Senate Committee Passes Infrastructure Bill Supporting the Continued Development of Hyperloop

Virgin Hyperloop Applauds Infrastructure Bill as the United States Looks to Invest in Transportation

WASHINGTON DC, June 16, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Today, the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee passed S. 2016, the Surface Transportation Investment Act, which includes multiple provisions that will allow the continued development of hyperloop in the United States, with bipartisan support.

“We applaud Chairwoman Maria Cantwell (D-WA), Ranking Member Roger Wicker (R-MS), and all the Members of the Committee for their inclusion of provisions that will further the advancement and growth of the hyperloop industry,” said Sir Richard Branson, Founder of the Virgin Group. “This is an important step to bringing hyperloop travel to Americans across the country.”

The bill includes a provision that would codify the Non-Traditional and Emerging Transportation Technology (NETT) Council at the Department of Transportation (DOT) to ensure DOT can continue to support the prompt and safe deployment of innovative transportation technology and language that makes hyperloop projects eligible for Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements (CRISI) grants. These provisions highlight Congress’s commitment to investing in transportation technology of the future to reduce carbon emissions and change the way people travel.

“We are deeply grateful for the bicameral, bipartisan support from Members of Congress for helping the United States become the leader in hyperloop technology. We are excited to continue working with Congress to ensure that our transportation network is working for all Americans,” said Josh Giegel, CEO and Co-Founder of Virgin Hyperloop.

Virgin Hyperloop has worked closely with Congress and the Administration over the last two years to advance its technology and ensure that it can deploy hyperloop safely and quickly across the United States. Last summer, DOT issued guidance that said hyperloop is subject to the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) safety jurisdiction and provided a regulatory framework for hyperloop.

About Virgin Hyperloop

Virgin Hyperloop is the only company in the world that has successfully tested hyperloop technology with passengers, launching the first new mode of mass transportation in over 100 years. The company successfully operated an occupied hyperloop vehicle using electric propulsion and electromagnetic levitation under near-vacuum conditions, realizing a fundamentally new form of transportation that is faster, safer, cheaper, and more sustainable than existing modes. The company is now working with governments, partners, and investors around the world to make hyperloop a reality in years, not decades. Learn more about Virgin Hyperloop's technology, vision, and ongoing projects here.

About Virgin Hyperloop Technology

Hyperloop is a planned high-speed surface transportation system. Travel would occur within a low-pressure enclosure in a vehicle. This, along with Virgin Hyperloop’s proprietary magnetic levitation engine, would allow us to reach and maintain airline speeds with significantly less energy than other modes of transportation. Not only is hyperloop expected to be fast, but a high-capacity mass transit system, capable of comfortably moving people and goods at 670 miles per hour with 50,000 passengers per hour, per direction, on-demand and direct to your destination (meaning no stops along the way). That is the equivalent of a 30-lane highway.

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