Gadkari invites Tesla to test run 1,100-km/hr Hyperloop on Mumbai-Pune Expressway

Minister claims distance between Mumbai and Nagpur can be covered in flat 35 minutes

Travel time between Mumbai and Maharashtra's second capital Nagpur can be reduced to a flat 35 minutes on the Hyperloop, a superfast mode of travel envisioned by Tesla and SpaceX founder Elon Musk. Union minister of roads, highways, ports and shipping, Nitin Gadkari, said on Tuesday that he had already held a meeting with Musk and senior officials from Tesla in the US and in New Delhi, and suggested that they explore opportunities in India for the deployment of the Hyperloop, an above-ground tube with very low air pressure inside, which allows bus-sized capsules to travel within it at near supersonic speeds.

Speaking on the sidelines of an infrastructure summit in Mumbai, Gadkari said the Hyperloop can operate at a top speed of 1,120 km per hour, which will help to cover the distance between Mumbai and Nagpur in 35 minutes flat. The minister said Tesla has been invited to run the Hyperloop on an experimental basis on the Mumbai-Pune expressway, and has also been offered free land near the port to start a manufacturing facility. ''It is up to Tesla to decide whether or not to accept my offer,'' he said.

However, Gadkari said Tesla's technology will be useful to address issues of traffic congestion and pollution. He mentioned that his ministry's desire to promote Tesla venture in the wake of a slew of decisions to promote green fuel-based transportation system. The Dhaula Kuan to Manesar matrino electric (cable car facility) will be launched.

''I strongly feel that mass rapid transport on run on electricity is our future. Therefore, first priority is to waterways, second to railways and third to roads,'' he said.

Meanwhile, Gadkari said his ministry has prepared an automobile scrapping policy that has received the finance ministry's nod with some suggestions. ''We will soon seek the approval from the PMO, the cabinet and also the GST Council as stakeholders will be state governments. We will finalise the policy. This is being prepared as India has agreed to adhere to Euro VI norms by 2020,'' he added.

He informed that the special economic zone or industrial cluster can be developed near Kandla port where the auto waste from across the globe can be unloaded to produce auto parts. ''This can reduce the cost by 50 per cent as the cost of raw material will be very less. Besides, every new vehicle one purchases he or she will get some concession from the manufacturer, state government and the centre as there could be saving of at least Rs 3.50 lakh per vehicle,'' he said.