The longest Hyperloop vacuum journey reported at a European test facility covered 11.8 km—but the capsule was a reduced-scale prototype, not a passenger vehicle. In a 2024 test at EPFL in Lausanne, it reached 40.7 km/h in a low-pressure tube. EPFL gives the results as equivalent to 141.6 km and 488.2 km/h at full scale; those are scaled equivalents, not distances or speeds achieved by a full-size train.
What was the longest Hyperloop vacuum journey in Europe?
On 5 November 2024, EPFL announced that teams from EPFL, the School of Business and Engineering Vaud (HEIG-VD), and Swisspod Technologies had completed what they described as the longest-ever vacuum capsule journey in Europe’s first operational Hyperloop test facility. The LIMITLESS project ran at EPFL in Lausanne. The reduced-scale capsule travelled 11.8 km, which EPFL says corresponds to 141.6 km at full scale. EPFL’s announcement reports 82 tests and a top speed of 40.7 km/h on the test system, equivalent to 488.2 km/h at full scale.
| Measure | EPFL-reported result | How to interpret it |
|---|---|---|
| Capsule journey | 11.8 km | Distance travelled by the reduced-scale capsule |
| Full-scale equivalent journey | 141.6 km | Scaled equivalent stated by EPFL, not a full-size journey |
| Top speed | 40.7 km/h | Speed on the reduced-scale system |
| Full-scale equivalent speed | 488.2 km/h | Scaled equivalent stated by EPFL, not a passenger-service speed |
| Test count | 82 | Tests conducted for the project |
Where and how was the test conducted?
The test took place in EPFL’s Lausanne facility, a circular closed-loop track measuring 40 cm in diameter and 125.6 m in circumference. EPFL describes the facility as a 1:12 reduced-scale version of the referenced full-scale concept. The team operated it at 50 millibars, a controlled low-pressure environment.
Because the capsule travelled around a loop, repeated laps accumulated into the reported 11.8 km journey even though the physical track is much shorter. The setup is intended for long-distance and long-duration reduced-scale testing, feasibility work, and lower-cost iteration. EPFLoop describes the broader concept as an electric capsule moving through a low-pressure tube, using magnetic levitation and linear electromagnetic motors. EPFLoop’s technology overview explains the system in those terms.
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What did the capsule demonstrate?
The milestone is meaningful as an integrated engineering test: the project combined propulsion, levitation, autonomous operation, and onboard energy management in a controlled low-pressure environment. EPFL says the capsule handled its navigation, energy supply, and propulsion autonomously; the facility did not transfer power to the vehicle.
EPFL professor Mario Paolone described the work as advancing understanding of high-speed electromagnetic propulsion and integrating levitation and propulsion into a single motor. That is evidence of subsystem integration on a reduced-scale platform—not proof that a passenger-ready vehicle, route, or operating system is ready.
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Was it a full-scale passenger test?
No. The capsule and test infrastructure were reduced-scale, and the recorded physical distance and speed were 11.8 km and 40.7 km/h. The 141.6 km and 488.2 km/h figures are EPFL’s full-scale equivalents; they do not mean a full-size capsule travelled that distance or reached that speed. Nor was this a commercial passenger journey.
The distinction matters because scaling a test result does not by itself validate full-size operation. The European Commission’s sector study says Hyperloop has not yet been tested over long distances, calls long-distance testing a crucial step toward commercialization, and notes that component technologies still need adaptation and validation before deployment. The European Commission’s Hyperloop sector page provides that broader context.
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Why use a closed-loop reduced-scale facility?
A loop lets a team run a capsule repeatedly without constructing a one-way test track matching the total distance of the journey. Swisspod CTO Cyril Dénéréaz said the closed-loop design allows the team to examine factors such as capsule energy efficiency and propulsion systems without an inherent track-length limit. The practical value is iteration: engineers can investigate how systems work together over sustained repeated operation before taking on the cost and complexity of larger-scale trials.
Swisspod CEO Denis Tudor said the company planned to begin testing a freight-transport product at a larger-scale facility it was building in the United States. That statement describes a planned next step, not evidence that the freight testing has since occurred or that the Lausanne capsule was freight or passenger-ready.
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What the record does—and does not—establish
- It establishes: a reduced-scale capsule completed a reported 11.8 km journey in EPFL’s low-pressure closed-loop facility, with autonomous navigation, onboard energy, propulsion, and levitation integrated in the test program.
- It does not establish: that a full-scale vehicle completed 141.6 km, that a passenger capsule reached 488.2 km/h, or that Hyperloop is ready for commercial passenger service.
- It cannot settle by itself: how a full-size system will perform over long distances, or whether its components will meet the requirements for real-world deployment. Those questions require validation beyond this reduced-scale demonstration.
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