Virginia Tech is planning to build its own Hyperloop test track, offering students a chance to experiment with the technology scientists say could one day transport passengers from San Francisco to Los Angeles in 30 minutes.
The nascent technology, championed by Tesla founder Elon Musk, blasts a pod through a near-vacuum tube at speeds that could — theoretically — surpass 700 mph.
But that’s a long way off.
For now, Virginia Tech is designing a track that looks similar those used by trains. There’s no vacuum tube and Stefan Duma, interim director of the Institute for Critical Technology and Applied Science, said it will measure hundreds of feet in length — not miles.
