Ultra-fast cargo system unveiled in Dubai

DUBAI: Dubai-based sea port company DP World and the British entrepreneur Richard Branson will develop an ultra-fast cargo transport network in Dubai but no construction timeline has been revealed.

DP World and Virgin Hyperloop One formed a new company, DP World Cargospeed, which will build a hyperloop system to transport goods globally at the speed of a jet. The announcement was made at the event held on the Queen Elizabeth 2 ship at Port Rashid, Dubai where Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum was chief guest.

He said, “The UAE is keen to be a leading player in shaping the future of the world. Being a pioneer means taking bold decisions that open the way for adopting innovative solutions. We have big aspirations because we have unlimited mindsets, and the confidence that we can achieve whatever we set our minds to.”

Hyperloop is a futuristic form of autonomous travel that uses magnetic levitation to propel pod-shaped vehicles through a steel or concrete tubes at speeds of up to 300m per second. The disruptive technology has the potential to revolutionise transport and trade, by moving goods and people around at the speed of flight at the cost of road travel.

According to Virgin Hyperloop One, the cargo routes will be developed in tandem with its passenger routes, meaning that the first working system will be operational by 2025 at the earliest.