Passenger trains are not 21st Century technology. They have been around for many years and they have got as good as it can get. Sure countries like Japan are making small improvements to the outdated technology, but they really are not getting much better. Since we have hit the ceiling for improvement, what is the future for commuter trains. The answer to that is hyperloop.

There are two hyperloop startups located in Los Angeles. The first is Hyperloop One and the other is Hyperloop Transportation Technologies which is the more conquered of the two. For awhile, Hyperloop One looked like it would be the first company to bring the technology to the public.The company has already run successful test runs in the deserts of Nevada, about 30 minutes outside of Las Vegas. DevLoop, which is the name of the test track, is 500 meters long and 3.3 meters in diameter, which gives Hyperloop One the ability to conduct public trials of the technology. But just recently, Hyperloop Transportation Technologies released photos proving that their version of  hyperloop is in fact real. With the release of the photos, HTT is proving that they are building the world’s first full-scale, passenger-ready hyperloop, capable of speeds up to 760 mph. However, the pictures raise more questions than they answer.

First up, what is hyperloop? The hyperloop is a concept proposed by billionaire inventor Elon Musk, CEO of the aerospace firm SpaceX and car company Tesla. Musk first thought of the idea as a reaction to the California High-Speed Rail System currently under development, a bullet train system that Musk feels is lackluster, as it will be one of the most expensive and slow-moving trains in the world. The concept of hyperloop goes something like this. Two massive tubes will stretch from San Francisco to Los Angeles; in the tubes, pods carrying passengers would travel over 700 mph. Imagine the the pneumatic tubes people in The Jetsons use to move around buildings.

Now how will it work? Magnetic accelerators will be planted along the length of the tube, which would propel the pods forward. Additionally, the tubes would house a low pressure environment, surrounding the pod with a cushion of air that permits the pod to move safely at such high speeds. It is almost like a puck moving across a air hockey table.

Hyperloop One and Hyperloop Transportation Technologies are currently still developing their technologies, but it seems like they are getting closer to upping it to a larger scale. It certainly is a cool idea and one that will make the cities of today feel like they are in the future. With the two companies so close in the development process. I expect great bounds of advancement will be in the future.