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Regardless of the merits of this argument, it's not relevant here. Musk didn't estimate the cost of the SF->LA hyperloop on the basis of "I have a unique abili

Regardless of the merits of this argument, it's not relevant here. Musk didn't estimate the cost of the SF->LA hyperloop on the basis of "I have a unique ability to lower the costs of this project." He estimated the cost as low based on the use of a preexisting right-of-way (mainly I-5), and needing an inherently narrower, lighter "track" than was envisioned for HSR. A hyperloop designed for freight would presumably be wider than what Musk envisioned for the passenger-focused LA/SF route, and in some routes would involve either purchasing or repurposing rights of way.

dnautics 13y ago
> Musk didn't estimate the cost of the SF->LA hyperloop on the basis of "I have a unique ability to lower the costs of this project." No, but he didn't bother to explicitly explain why the CHSR is expensive, he just gave their figure (which is almost certainly an underestimate). For example, unwritten went the parts about not servicing cities where there is less demand (mostly a political play by CHSR).... There won't be a hyperloop designed for freight - most freight runs perfectly fine on existing rail lines. Part of the reason why passenger rail in the US sucks is that it shares lines with freight the safety standards for freight are more lax, for obvious reasons, and the speed tolerances lower, so passenger rail is restricted to lower speeds on freight lines, then amtrak has to make exorbitant payouts to rent-seekers like BNSF and Norfolk Southern (the most egregious of them, IIRC) just to rent back that right of way.
- dnautics 13y ago
  for example, the Dianne Feinstein's husband's company chairs (CBRE) was awarded the contract for construction of segments of CHSR.
  - rayiner 13y ago
    He's on the board of directors of CBRE. Also, CBRE is the preeminent commercial real estate company in the world. I'd be amazed if you could accomplish a project of that magnitude without involving that company at some level.
    - dnautics 13y ago
      I actually made a mistake - it wasn't CBRE that won the award, but rather a company called "Tutor-Perini", which Richard Blum is the chairman of the board for. There's all sorts of fishy things going on: http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2013/Apr/21/tp-high-speed-rail-agency-changed-bid-criteria/ http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2013/Apr/21/tp-high-speed-rai...

dnautics 13y ago

> Musk didn't estimate the cost of the SF->LA hyperloop on the basis of "I have a unique ability to lower the costs of this project." No, but he didn't bother to explicitly explain why the CHSR is expensive, he just gave their figure (which is almost certainly an underestimate). For example, unwritten went the parts about not servicing cities where there is less demand (mostly a political play by CHSR).... There won't be a hyperloop designed for freight - most freight runs perfectly fine on existing rail lines. Part of the reason why passenger rail in the US sucks is that it shares lines with freight the safety standards for freight are more lax, for obvious reasons, and the speed tolerances lower, so passenger rail is restricted to lower speeds on freight lines, then amtrak has to make exorbitant payouts to rent-seekers like BNSF and Norfolk Southern (the most egregious of them, IIRC) just to rent back that right of way.

dnautics 13y ago
for example, the Dianne Feinstein's husband's company chairs (CBRE) was awarded the contract for construction of segments of CHSR.
- rayiner 13y ago
  He's on the board of directors of CBRE. Also, CBRE is the preeminent commercial real estate company in the world. I'd be amazed if you could accomplish a project of that magnitude without involving that company at some level.
  - dnautics 13y ago
    I actually made a mistake - it wasn't CBRE that won the award, but rather a company called "Tutor-Perini", which Richard Blum is the chairman of the board for. There's all sorts of fishy things going on: http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2013/Apr/21/tp-high-speed-rail-agency-changed-bid-criteria/ http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2013/Apr/21/tp-high-speed-rai...