In searching for ways to reduce crippling congestion on its highways, Colorado is looking beyond roads and traditional vehicles. State officials have announced the formation of a public/private partnership with Los Angeles startup Arrivo, an engineering company intent on building a hyperloop-inspired transportation system that runs along a track and can be used by both passengers and vehicles. Workers will begin constructing a test track for the next-generation technology near the E-470 tollway in Commerce City, in the Denver area, within a matter of months. Should it prove feasible, officials involved in the partnership say they intend to make further infrastructure investments that will enable commercial operations along at least one route within four to five years. Eventually, they envision an entire network throughout the greater Denver metropolitan region that is capable of carrying both cargo vehicles and passenger cars while whittling travel times that are measured in hours today to a matter of minutes.
?What it means is that the whole region could be connected within 20 minutes,? said Brogan BamBrogan, a former SpaceX engineer who co-founded Arrivo earlier this year. ?You can have dinner in Boulder and dessert in Golden. Or get from Castle Rock to the airport in 13 minutes. We connect to other forms of transportation, too, so really we want to unlock the whole region within 20 minutes or less. And with Denver seeing a massive population spike, it can enable mobilit...