The future of travel looks fast, really fast.
Especially considering that the first Hyperloop test track could be in the works by as soon as 2016.
According to Russell Brandom of The Verge, a crowdfunded company inspired by Elon Musk's creative design plan, Hyperloop Transportation Technologies, has acquired land in Quay Valley, California that it plans to use to build a full-scale Hyperloop model.
The company aims to launch the five-mile track next year.
"This installation will allow us to demonstrate all systems on a full scale and immediately begin generating revenues for our shareholders through actual operations," said CEO Dirk Ahlborn in a statement.
Popular Science provides a look at a potential preview of the test track:
Musk first published the transportation idea in August 2013 and is already constructing his own Hyperloop test track in Texas. But what sets the two projects apart is that Musk's is scaled down and more focused on testing the physics, whereas HTT's design is aimed at transporting actual human passengers.
Although Musk's original documents predicted potential speeds of up to 760 mph, crafts inside HTT's five-mile track are unlikely to surpass speeds of 200 mph. However, Ahlborn claims "it's not about speed" and points out that "there are a lot of other things that need to be optimized."
As Brandom writes, the Hyperloop test track is just one piece to a much larger puzzle:
"The current plans project 25,000 housing units alongside hotels, restaurants, and a business park, spread across 7,500 acres in California's central valley. The proposed Hyperloop would be designed as a functioning (albeit limited) mass transit system for the town, charging residents for rides and providing a revenue stream for HTT."
HTT has taken a big step already by acquiring land in Quay Valley, but gaining the necessary funding is the next hurdle to clear if they are to turn the vision into reality.
According to Brandom, the company hopes to raise $100 million to build the track, but the complete project could cost anywhere from $7 to $16 billion. And since HTT can only raise so much money through crowdfunding, the company announced earlier this month that it's planning an IPO for the third quarter of 2015.
"For us, the most important thing is going out and putting the product into the market," said Ahlborn.
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