Co-founders of Hyperloop One on their first successful full-scale test run
The co-founders of Hyperloop One say they've had their "Kitty Hawk moment." Meaning, we may be one step closer to a 30-minute ride from Los Angeles to San Francisco.
Shervin Pishevar and Josh Giegel say they have successfully tested the world's first full-scale, functional hyperloop system which would transport people faster than a Boeing passenger jet.
The two spoke to "CBS This Morning" about their historic achievement and offered a first look inside the private test of the system where passengers would travel in pods at near supersonic speed.
"It'll be the safest, cleanest, fastest form of transportation in the world," Pishevar said.
The hyperloop is designed to transport people through a tube at 700 mph. The system was tested privately in the Nevada desert, with plans for a first public test in the coming months.
Questioned about the safety concerns of traveling at such high speeds underground, Giegel said, "In the event of an emergency you can basically get out, if there's an emergency, just like you would in a tunnel — and you're not at 30,000 feet."
The ambitious pair has a goal of putting three functional hyperloop systems into service by 2021. But they can't do it alone.
"We need the support of people and governments around the world. You can't build hyperloops around the world without the support of governments," Pishevar said.
They predict hyperloop systems could dramatically cut potential travel times on popular routes, such as:
- Los Angeles to San Diego: 13 minutes
- Portland to Seattle: 17 minutes
- Dallas to Austin: 20 minutes
- Miami to Orlando: 25 minutes
Currently, Hyperloop One has a deal with Dubai to explore potential routes and is also looking at European countries as potential locations. Bringing a hyperloop system to the U.S. is also a focus for the company.
"Building new infrastructure for the world is so important. We're all stuck in traffic. It causes so much pain and wastes so much time for people. Speeding things up, making cities into metro stops," Pishevar said.
"The No. 1 concern is to make this idea a reality and this was a huge step in showing the world today on this show that this is real. We've done it. And now, it's really go to the next stage of connecting with the governments and actually building hyperloops around the world," Pishevar said.