Social Good Engineering Magazine: GineersNow Social Innovation GineersNow Engineering Magazine Issue No. 001 | Page 93

RAILWAY How About Riding a Train From the Sky? Hyper Speed Vertical Train Hub T he space that the train stations occupy has always been a big is- sue. Two London-based design- ers, Christopher Christophi and Lucas Mazarrasa, finally thought of a solution to this big-time trouble. The two have proposed the cre- ation of the ‘Hyper Speed Vertical Train Hub’, a towering skyscraper that could dock trains vertically around the circum- ference of the building. However, the idea has been shared for eVolo magazine’s 2014 skyscraper design competition. This could be highly functional though. The two designers aim at re- ducing CO2 emissions, increasing energy security and replacing the existing key major train stations in cities around the world, including London, New York and Madrid. The vertical design, as suggested, can greatly reduce the volume needed to store trains when not in transit, and will Photo Source: The Longest Stay 93 by Hina Sapra also remove them from the subterranean infrastructure. The idea is really helpful for older cities with weaker roads and building foundations, as well as cities built near the water, with a limited ability to move deeper underground. There would also be an additional room for parks, shops, or homes. The vertical design supports the idea of having travelers enter the building and ascend directly to their car- riage on elevators that only stop at their destination floor, and board through the platform. This design reduces the heavy passenger load, which otherwise is crowded at train doors and station entry points. The trains would work via ‘maglev’, or ‘magnetic levitation’. The method is already popular in high-speed transits. The method uses magnetic force to power trains as well as floats them slightly off of the track. It also increas- es the velocity at the same time as it decreases friction. It has been estimated that the train could cover 300 miles in 30 minutes, an average speed of 600 miles per hour. What an escalating idea, isn’t it?