Musk’s Hyperloop math doesn’t add up!

There’s a reason (several actually) why no one in government has approved Musk’s half-baked hyperloop scheme:

From http://greatergreaterwashington.org/post/19848/musks-hyperloop-math-doesnt-add-up/

“Musk’s proposal won’t actually get riders to the downtowns of Los Angeles or San Francisco. It can only carry around 10% of the capacity of the California High-Speed Rail. Additionally, it will bypass other population centers, like Bakersfield, Fresno, and San Jose.”

“The California High-Speed Rail will whisk passengers from Los Angeles Union Station to the Transbay Terminal in downtown San Francisco in 2 hours and 48 minutes.”

“But the Hyperloop won’t start in Los Angeles, and it won’t end in San Francisco. Instead, it’s proposed to start in Sylmar, 38 minutes north of Los Angeles Union Station aboard the Metrolink commuter train. That means it takes longer to get to the Hyperloop from downtown LA than it would take to go to San Francisco.”

“Musk argues that the Hyperloop is cheaper than HSR because it’s elevated, saving on the cost of building at grade and reducing local opposition. But bridges are far more expensive than building tracks at grade.”

To me it looks like just another car manufacturer, albeit an electric one, trying to undermine a viable high-speed rail project that would benefit millions of people, one that would cost only a fraction of the roads and airports required to provide anywhere near the capacity that high-speed rail does.

Musk’s abomination is nothing more than an airline running at ground level, and one without windows or washroom facilities at that, bypassing & leaving towns stranded & isolated that would have been served by high-speed rail.

This train traveler will never ride the hyperloop, should it ever be built. It’s doubtful the millions of Amtrak passengers who shun air travel in preference for the comfort & service that only the train can provide would either.