Hyperloop pod takes human passengers on a test drive

Our correspondent

History was made on November 9 when passengers travelled in a hyperloop pod in the first-ever test drive of the new transportation technology developed by Virgin Hyperloop.

Hyperloop is a futuristic mode of vacuum tube-based transport, resembling a train but traveling at the speed of a jet aircraft. It can deliver freight and move people from point to point at a top speed of 1,200 k/ph. Virgin Hyperloop is based in California, USA.

Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem, chairman of Virgin Hyperloop and group chairman and CEO of DP World, watched the passenger testing first-hand in Las Vegas. Dubai’s DP World has invested millions of dollars into the project’s research and development.

The hyperloop pod reached 172 km speed on the 500-metre-long DevLoop test site . The company is hopeful that it can achieve 950 km speed. The company has previously run over 400 unoccupied tests.

Virgin Hyperloop’s co-founder and chief technology officer Josh Giegel and director of passenger experience Sara Luchian were the first people in the world to ride on this new form of transportation. They made their maiden voyage on the newly unveiled XP-2 vehicle, designed by Bjarke Ingels Group and custom-built with occupant safety and comfort in mind. While the production vehicle will be larger and seat up to 28 passengers, this 2-seater XP-2 vehicle was built to demonstrate that passengers can in fact safely travel in a hyperloop vehicle.

The successful test will pave the way for the certification of hyperloop systems around the world – a key step towards commercial projects, including those in Saudi Arabia and the UAE.

Dubai-Abu Dhabi hyperloop

Once approved and deployed by authorities, Dubai and Abu Dhabi will be connected with hyperloop, which will reduce travel time between the two emirates from over one hour now to 12 minutes. The project is estimated to cost somewhere between $20 and $40 million per kilometre.
The loop can seat about 10 people in each pod and is estimated to take 10,000 passengers per hour to and from Dubai. The first 10 km of the 150 km route was to be ready in 2020.