Toronto-based TransPod, the startup founded in 2015 to build the world’s leading tube-transportation system called the TransPod Line, has unveiled the electric vehicle that will travel in it. The FluxJet is described as a hybrid between an aircraft and a train, traveling in the protected guideway at over 1000 km/h (620 mph)—faster than a jet and three times as fast as a high-speed train.

At TransPod’s event in Toronto, a scaled-down FluxJet was featured in a live demonstration showing its flight capabilities. The almost 1-t vehicle demonstrated a take-off, travel, and landing procedure within its guideway.

“All the hard work over the past few years has led to this milestone moment where talk is becoming a reality,” said Sebastien Gendron, Co-founder and CEO, TransPod. “The technology is proven, and we have the confidence of investors, governments, and partners to continue pushing forward to redefine transportation effectively.”

The FluxJet will operate exclusively on the TransPod Line in a networked system with stations in key locations and major cities featuring high-frequency departures designed to enable fast, affordable, and safe travel. Its performance is enabled by “technological leaps” in contactless power transmission and a new field of physics called veillance flux.

“This milestone is a major leap forward,” said Ryan Janzen, Co-founder and CTO, TransPod. “The FluxJet is a first for Canadian innovation and is the next great infrastructure project to be brought worldwide. The TransPod Line is being developed in collaboration with our partners in Europe, USA, and beyond including universities, research centers, the aerospace industry, architecture, railway, and construction partners.”

 

Demonstrating the concept

The demonstrator is a fully functional prototype that measures 5.5 m (18 ft) long and 1 m (3 ft) wide with 11 computers and 8 engines, mimicking the scale of the full-size FluxJet’s 25-m (82-ft) length and 3.25-m (10.7-ft) width.

The FluxJet unveiling was made possible with the support and collaboration of Dassault Systèmes, DHL Express, MaRS, Ikos Consulting, REC Architecture, SADE Engineering, and the Building Trades of Alberta and Canada’s Building Trades Unions.

“TransPod completely changes the game with ultra-high-speed, zero-emission passenger travel and freight transportation between major gateway cities,” said Yung Wu, CEO of MaRS Discovery District, one of North America’s largest urban innovation hubs. “It is time for bold action from our policymakers, investors, and operators to support the commercialization of made-in-Canada innovations like TransPod to win in the multi-trillion-dollar global innovation economy.”

In March, TransPod confirmed a new round of $550 million in financing and announced the next phase of an $18 billion infrastructure project to build a TransPod Line to connect the cities of Calgary and Edmonton in Alberta, Canada. Broughton Capital Group, in cooperation with China-East Resources Import & Export Co., agreed in principle to provide the financing and Master EPC (engineering, procurement, and construction) arrangement, respectively. Colliers Capital Markets, a subsidiary of Colliers International, acted as a financial advisor to TransPod.

“As the first and only company to confirm such finance for a multibillion-dollar tube-transportation infrastructure project, TransPod is proud of its commitment to driving growth in Alberta through true innovation and partnership,” said Gendron.

The company says that the project will create up to 140,000 jobs and add $19.2 billion to the region’s GDP throughout construction. Once the TransPod Line is in operation, it will cost passengers about 44% less than a plane ticket to travel the corridor and reduce CO2 emissions by 636,000 t (701,000 ton) per year.

 

How it works

The FluxJet pod is described as a plane without wings, the “aerospace vehicle” carrying passengers between cities at ultra-high speeds. The TransPod Line tube system that it travels in is designed to be a comfortable and rapid alternative to highway congestion. Aerodynamic and propulsion systems reduce friction levels to below those of trains, automobiles, and jets and carry passengers at a faster speed.

The TransPod Line differentiates itself from other vacuum-tube train systems by its low infrastructure and maintenance costs. The unique IP developed by TransPod is said to bring infrastructure costs comparable to current high-speed transportation systems, achieved through advanced vehicle technology paired with an optimized vacuum tube system.

The technology is designed to be compatible with renewable energies including solar generation supplemented by regional electrical grid connection link-ups.

The FluxJet is available in passenger or cargo versions. It can carry up to 54 passengers with 2 wheelchair spaces and 4 luggage racks in eco configuration, and 34 passengers in a business configuration. Payload capacity is up to 10 t (11 ton) of “sensitive” freight.

The TransPod station is designed to be an intermodal transit hub allowing passengers to quickly board their pod to their destination. Fast boarding gates are meant to erase the hassle of today’s airports, making trips substantially better and enabling a pod to leave the station every 80 s.

The FluxJet travels between urban stations at atmospheric pressure on low-speed FluxWay guideway sections.

The pod enters a high-speed zone via an airlock controlled by pumps and block valves, reducing the air pressure in the TransPod Line chamber. This allows the initiation of a high-speed sequence, with power pickup deploying through a contactless connection. The electrodes get power through plasma from the high-speed power rail. Four levitation engines deploy, and the flight-control system puts propulsion in primary thrust mode. The landing gear is retracted and the veillance flux system activates, with beams scanning the tube for real-time position adjustment.

 

Development plan

Preliminary construction work, including the environmental impact assessment, has begun.

The Alberta TransPod project is separated into phases.

The short-term phase, from now until 2024, will be focused on research and development, construction permits, environmental assessments, and land acquisitions. The medium-term (2023-2027) will see test track construction, high-speed tests, and certification.

The long-term goal starting in 2027 is the construction of a full inter-city line between Edmonton and Calgary.