Miami to Orlando in 26 minutes: A Hyperloop One finalist

The Hyperloop One could eventually come to Miami, creating a 26-minute route to Orlando, which would be a fraction of the four hours it would take to drive and less than half the hour it’d take to fly.

Of the 2,600 submissions in a global challenge from earlier in the year, among the 11 U.S. finalists is the Miami-to-Orlando route, notes The Verge.

The process works by using a linear electric motor to move an electromagnetically levitated pod through a tube at speeds up to 620 miles per hour with no turbulence. Hyperloop One’s Senior VP Nick Earle says they plan to select two or three of the 11 finalists for further study.

“The question is where are we going to get the most collaboration and willingness to work together to jointly define the regulatory framework,” Earle said. “Because we can design the product in our development to meet the regulations.”

One of those collaborators is Alice Bravo, director of public works for Miami-Dade County in Florida. Bravo is proposing a hyperloop between Orlando and Miami, which could be a huge boon, not only for moving freight from the busy Miami port but also tourists back and forth between Disney World and Miami Beach.

... Additional phases of the project could see the Florida hyperloop extend to Atlanta and then Chicago. “We think this is a corridor that could serve as a national stimulus,” Bravo said, “for this area of innovation and human capital intellect.”

There are also potential hyperloop routes being explored for six other countries.