In past years, technology took traveling seriously and blessed the world with different means of travel. Somehow it still feels like we could be connected to different parts of the world in a better way. With every invention, we are also creating more sources of pollution. So, could there be a better and comparatively more environment-friendly way of traveling? There’s an idea that might become a reality and that’s what we call “the hyperloop”.

Hyperloop is Elon Musk’s invention- the guy behind Tesla and CEO of the aerospace firm SpaceX. Hyperloop has two gigantic tubes that extend from San Francisco to Los Angeles. Pods with passengers would move through the tubes at a speed over 700 mph. The pods would be propelled forward using magnetic accelerators that will be planted along the length of the tube. The tube will have a low-pressure environment to enable the pods glide above the tube surface at high speeds.

The existing means of travel, like road, rail, air, water are not all in all convenient. They are a mix of slow, expensive, and environmentally damaging. When you talk about road transportation, there’s a high amount of carbon emission and fuel consumption. With all the energy being wasted in road transportation, we need mass transit to conserve energy. Rail transit is relatively environment friendly and conserves energy. The catch is that it is both expensive and slow.

Considering all these drawbacks that existing means of travel offer, hyperloop comes with a number of benefits. It is incredibly speedy of course. Besides this, hyperloop is cost-effective. It would cover moderate distances at a high speed. The design also makes conservation of energy and being environmental-friendly a priority. The tubes of hyperloop will have solar panels on their roof. This will enable a clean and self-powering system.

The hyperloop has been designed such that it can thrive in earthquake prone areas. There will be pylons placed about every 100 feet for the tubes to be mounted on. These pylons will prevent the tubes from breaking due to earthquakes or thermal expansion by allowing for a slip. While the California’s phase one high speed rail project might cost at least $68 billion, hyperloop significantly cuts the cost since it will take about $6 billion.

A company called “Hyperloop One” has completed the work of its testing tunnel that is 500 meters long and 3.3 meters in diameter. It will soon be running its initial trials. If everything works out well, the world will witness a progress in traveling that will save time, cost, and detrimental effects on environment. It is estimated that by the year 2021, hyperloop will be ready to carry passengers.