Country's first Hyperloop in AP: Amaravati to Vijayawada in 5 minutes

AP govt signs MoU; feasibility study to start in October

The Los Angeles-based Hyperloop Transportation Technologies (HTT) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Andhra Pradesh government to develop a ' superfast' short-distance transport facility between Vijayawada and the state's upcoming capital, Amaravati. 

The project will employ HTT's patented technology to bring down travel time to less than 5 minutes.

During the initial phase of the project, HTT will conduct a six-month long feasibility study from October. The firm will subsequently introduce its Hyperloop Transportation System for the first time in India as the project enters Phase 2. 

According to the state government, the project would take off from Amravati.

According to the Andhra Pradesh Economic Development Board (APEDB), the project could shape the future of transportation within the state. "By collaborating with Hyperloop, Amaravati is embracing a prototype for the mobility of tomorrow," said Krishna Kishore, the chief executive officer of APEDB.

HTT is among the few companies to offer the Hyperloop Transportation System that is based on magnetic levitation. Other than HTT, Tesla and the Elon Musk-owned Boring Company are actively involved in providing similar solutions.

While the Hyperloop technology was conceived to shorten travel time between locations that are far from each other, the state government has decided to use the technology for short distances at the initial stage.

"We are extremely delighted to have signed the MoU with the Andhra Pradesh government to bring Hyperloop technology to India," said Bibop Gresta, chairman and co-founder of HTT. 

The company will be partnering with the state government to build regulatory standards necessary for the safe and efficient operation of the technology in India. For this, HTT plans to take inputs from various local stakeholders as well.

HTT was co-founded by CEO Dirk Ahlbom and chairman Gesta in 2013 and has a large design and execution team consisting of more than 800 engineers, besides drawing support from 40 other corporate and university partners.