September 7, 2017 TnH Global

India’s first hyperloop to connect twin Amaravati and Vijayawada

Fancy travelling from Vijayawada to Amaravati in five minutes flat? Come 2020-21, this flight of fancy is all set to become a reality, with US-based Hyperloop Transportation Technologies Inc (HTT) gearing up to roll out India’s first hyperloop project connecting Vijayawada and Andhra Pradesh’s capital Amaravati.
The project is expected to catapult India’s startup state of Andhra Pradesh and its proposed world-class capital into the global league. Hyperloop, which uses a low pressure tube to transport people at speeds as high as 1,200 km per hour, will cut down the nearly one-hour travel time for the Vijayawada-Amaravati ride to just 5-6 minutes. While by road, the Vijayawada-Amaravati distance is around 20 km, the HTT plans to build a 16-km long tube for the project.
According to sources, the project, to be taken up on a public private partnership (PPP) mode, will cost between $200-250 million (Rs 1,300-1,600 crore) and create over 2,500 jobs.
The PPP project will be set up with funding primarily from private investors and the first phase of the project will kick off by October this year with the commencement of a six-month feasibility study. After conducting initial six month feasibility study, phase-2 of the project will see HTT build its first hyperloop in India.
Sources said as part of the feasibility study HTT will offer 4-5 possible routes for the project, that is tipped to cut down the travel time from Vijayawada city centre to Amaravati city centre from about an hour currently to just 5 minutes. Once it gets the AP government’s nod it will proceed with selected route.Andhra Pradesh Economic Development Board (APEDB) along with the AP government will assist HTT with all regulatory requirements and develop and implement the hyperloop project in Amaravati, HTT said.
The hyperloop player said it has signed an MoU with the APEDB on Wednesday to facilitate the development of India’s first hyperloop transportation system in Andhra Pradesh.

News Source: timesofindia.indiatimes.com