Justification of $1 Million Per Mile Cost Estimates

A mile of "track" consists of all of the following elements: 

• Robotic in place manufacturing of track
• Support poles
• Exit lanes and merging lanes
• Stations
• Electrical power sources and controls
• Information network

Note: the SkyTran vehicles that ride trapped to the track themselves are not considered part of the track.  They are a separate costing item.

All prior estimates are being updated for the inclusion of the Inductrack passive MagLev technology and will be conditional on both our obtaining the license and the additional costs associated with payments for that license.

Earlier detailed cost estimates without Inductrack were showing that per mile costs would be about two thirds of a million dollars.  We always used the figure of $1 million to have a suitable contingency. 

We have invented several methods to accomplish passive all solid state electronic methods to have the SkyTran vehicles exit the main freeway and merge back onto the main 100 mph SkyTran freeway.  Mechanical switches, as used in old fashioned trains, is not acceptable for high speed, high capacity operations

Semi-automatic Track Fabrication: Initially, the track will be produced in short 30 foot sections at a small fabrication facility.  These sections will be taken to the site to be raised, attached and aligned individually.  As the demand for SkyTran systems grows, the company will invest in the development of mobile custom roll forming machines, capable of producing track continuously on-site.  These machines will be a key technological innovation to reducing total installed track costs to under $1 million per mile.  If such a machine seems a bit incredulous, read about Malewicki's other monster machine called Robosaurus which much more complicated and is now in its 10th successful year.

As shown above, these big machines will roll form track from raw coil stock on location, up in the air - attaching it to the support poles as it drives slowly along at .06 mph (1 foot every 10 seconds = 1 mile per 16 hours).  Computer controlled sheet metal shrinkers and stretchers will enable the track to be gradually curved and banked left or right, up or down as desired.  Once all the support poles are installed and aligned, two TRACK FORMER machines operating 16 hours per day will mean one mile of main two-way SkyTran freeway track can be completed per day!

(Each mile will also require one each exit lane and merging lane section plus one each station drop-down and climb-up track section.   These track sections and a series of thermal expansion slip joints will be pre-fabricated off-site.)