A proposed route for a hyperloop connecting London, Manchester and Edinburgh (Virgin Hyperloop One) Navigating local laws and landowners in the UK is considerably more problematic than some of the other countries where hyperloops are under consideration. The stretch of desert between Abu Dhabi and Dubai in the United Arab Emirates is the place most likely to welcome the first commercial hyperloop, according to Richard Geddes, a professor of policy at Cornell University and co-founder of the Hyperloop Advanced Research Partnership. “Not only does the country boast vast wealth and a relatively flat landscape, the nature of the government means big projects can be implemented quickly and efficiently,” Professor Geddes told The Independent in 2018. “It’s not just hype. There’s too many smart people working on it and too much capital behind it for it to not be realised.” open image in gallery As two companies compete to complete the world's first commercial hyperloop, one stretch of desert holds the key to realising Elon Musk's vision for a new mode of transport Regardless of where and when we might see hyperloop networks in the future, Sunday’s test in the Nevada desert is a big milestone, particularly in terms of passenger safety. Neither passenger wore special clothing to travel in the pod or reported feeling sick, despite reaching speeds of 172kph (107mph) on the 15 second journey. “When we started in a garage over six years ago, the goal was simple: to transform the way people move,” said Josh Giegel, co-founder of Virgin Hyperloop and one of the first two people to take part in the test ride. “Today, we took one giant leap toward that ultimate dream, not only for me, but for all of us who are looking towards a moonshot right here on Earth.” This article was originally published in 2020 More about