Australian government urged to look at Tesla's Hyperloop for housing affordability solution

A parliamentary committee has called on the federal government to look closer at high-speed rail as a way of unlocking more affordable housing in Australia.

Liberal MP and chair John Alexander, tabling a report in parliament on Tuesday, said vision and innovation needed to replace “debilitating” political arguments.

A plan was needed to relieve the country’s major cities of the burden of growth and that could be achieved through faster transport to urban areas.

The group of coalition, Labor MPs and an independent recommended the government examine ways to promote decentralisation, seek proposals for a high-speed rail network and investigate options for private funding through value capture.

It also suggested the government, in conjunction with the states and territories, keep an eye on the development of Hyperloop – a supersonic transport system – and, when appropriate, assess its feasibility.

“This plan of urban renewal and decentralisation, facilitated by strategic planning of infrastructure, will deliver an abundant affordable housing supply for generations to come,” Mr Alexander said.

The current XPT rail link between Sydney and Melbourne – which the fourth busiest flight route in the world – takes around 11 hours.

High speed rail has been floated as an infrastructure project in Australia since the early 1980s, with the prospect of decreasing commute times, decentralising the working population and developing regional centres all proving enticing.

A high-speed train travelling at 350 kilometres an house would take three hours from Sydney to Melbourne.

Alternatively a journey between the two cities on a Hyperloop system could apparently be as quick as 50 minutes.

Developed by the Hyperloop One company in Los Angeles and originally conceived by inventor and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, the full Hyperloop concept is due to be tested in the first quarter of this year.

The system would be have pods floating in reduced-pressure tube on an air cushion, using magnets, rather than traditional carriages, dramatically cutting down on travel time. 

With Nicole Frost