Authorities do not count on the new form of transportation, but the company does not give up.
The Slovak government is no longer cooperating with the American company Hyperloop Transportation Technologies (HTT), which was interested in building Hyperloop – a new transportation system promising speeds up to 1,200 km/h in Slovakia. This was confirmed by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister of the Slovak Republic for Investments and Informatics, which is headed by Richard Raši.
In June , HTT’s chief Dirk Ahlborn told Živé.sk that the company had carried out a feasibility study which was the subject of a memorandum signed in March 2016 . Reportedly waiting for the statement of the Slovak side.
“We only have a visualization presentation from HTT. Although HTT has presented visualizations in several forums around the world, it didn’t give definitive answers to the questions from the professional community and that is why we have serious doubts about the feasibility of the concept as such, ”said the Office of Investments and Informatics.
According to Dirk Ahlborn, due to a change in the political map of Slovakia, the company decided to once again present the research project to the government. Awaiting a formal response.
Hyperloop is promised in Ukraine
One of the reasons why the “Slovak Hyperloop” could not move further was, according to Ahlborn, the inability to find suitable land. The office confirmed this, but also added that the company changed investment plans and corresponding requirements for the Slovak side several times.
The feasibility study was also to be carried out by HTT in the neighboring Czech Republic. It signed a memorandum with the city of Brno , a possible route included Prague, Brno and Bratislava.
In the future, the Slovak project should also include connections to Budapest and Vienna. However, HTT did not ultimately reach an agreement with Austria.
Ahlborn told Zive.sk that the company will finish its transport capsule in July or August. At the same time, it is building its first test track in Toulouse, France. Another test complex is to grow in the Chinese province of Guizhou .
The Czech Republic and Slovakia are not the only countries in the area that have already contacted HTT. The company recently introduced the vision of the first commercial Hyperloop in Europe in neighboring Ukraine.
