Virgin Hyperloop was conducted on Sunday afternoon at the company's DevLoop test track in the desert outside Las Vegas, Nevada. The first two passengers were Josh h.r.giger, CTO and co-founder of Virgin Hyperloop, and Sara Luchian, Director of Passenger Experience.
After being tied to the seats of the company's shiny white and red Hyperloop pods, they were transferred to the airlock as the air in the closed vacuum tube was transferred. Then, the pod accelerates along the track length to 100 mph (160 km/h), and then decelerates and stops.
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Inspiration from Virgin Hyperloop
Virgin Hyperloop originated from the concept of high-speed cabin transportation first proposed by Tesla CEO Musk in 20 13, and it is also a solution for high-speed long-distance travel. In theory, an aerodynamic aluminum capsule full of passengers or goods can pass through a transportation pipeline with almost no air at a speed of nearly 760 mph, which Musk calls "the fifth mode of transportation".
In order to promote the "Capsule Train" project, Virgin Hyperloop raised more than 400 million US dollars, and the investors mainly came from Richard Branson, CEO of Virgin Hyperloop, and DP World, Dubai World Port Company.
At present, Virgin Hyperloop has not provided an official cost estimate. H.r.giger said that the company's goal is to provide bus service at a price of 20 cents per mile, which is equivalent to a 20-mile bus fare of 4 dollars. "We don't want this transportation service to be open only to the rich."
Despite the "groundbreaking" success of Hyperloop, developers are still worried about the security of this technology. CEO Branson also admitted that the company's main obstacle is how to get regulatory approval and persuade passengers to try this technology.