One-fifth of global carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions are created by the transportation sector—with vehicles on roads being the largest contributor. But new technologies like tube transportation use low carbon energy, offering an opportunity to reduce the negative impact of moving goods and people. 

Because tube transportation is a new technology, no regulations or standards exist to ensure its safety or performance. This hampers uptake of this technology as companies are reluctant to invest in expensive, high-speed tube transportation projects without any assurance that they will get the necessary regulatory approvals. 

Although companies that build tube transportation systems can use existing standards intended for the aerospace, railway, nuclear and oil and gas industries, these standards do not cover all relevant areas. To address this gap, SCC partnered with TransPod Inc., a company that designs ultra-high-speed tube transportation systems. The result was a new National Workshop Agreement, CSA 2022-58: Tube Transportation. It identifies the specific standardization needs of tube transportation systems, such as safety, performance, emergency management, and accessibility.

This new agreement will allow innovators, like TransPod, to take a more proactive approach in order to mitigate project risk. It will also inform the development of future National Standards of Canada and help to ensure Canada is a future leader in the high-speed tube transportation sector.

“The most important thing is that SCC is open-minded and looks at the glass as half full. They understand the importance of having a framework to allow new technologies to be first on the market. It’s pretty rare to have those type of organizations.” – Sebastien Gendron, Co-Founder and CEO, Transpod Inc.