Washington D.C., Aug. 10, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Today, the United States Senate passed the $1.2 trillion bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act which includes provisions that will support further development and deployment of hyperloop. Under this legislation, hyperloop technology will now be eligible for federal funding.
“We applaud the bipartisan group of Senators and President Biden for their tireless work to advance the legislative process and bring a bill to the Senate floor, as well as Committee leaders who advocated to ensure hyperloop was part of this monumental legislation,” said Josh Giegel, CEO and Co-Founder of Virgin Hyperloop. “Hyperloop’s inclusion shows that we’re on the precipice of a new era that will change the way we think about mobility in this country. I hope the House of Representatives will expeditiously pass this legislation so that these additional avenues for investment in hyperloop’s successful deployment in the U.S. can become law.”
The landmark Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act allows hyperloop to compete for federal funding for US-based projects. This includes hyperloop eligibility for the Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements (CRISI) competitive grant program at the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) and the Advanced Technology Vehicle Manufacturing (ATVM) loan program at the Department of Energy.
The bill also codifies the Non-Traditional and Emerging Transportation Technology (NETT) Council at the US Department of Transportation (USDOT), so it can continue to support the prompt and safe deployment of innovative transportation technology.
Virgin Hyperloop has worked closely with the United States Congress and USDOT over the last two-and-a-half years to advance its technology and ensure that it is able to deploy hyperloop safely and quickly. 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.
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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.
