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Thailand needs hyperloop, not China-built high-speed rail says Thanathorn
Thailand needs hyperloop, not China-built high-speed rail says Thanathorn
Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit
the tycoon turned politician who opposes Thailand’s ruling junta
has criticized and said in the interview in Bangkok.
the government's $5.6 billion high-speed rail project
with China
The China project
is the first part of a rail line that would eventually
run to Laos.
arguing that hyperloop technology
offers a more modern alternative
isn’t reliant on China
co-founder and leader of the newly formed Future Forward Party
According to the Future Forward Party leader.
An option such as
Richard Branson’s Virgin
Hyperloop One
which is working on building networks of pods traveling at airplane-like speeds
is better for Thailand as it would help the nation to be a technological leader
can create more local jobs
being environmentally friendlier
which uses magnetic levitation and low-pressure tubes
cheaper to build.
would also be part of a balancing act so that Thailand
according to its website.
is being tested in Nevada with speeds reaching 400kph
is planning three production systems
in service by 2021
co-founder and leader of the newly formed Future Forward Party
said
“If you invest in high-speed trains, all you do is import everything from abroad, whereas with the hyperloop there’s an opportunity to build the industry in Thailand if you move first,”
in an interview on Monday.
"Many people say that this is just a dream"
“But it’s our duty to propose new ideas. We need to dream big to get Thailand out of the middle-income trap."
The military government
in power since a coup more than four years ago
has prioritised high-speed rail under a 2 trillion baht transport action plan
it describes as the biggest such advance for Thailand in two decades.
Criticism of its policies
has begun to intensifyahead of a long-delayed general election now expected
in late February 2019
has focused on major transport projects
believing they will be a catalyst for investment and bolster the economy.
Future Forward
is one of a number of new parties formed ahead of the poll.
Sansern Kaewkamnerd
a government spokesman
couldn’t be immediately reached for comment.
A few firms and investors
have been ploughing money into the race for the first
working hyperloop system
since futurist billionaire Elon Musk first theorised a model in 2013.
Unlike bullet trains
the technology has yet to be deployed for everyday use.