Full-Scale Hyperloop Track Planned For California Launch In 2016

Elon Musk's Hyperloop concept is exciting for California, and possibly the country. Via a network of tubes, we'll potentially fly around the country feet off the ground, rifling past farmland at breakneck speeds. Hyperloop Transportation Technologies, a startup that wants to bring Musk's vision to reality, has secured land for a Hyperloop test track. In the town of Quay Valley in California, the team want to build a five-mile long track to test Hyperloop vehicle concepts in real-time.

Hyperloop Transportation Technologies CEO Dirk Ahlborn said "This installation will allow us to demonstrate all systems on a full scale and immediately begin generating revenues for our shareholders through actual operations". Their five-mile track will have no affiliation with Musk's Texas Hyperloop track, which is scaled down from the California track.

Musk's Texaas track is meant for testing the physics of Hyperloop, while the California track is a graduated design meant for testing the transportation of humans. The California track will top out at roughly 200mph — a far cry from the 760mph top speed Musk envisions for Hyperloop.

Unfortunately, we don't have a final timeline for the track's completion outside of 2016, nor do we know if Hyperloop Transportation Technologies is working to implement a finished Hyperloop for the original Los Angeles to San Francisco round-trip. For now, Hyperloop's proposed track is aimed at being public transit for the town of Quay Valley, which is yet to be fully fleshed out. Feels like we've been here before, though.

Via: The Verge