panel of experts in transportation, technology, economics and innovation.

Like what you’re reading? Get a browser notification whenever we post a new story. You’re signed-up for browser notifications of new stories. No longer want to be notified? Unsubscribe.

Rachel Dovey is an award-winning freelance writer and former USC Annenberg fellow living at the northern tip of California’s Bay Area. She writes about infrastructure, water and climate change and has been published by Bust, Wired, Paste, SF Weekly, the East Bay Express and the North Bay Bohemian

Follow Rachel .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)

Tags: public transportationurban design

×
Next City App Never Miss A StoryDownload our app ×
×

You've reached your monthly limit of three free stories.

This is not a paywall. Become a free or sustaining member to continue reading.

  • Read unlimited stories each month
  • Our email newsletter
  • Webinars and ebooks in one click
  • Our Solutions of the Year magazine
  • Support solutions journalism and preserve access to all readers who work to liberate cities

Join 1099 other sustainers such as:

  • Gabby at $5/Month
  • Abigail at $10/Month
  • Gloria at $5/Month

Already a member? Log in here. U.S. donations are tax-deductible minus the value of thank-you gifts. Questions? Learn more about our membership options.

or pay by credit card:

All members are automatically signed-up to our email newsletter. You can unsubscribe with one-click at any time.

  • Donate $20 or $5/Month

    20th Anniversary Solutions of the Year magazine

has donated ! Thank you 🎉
Donate
×