Freight & Hyperloop Should Get Hitched & Have a Baby Named 'HyperFreight'.
Chris Facey
20+ years Domestic LTL & Expedited Freight Specialist | 100,000+ successful shipments | Worked with 480+ businesses in my current role.
There are a lot of reasons the freight industry, in my opinion, will become heavily dependent on hyperloop (or just tunnels) infrastructure whenever it becomes available. I've written about it before and I want you to see the light ☀️😎. Today seems apropos due to east coast Winter Storm Avery, which will wreak havic on the freight world's linehaul and transit times.
There's nothing we can do to keep surface roads from getting sloppy and spoiling local P&D operations. In fact, my theory is that local/regional P&D operations have to become an order of magnitude stronger and more efficient because of hyperlooped freight. It's what happens after consolidation at a local P&D hub that changes everything.
Currently, linehaul (LTL) is bound by drivers available to haul it and by the available space on the trailers being hauled. Those trailers make their way across the country on surface roads subject to traffic, construction and weather via the chosen carrier's network of Distribution Centers. The hub & spoke system is an elegant, if simple, solution.
But, what a hyperloop infrastructure can do that neither surface (nor air) transportation can is operate at full linehaul capacity during weather events. Add to this, linehaul in a tunnel moves faster, at scale and more efficiently (like rail but sped up 10x) and it's just the way it should be done...good for the goose AND the gander. Driver shortage suddenly eases up and with it road congestion.
Just the pesky little problems with land rights, digging tunnels, connecting them, local/state/federal regulations, transfer centers, pylon strength, etc. The list goes on. It's a long way off but seeing as these are all solvable problems I would bet the farm (if I had one) this is the way it will go at some point.
