In Toulouse, France, construction has begun on the first, full scale passenger Hyperloop capsule. Hyperloop Transportation Technologies (HTT) says it expects delivery of the capsule in 2018.
The Hyperloop capsule is a concept that was created in 2012 for a pod-like vehicle in a reduced-pressure tube moving at high velocity speeds. Three years ago, Elon Musk outlined his vision for high-speed passenger travel of capsules inside of tubes. The original route was envisioned to go from the Greater Los Angeles Area to the San Francisco Bay Area, but now France will get the honor of the having the first high speed passenger capsule.
The Hyperloop capsule will measure 98.5 feet (30m) in length (which is about six cars parked close together), nine feet (2.7 m) in diameter and weighs in at 20 tons. The fastest train in Japan, the Maglev bullet train, goes up to 374 mph (603 kph), but the Hyperloop capsule is expected to move at speeds of 760 mph (1223 km) per hour.
The passenger capsule is being built in collaboration with Carbures S.A which focuses on developing and building fuselage and advanced materials construction for the aeronautics and aerospace industries.
According to a press release, Dirk Ahlborn, CEO, HTT said the company is taking a passenger-first approach to guarantee that safety takes a priorty over all else.
“This will be the first time a full scale passenger Hyperloop capsule will be built and shown to the world," said Ahlborn. "We put this on par with the first time any type of transportation has been revealed publicly, such as the first locomotive, airplane, or automobile, each of these signified a major shift in the way we live our lives on a global scale.”
