Virgin to build 35km Saudi hyperloop test track

Virgin 8535 Hyperloop One is working with Saudi Arabia’s Economic City Authority (ECA) to conduct a study to build a 35km test and certification track.

The company claims its technology can reduce travel times between cities: it says the trip from Riyadh to the Red Sea port of Jeddah would be slashed from 10 hours to 76 minutes, for example, with the Riyadh-Abu Dhabi route cut from 8.5 hours to 48 minutes.

The study will take place in King Abdullah Economic City (KAEC), located 100km north of Jeddah. It will also include the construction of an R&D development centre and manufacturing facility.

Mohanud A. Helal, secretary general of ECA, says:” Having Hyperloop at KAEC is going to act as a catalyst for a Saudi Silicon Valley effect and galvanise our software development, high technology research and manufacturing industries.”

As part of the project, the Prince Mohammad bin Salman College of Business and Entrepreneurship will publish an academic paper outlining the economic impact of a Hyperloop Centre of Excellence in KAEC. Additionally, experts from King Abdullah University of Science and Technology will visit the Virgin Hyperloop One testing facility in Nevada to conduct a technical review.