HyperloopTT is building a 320-meter test track that will be complete by the end of 2018.

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HyperloopTT is building a 320-meter long hyperloop test track in Toulouse, France this year, with a second, 1 km long track coming in 2019.

Hyperloop has the potential to revolutionize travel for business and pleasure, radically cutting down the time and costs associated with domestic and international trips.

High-speed business travel via hyperloop is one step closer to becoming a reality for French professionals, as Hyperloop Transportation Technologies (HyperloopTT) announced that it will build a test track in France this year, with a larger track coming in 2019.

Hyperloop is a developing transportation technology that carries passengers or materials in pods through pressurized tubes or tunnels, and can potentially travel as quickly as 750 mph, radically cutting down travel time and costs. However, while the concept has been in development for years, no company has managed to turn it into a viable business, as reported by our sister site ZDNet.

As part of the announcement, HyperloopTT said that the first set of tubes designed to move both people and freight has arrived at their research and development center in Toulouse, France. The tubes have an interior diameter of 4 meters.

The first test track will be a closed, 320-meter system that will be operational by the end of 2018, according to a press release. A second full-scale system will be 1 km, elevated by pylons to a height of 5.8 meters, and will be finished in 2019, the release noted.

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"Five years ago we set out to solve transportation's most pressing problems; efficiency, comfort and speed. Today we take an important step forward to begin to achieve that goal," HyperloopTT CEO Dirk Ahlborn said in a press release. "Hyperloop is more than just displays of rapid acceleration and more than just breaking speed records. The real opportunity is to create an efficient and safe system with an unparalleled passenger experience."

A number of companies are now trying to bring the Hyperloop concept, originated by Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, to life. In December, Virgin Hyperloop One hit a new speed record of 240 mph. Hyperloop One already has a 500 meter-long DevLoop in the Nevada desert, with a diameter of 3.3 meters, ZDNet reported. SpaceX also has a hyperloop test track at its headquarters in California that is about one mile long and has a six-foot outer diameter, according to ZDNet.

If it comes to fruition in any form, Hyperloop has the potential to revolutionize transportation around the world. Its routes could radically cut down on the time and costs for business and other travelers to get from city to city and country to country: For example, routes include 30 minutes from San Francisco to Los Angeles, 50 minutes from London to Edinburgh, eight minutes from Helsinki to Tallinn, and 55 minutes from Melbourne to Sydney, according to TechRepublic's Nick Heath.

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