Mumbai-Pune journey through the hyperloop? Might be possible soon!
If British billionaire Richard Branson had his way, Indians would soon be making a Mumbai-Pune journey in sci-fi mode: through a high-speed hyperloop. Branson's Virgin Hyperloop One has similar plans for the rest of India too, at prices less than airfares. It is already in talks with Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka. But despite the many opportunities, challenges are high.
Here's what a hyperloop actually is
Hyperloop is (as of now) a theoretical mode of transport which would carry people, or cargo, in pods over long distances at high speeds through steel lubes. They would be propelled by magnetic levitation and large enough vacuum pumps, letting them travel as fast as planes. Proponents claim they would be cheaper and more environment-friendly than today's modes too.
The mode isn't just an idea anymore
Last August, Hyperloop One did what Tesla chief Elon Musk had hypothesized in 2013: it made a historic prototype of a hyperloop and achieved a speed of 200mph (320kmph) in a test track outside Las Vegas. The tubes were 11 feet in diameter while the track used simple embankments, not pylons as Musk had predicted. The company is now planning three production systems in service by 2021.
Hyperloop One has big plans for India
Hyperloop One, backed by investors like the Virgin Group, Caspian VC Partners and DP World Ltd., believes this mode is the fix for India's infrastructure problems. Branson signed an agreement with Mumbai in February for a Mumbai-Pune system that would reduce travel-time to just 25 minutes. The target for rollout is 2025. It then plans to build a national network, said CTO Josh Giegel.
How many would take the hyperloop at these costs?
Pricing is the foremost challenge. The company says it wants to keep prices "low to stimulate demand but not so cheap to drive away investors." The target is to keep it lower than airfares, but more than first-class train seats. Here's putting it in numbers: a Mumbai-Pune economy air-ticket a week from now costs Rs. 10,000, while the first-class train fare is Rs. 1,165.
'Hyperloop excellent idea only if it becomes a mass-transport mode'
What could worsen matters is hurdles with land acquisition, said Mathew Antony, managing partner at Aditya Consulting, a boutique business advisory firm. "Hyperloop is an excellent idea only if it is to be developed as a mass transport mode," he said. But for now, Hyperlook One is planning big. Potential projects with Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka are in the horizon.
