‘London to New York in 54 minutes’: Elon Musk’s wild plan for the fastest train ever
Produced by: Manoj Kumar
3,400-mile
A proposed 3,400-mile tunnel could transport passengers between London and New York in under an hour—faster than most city commutes!
Representative pic
4,800 km/h Speed
Using vacuum-sealed tubes and magnetic levitation (maglev) trains, friction would be nearly eliminated, allowing speeds over 3,000 mph (4,800 km/h).
Representative pic
Musk’s Claim
The project’s estimated price tag? $19 trillion. But Elon Musk’s Boring Company claims it could build the tunnel for 1,000 times less.
Representative pic
Sci-Fi Origins
The concept isn’t new—Michel Verne (son of Jules Verne) first imagined it in 1895, and later, engineer Robert Goddard patented early designs in the 1900s.
Representative pic
Tech Already Exists
China, Japan, and Germany already operate maglev trains, and low-vacuum transport systems—like those needed for the Transatlantic Tunnel—are being tested today.
Representative pic
Mid-Atlantic Nightmare
Building a tunnel under the volcanic Mid-Atlantic Ridge, where Earth’s crust is constantly shifting, would be an engineering nightmare.
Representative pic
Channel Tunnel
The 23.5-mile (38 km) Channel Tunnel cost £12 billion in today’s money and took 6 years to build. This tunnel would be 230 times longer!
Representative pic
Hyperloop’s Breakthroughs
Prototypes of vacuum-tube trains are already operational—China’s experimental T-Flight train recently hit 622 km/h (387 mph).
Representative pic
Future Reality?
While a London–NYC hyperloop is still theoretical, with advancements in tunneling and maglev tech, could it be closer than we think?
Representative pic