I'm impressed, but I'm afraid Hyperloop's operation is modeled after airplanes, while the actual use of the system would be closer to a city bus.
>All capsules would have direct radio contact with station operators in case of emergencies, allowing passengers to report any incident, to request help and
to receive assistance. In addition, all capsules would be fitted with first aid equipment
>Typical times between an emergency and access to a physician should be shorter than if an incident happened during airplane takeoff. In the case of the airplane, the route would need to be adjusted, other planes rerouted, runways cleared, airplane landed, taxi to a gate, and doors opened. An emergency in a Hyperloop capsule simply requires the system to complete the planned journey and meet emergency personnel at the destination.
What happens if a brawl erupts inside a capsule? What happens if a suicide bomber boards the Hyperloop?
What happens if a brawl erupts inside a moving bus or taxi?
What happens if a suicide bomber boards a train or bus?
What happens if a suicide bomber rents a car and crashes it into you as you walk along the sidewalk?
Rather than living in perpetual fear, you could try making the world a place where people who can't get food or work aren't trying to blow you up as a last resort?
Americans seem to be the most worried about suicide bombings out of anybody else, yet America has probably seen the least suicide bombings per capita of any country in the world. (yes, exaggeration)
I'm an advocate for not living in perpetual fear too, but I couldn't find specifics of how unexpected passenger behavior would be handled. Assuming it's as cheap and easy to operate as it seems, I really want the Hyperloop to succeed and be installed in as many metro areas as possible, but for the Hyperloop to succeed, it has to be resilient and not overly optimistic, and not assume everyone onboard will sit and stay still for the whole trip.
Humans don't always behave as they're expected to by the engineers of a system. That happens in software, happens in hardware, and in public transportation too.
[EDIT]
I think these paragraphs give an idea of how an incident would be handled:
>If a capsule were somehow to become stranded, capsules ahead would continue their journeys to the destination unaffected. Capsules behind the stranded one would be automatically instructed to deploy their emergency mechanical braking systems. Once all capsules behind the stranded capsule had been safely brought to rest, capsules would drive themselves to safety using small onboard electric motors to power deployed wheels.
>All capsules would be equipped with a reserve air supply great enough to ensure the safety of all passengers for a worst case scenario event.
>In the event of a large scale leak, pressure sensors located along the tube would automatically communicate with all capsules to deploy their emergency mechanical braking systems.
>Hyperloop would feature the same high level of security used at airports. However, the regular departure of Hyperloop capsules would result in a steadier and faster flow of passengers through security screening compared to
airports. Tubes located on pylons would limit access to the critical elements of the system. Multiple redundant power sources and vacuum pumps would limit the impact of any single element.
Americans seem to be the most worried about suicide bombings out of anybody else, yet America has probably seen the least suicide bombings per capita of any country in the world.
Not that I approve of many of the things we do to "prevent" them, but...
Perhaps worrying about preventing certain things sometimes actually helps reduce them?
I'd agree in some cases, but realistically there isn't much you can do against people using bombs to blow up bridges - or in this case, hyperloop pylons. It's just not something that you can 'design around'. Designing the pylons to survive if one is blown up? If someone can put a bomb on one pylon, he can put 5 bombs on 5 pylons. Or under 5 cars.
Spending your time trying to prevent that kind of thing is futile and an enormous waste of resources. See: TSA
Regarding suicide bombers: all pods are equipped with emergency brakes, and wheels as a (slow) backup transportation method. Life support on each pod is powered by redundant batteries. Capsule depressurization can be dealt with airplane-style, with oxygen masks, or by doing an emergency repressurization of the whole tube.
>In the event of a large scale leak, pressure sensors located along the tube
would automatically communicate with all capsules to deploy their emergency
mechanical braking systems.
Exactly. Best case, you'll kill 28 people. The other capsules will stop, and the hyperloop will be out of commission for awhile. Definitely not spectacular. They'd be better off attacking a more densely populated area. Much more hysteria...
>All capsules would have direct radio contact with station operators in case of emergencies, allowing passengers to report any incident, to request help and to receive assistance. In addition, all capsules would be fitted with first aid equipment
>Typical times between an emergency and access to a physician should be shorter than if an incident happened during airplane takeoff. In the case of the airplane, the route would need to be adjusted, other planes rerouted, runways cleared, airplane landed, taxi to a gate, and doors opened. An emergency in a Hyperloop capsule simply requires the system to complete the planned journey and meet emergency personnel at the destination.
What happens if a brawl erupts inside a capsule? What happens if a suicide bomber boards the Hyperloop?