After Bullet Train, Govt applies brakes on Pune-Mumbai Hyperloop project

Mumbai, India (Urban Transport News):  Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray-led Maharashtra government in a review meeting on Friday decided not to implement the proposed ultra highspeed Pune-Mumbai Hyperloop project. He said that undertaking a first-of-a-kind project of such magnitude could turn out to be a risky proposition at this juncture. "Hyperloops have never been constructed anywhere in the world until now, so let this be tried somewhere else before us. Once it is successful, then we can think of it," said Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar. However, he further clarified that his comment should not be viewed as a decision to scrap the project.

"It's just that we do not have the capacity to experiment with hyperloop technology. We will concentrate on other modes of transport and, in the meantime, if that technology develops more with successful trials abroad, we can think about it," he added. The US$10 billion Pune-Mumbai Hyperloop project was pushed by multi-billionaire Richard Branson's Virgin Hyperloop One Group which is the second high-budget initiative after the Mumbai-Ahmedabad High-Speed bullet train project. In October last year, Uddhav Thackeray-led Maharashtra government has indicated that it is more keen on addressing pressing issues such as farmer welfare and poverty alleviation than taking up such high-budget projects.

The previous BJP-led Devendra Fadnavis government had signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Virgin Hyperloop One (VHO) on India's first hyperloop transportation system, which aims to reduce travel time between Pune and Mumbai to just 35 minutes. In August 2019, The previous government had even granted infrastructure project status to the US$10 billion Hyperloop project, paving the way for fast-tracking land acquisition. However, the funding was to be provided by Virgin Hyperloop One itself and the government has to provide land only. To implement the Pune-Mumbai Hyperloop project, Pune Metropolitan Region Development Authority (PMRDA) had appointed a renowned audit firm PwC as a Project Management Consultant (PMC).