SpaceX and Tesla Elon Musk doesn’t muck around. Recently he unveiled the Powerwall, a new addition to Tesla’s roster of battery-powered products, but a little while back he also outlined plans for a new transportation system called the Hyperloop. And, here’s the thing, it’s actually getting built.

Or at least, a part of it is. There’s a test track for the high-speed transit system being built in California in 2016. Musk isn’t actually involved in the initiative, that’s the domain of a company called Hyperloop Transport Technologies (HTT), who are arranging that the 8km test track goes into construction next year. The company has secured funding and also reached an agreement that will see the track go up near a place called Quay Valley in California.

HTT is planning on implementing Musk’s technology, which combines mag-lev trains with an air hockey table if you want the most basic explanation, but they won’t be hitting his 1,200km/h speed target. At least, not right away. They’re planning on speeds of between 300 and 480km/h, which is still a lot faster than you’d expect from a train.

The test track will be looking into potential issues with the Hyperloop. Will it break? How straight do the track chambers have to be? Will people get horribly sick whizzing along at high speed? And, if all goes well, it’s possible that the 8km Hyperloop proof-of-concept will be able to accept passengers by 2018.

Source: Ars Technica