The Florida Hyperloop team is led by Miami-Dade Transit Director Alice Bravoand AECOM, an engineering firm, and has the backing of the Miami Dade Department of Transportation and Public Works. “It’s a vision — the Hyperloop team is working on it and testing it in the desert. But to actually get to that full vision to go from Orlando to Miami in 27 minutes, it’s still some development away from that. There’s land that has to be acquired,” Nepple said. “From Orlando, they want to go into Atlanta and Chicago for the next phases. Right now, their plan is the airport, but there hasn’t been any agreements with the airport with the Hyperloop station coming in.”
“Hyperloop could help move goods inland from the Port of Miami, freeing up space currently used for backland operations, container storage and trucking operations. New waterfront access means room for parks, recreation, marinas, commercial developments and residential complexes,” Nick Earle, Hyperloop One senior vice president for global field operations and marketing, previously said.
Brightline, currently operating in South Florida, will have a 240-mile, Miami-to-Orlando route connecting into the Orlando airport’s Intermodal Terminal Facility also built to accommodate SunRail commuter rail and some other future rail proposed to connect to the Orange County Convention Center.
“Hyperloop is a point and shoot from Point A to Point B. The competitors for Hyperloop are airlines. The short commuter routes are going to dry up if Hyperloop is in place,” Nepple said.
In the meantime, Brightline crews recently moved into the airport to work on its maintenance building and lay down tracks for the 2021 opening, while Hyperloop team is working on feasibility studies for other designated U.S. routes.
To understand how Hyperloop works, check out these quick videos: