Dgetting around a European city to another in one Capsule propelled at 700 km/h may soon be a realitysays a Dutch company after a promising first test in the Test center built in the Netherlands.
According to the criteria of
Inside a 420-meter-long white tunnel At the European Hyperloop Hub, the train covered in black and grey stripes begins to levitate before moving off following instructions from the control centre. For now, its speed is slow, 30 km/h.but its operators are confident of reaching 100 km/h before the end of the year.
The “media hype”: between hope and criticism
The commercial director of the Dutch firm Hardt Mobility, Roel Van de Pas, is at the end of the
Hyperloop tunnel at the European Hyperloop Center (EHC) test facility in Veendam.
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The company responsible for the vehicle, Hardt Hyperloopconsiders this first test promising. “We will be ready to transport passengers in a vehicle like this by 2030,” says its commercial director, Roel van de Pason a press visit.
We will be ready to transport passengers in a vehicle like this by 2030
This concept of Magnetically-supported ultra-fast train has the potential to revolutionise travel in Europeconnecting Amsterdam with Berlin in 90 minutes or with Milan in two hours, explains this manager to the Afp.
The founder of SpaceX and Tesla, Elon Musk introduced that concept in 2013 in an article proposing a “fifth mode of transportation” to connect the Californian cities of Los Angeles and San Francisco.
But since then, several attempts to deploy this technology, launched as a collaborative open source project, have failedseveral of them in charge of the British tycoon Richard Branson.
Critics of the project denounce the “media hype” around a technology that is not convincing and costs billions of dollars. Van de Pas, 39, does not lose confidence and maintains that “It will change relations in Europe. It will really integrate the continent.”
A point in favor of the environment
White Hyperloop tunnel at the European Hyperloop Center (EHC) test facility in Veendam, September 7, 2024.
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The next stage is to test the vehicle. in a complete vacuum -to reduce air resistance- and gradually increase the speed.
The Dutch centre is the only one that has a “change of track”a tube that emerges from the main track, to study what happens when a capsule changes trajectory at high speed, a key piece of information for developing a network.
The ultimate goal is to replace short-haul flights and long car journeys in Europe with fares at a price comparable to those of low-cost airlines, says Van de Pas.
The ultimate goal is to replace short-haul flights and long car journeys in Europe.
The deployment of a dense network of ‘hyperloop’ could benefit the environmentsince that mode of transport uses about one-tenth of the energy needed for air transport, and one third of the energy needed for rail transport.
Furthermore, enclosed in tubes, it would be completely silent. Another important point is the passenger experience. Transportation blogger Alon Levy has called Elon Musk’s initial proposal a trip doomed to dizziness.
The vehicles, which would carry about 50 passengers, will have the same type of vibrations and comfort levels as modern trains, says Van de Pas. China already has a facility for tests capable of reaching speeds of up to 700 km/h.
Far from being discouraged, Van de Pas says that “needs good competitors” with whom he shares “the same mission.” “We look at what our competitors do, and they look at us, and together we build an industry,” he adds.
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