Elon Musk’s ‘Hyperloop’ Train Could Travel From Los Angeles to San Francisco in 30 Minutes Flat

9 thoughts on “Elon Musk’s ‘Hyperloop’ Train Could Travel From Los Angeles to San Francisco in 30 Minutes Flat”

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  Anonymous March 13, 2013 at 2:24 am

  Let's follow the clues. I don't know why Musk is coy but it's a fun game. It's not an evacuated tunnel. It think it might be a supersonic mag-lev inside of a 'tuned pipe'. The 'tuning' is the secret Musk trick. (along with the batteries and the electronics). I don't think he's making up random sci-fi ideas and might have something possible. I wrote my ideas down here: gotohere.com/hyperloop/Hyperloop.html

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  jim27 November 29, 2012 at 8:40 pm

  I like the idea and thank you for working on one of the biggest issues we have. To be competitive with the rest of the world you need a great transportation system even Christopher Columbus realized this or the Queen did. I would like to see this as model and then made into a amusement ride and a transportation system that would bring you from the outside of Atlantic City NJ over the boardwalk and if possible underwater and to the board walk. This would be an attraction that would help bring people to AC and great for all the engineering schools in the tri state area. The tri state area has the largest amount of engineering schools. Thanks Elon Keep up the good work! Jim Murray Lumberton Nj

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  RaulP August 27, 2012 at 10:09 am

  "Vacuum tube" mag-lev trains reaching max 4000 km/h and doing New York - Tokyo in 1,5 hours has been a matter of speculation already for 4-5 years. This might just be the first bird in testing out the tech? The key here is the fact that there is no air-friction turning this virtually an "aerodynamically" perfect transportation saving energy and allowing amazing theoretical speeds while being super-smooth and stabile.

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  tony rusi July 23, 2012 at 6:20 pm

  The Chinese have already figured out how to make all "high speed trains non-stop". They are also working on a "600 mph maglev train". Google "Next Big Future" and search the site with those terms for the details.

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  makabusi July 23, 2012 at 6:19 pm

  Evacuated tube transportation technologies (www.ET3.com) is the future movement system for Californians. New and old cities require rethinking as found in www.starkorecity.com. It appears that most city transportation “planning and fixing” thoughts are not focused on infrastructure input flows for goods people, water, power and communications. Output of solid and liquid waste is unimproved. Mobility is the priority for increasing city cost/benefit value by design. A network that collapses time and distance with speeds of 350mph brings proven capabilities, skills for jobs to manufacturing and construction. This vision is the tipping point required to again take America forward out of monetary catastrophe.

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  Anonymous July 19, 2012 at 8:09 pm

  A mass driver would do this well. Why we're not using it for space launches is still stupid.

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  DeadChump July 19, 2012 at 2:24 pm

  It is easy to say we could do this, but the reality is do you really want something that large and heavy travelling at that speed, right over a geologically active fault line? Also, define 'inexpensive', tickets sold would have to cover the cost of design, manufacture, test and installation, in addition to operation and maintanance. Thus 'inexpensive' means for people of means like Elon Musk! Cost depends on ridership and how many people really travel between LA and SF on a regular basis? Daily? Weekly? At that speed there would be no stops at intermediary cities, so the ridership would be very limited. I coiuld go on and on... But like the Tesla, this is not really for the masses.

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  bodo July 19, 2012 at 1:35 pm

  I want to believe the next fairy tales as much as anyone, but as an engineer who designed & built his first solar, earth-bermed house in the 70's, I have a request. Please vet these feel good fantasies of wealthy entrepreneurs against actual physics before broadcasting happy talk. Otherwise it becomes noise that distracts. It used to be the purview of Sci-Fi writers looking to get an advance on the next book. Now it's a stage play in search of millions in gifts and loans. If Mr. Musk had actually brought forth the engineering support or even announced the deposit of millions of dollars toward the project, it would move me. In lieu of that happening it is merely a dream-scape that opportunistically shines a spotlight on a man who makes his money inside a credit company. Note: Mr Musk elevated the Tesla Dream into a $465 million loan from the energy department. A dream that has yet to show profitability and is on a lifeline that appears it could end in 2013.

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  willravel July 18, 2012 at 6:51 pm

  I'm sure this would cost well into the tens of billions and would be one of the largest (non-military) public works programs in US history. If we could secure funding, this would be an amazing investment in jobs, transportation, modernization and inspiration, but that's a very big "if".