The hyrail project is a BIG IDEA that I’ve talked about before in March 2009. Justin Sutton with Interstate Traveler has come up with a grand idea for a disruptive maglev light rail system that is powered by solar and hydrogen that will change the way people travel forever.
This 200 mph Hyrail Hydrogen Superhighway is based upon elevated futuristic railautos that are propelled with two rails and supports (stanchion poles) to keep the rails aloft forming a “Y” shape. The elevated rail system will be built along side the current highway system so no additional land rights will be needed for this project.
This hyrail project, though futurist and grand in scope has already been approved by both House and Senate in the state of Michigan and it is anticipated this (magnetic levitation) maglev light rail system will create over 1 million jobs. Some of the different kinds of hyrail autos that will move along the tracks include passenger autos, freight autos, auto ferries and a mobile hospital unit that can be dispatched upon a moment’s notice.
Now, even though the hyrail autos are propelled by maglev motors and controlled through computers and a TCP/IP system (no conductors or drivers), the source of power for the system is solar and hydrogen. At the crux of the Y-shaped stanchion poles and rails is a square shaped tube (pictured) surrounded by 1-inch thick stainless steel and inside is a conduit cluster.
This conduit cluster can be filled with fiber optic and other telecommunications cables, and pipes to transport hydrogen and other gases, fuels for filing stations, sewage, water and power lines, to name a few uses. On the upper portion of the outside of this square tube are solar panels lined the length of the track.
The energy from these solar panels is fed back to utility substations (pictured) where water is electrolyzed to create hydrogen. The hydrogen is then run through a fuel cell to create electricity to feed back to the maglev trains. It is anticipated that more hydrogen than needed will be produced and electricity can be sold back to the traditional utility companies as needed.
As previously stated, another use of the conduit system is to transport hydrogen to fueling stations that will be part of the upcoming hydrogen highway system. Instead of building a separate hydrogen pipeline system throughout the country, H2 may be transported along all major highways in the U. S. and connect to nearby stations that support this new technology.
Because the Hydrogen Superhighway Hyrail system is so large, complex and robust of an idea, I don’t have the space for all of the details on this blog. Check out the links I have posted along with this that shows a 6 minute animation of the vision of this cutting edge transportation project.