Regulators Drive Away Hyperloop Transport at Hyperspeed

[Ed Hudgins]

Regulators Drive Away Hyperloop Transport at Hyperspeed
By Edward Hudgins

April 6, 2016 -- In 2013, uber-entrepreneur Elon Musk open sourced his idea for a Hyperloop transportation system that could cut a six hour car or train trip between cities down to 30 minutes, faster than even most airline flights. But Knut Sauer, an executive for Hyperloop Technologies, Inc., says "The regulatory environment in the U.S. isn't friendly" and "That's why I believe the first Hyperloop will not be in the U.S."

Hyperloop’s transportation revolution

Musk developed the concept of a system that would transport individuals in pods or bullet coaches through tubes resembling the pneumatic tubes used at drive-thru banks. The time, costs, and energy savings of this technology could revolutionize transportation. Since he offered the idea to all comers, companies and university research groups are now competing to develop the best plans for bring such systems from science fiction to future fact.

Meanwhile, at both the state and federal levels, regulatory red tape and bureaucracies tie us to a slower, costlier, and inefficient present.

In an interview with Tech.Mic, Sauer explained that "There's a lot of interest, but no one can override the democratic system you have in the U.S." He added: “We cannot afford having a five-year back-and-forth process.” His company, Hyperloop Technologies, is based in California, where regulators have been delaying a plan for a $70 billion bullet train between LA and San Francisco. That system, which will suck up public financing, is a huge waste of money and cannot be justified in terms of the number passengers it will serve (few) or the speed of transit it will offer (slow). So perhaps delay is a good thing.

But those same regulators are also delaying any private alternative.
 

Does Hyperloop have a Future in America?

And we see Sauer’s prediction coming true. Dirk Ahlborn, the CEO of Sauer’s competition, Hyperloop Transportation Technologies, ... (Continue reading here.)