A Hyperloop is a proposed vacuum-tube mode of passenger or freight transportation moving enclosed capsules along on thin cushions of air; it was first named in an open-source “vactrain” design released by a joint team from Elon Musk’s Tesla and SpaceX companies. It could offer an affordable, low-carbon and super-fast alternative to current transportation systems.

Flying between Amsterdam and Paris usually takes an hour, but can be longer due to security procedures. Currently, the same trip on a Thalys railway fast train takes three hours and 17 minutes. Hyperloop passenger group and cargo capsules can theoretically travel at more than 700 miles per hour, thus making the journey in about 30 minutes.

Hyperloop seems ideally suited to a small continent with many large urban centers. The Dutch team that won the SpaceX Hyperloop competition is rapidly working toward a commercial solution to connect all of Europe. Hardt Global Mobility has the backing of the Technical University of Delft, Dutch railway company Nederlandse Spoorwegen and multinational construction company BAM.

This article appears in the August 2018 issue of Natural Awakenings.