The US-based Hyperloop Transportation Technologies (HyperloopTT) has signed an agreement with Aldar Properties PJSC, one of the leading real estate developers in Abu Dhabi, to build a Hyperloop system, Hyperloop XO Square Innovation Centre and a Hyperloop Visitor Centre
Located in Aldar?s Seih Al Sdeirah landbank in Abu Dhabi, the construction site is situated on the border Abu Dhabi and Dubai, close to the Expo 2020 site and Al Maktoum International Airport.
The construction will be done in several phases starting within the 10km allocation, with further development aimed at creating a commercial Hyperloop network across the emirates and beyond, said the company.
Speaking to the press about the construction agreement, Bibop Gresta, chairman of HyperloopTT, said, ?This agreement creates the basis for the first commercial Hyperloop system in the world here in the emirates, with the goal of eventually connecting Abu Dhabi to Al Ain, Dubai, and Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.?
?A forward-thinking nation like the UAE is ideal for building the most revolutionary, most efficient and fastest transportation system in the world,? said Dirk Ahlborn, CEO of HyperloopTT.
?With regulatory support, we hope the first section will be operational in time for Expo 2020,? Gresta added.
Talal Al Dhiyebi, CEO at Aldar Properties, commented, ?Alghadeer sits at such a strategic point within the UAE ? close to major growth areas of both Abu Dhabi and Dubai, that it makes sense to pair it with rapid transport opportunities.?
According to him, the agreement is expected to have a major positive impact on the lives of the residents in the region.
Earlier this month HyperloopTT began construction of the first full-scale passenger and freight prototype system in Toulouse, France. The company expects delivery of the first passenger capsule by the end of 2018. The capsule will be assembled and optimised in Toulouse, France, prior to use in the emirates.
In 2016, Abu Dhabi signed the UAE?s second hyperloop feasibility study to build a futuristic high-speed transport system connecting the cities of Abu Dhabi and Al Ain.
