Futuristic 'Hyperloop' system could cut Edinburgh to London journey time to half an hour

Hyperloop technology could radicalise the UK's transport system
RS Components
Megan White6 January 2019

A futuristic Hyperloop transport system in the UK could slash journey times across the country with a trip from Edinburgh to London cut to just 29 minutes.

The mode of transport, first proposed by Elon Musk in 2012, is a system of tubes through which a pod could travel at high speeds of up to 600-plus miles per hour.

Some journeys, such as from Nottingham to London or Sheffield to London, would be ten times quicker if the UK had a Hyperloop system.

Edinburgh to London, a 330-mile journey that typically takes around four hours and 20 minutes on the train, would take only 29 minutes on the Hyperloop.

Hyperloop could drastically cut journey times across the UK
RS Components

A journey from London to Birmingham would take approximately nine minutes, compared to an hour and 23 minutes on the National Rail service.

The concept, which has been worked on by Tesla and SpaceX, was initially proposed to link Los Angeles and San Francisco.

Hyperloop uses magnetic levitation to lift the pods, which are then carried by electric propulsion through low-pressure tubes, allowing them to travel at high speeds.

Pods are capable of travelling at 300m a second, which equates to 600-plus miles per hour.

The Hyperloop service propels passengers and freight in pods through low pressure tubes
PA

Mr Musk has already built a Loop test tunnel underneath LA which could be converted into Hyperloop use.

The two-mile tunnel stretches from the SpaceX office in Hawthorne, California, to an LA suburb, and cost $10 million.

According to his Boring Company website, “Loop is a high-speed underground public transportation system in which passengers are transported via compatible autonomous electric vehicles at up to 150 miles per hour. TBC currently uses Tesla Model X’s, modified with alignment wheels.”

It added: “Hyperloop is an ultra-high-speed underground public transportation system in which passengers are transported on autonomous electric pods traveling at 600+ miles per hour in a pressurized cabin.

“Loop and Hyperloop are similar, with the major difference being that Hyperloop draws a vacuum inside the tube to eliminate air friction.

“Loop is used for shorter routes, when there is no technical need to eliminate air friction.”

Other suggested routes include between Chennai and Bengaluru, India, and a Paris to Amsterdam route proposed by Delft Hyperloop.

Richard Branson’s Virgin Hyperloop One have also proposed a 300-mile route between Helsinki and Stockholm, which would tunnel under the Baltic Sea to connect the two capitals in under 30 minutes.

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