Elon Musk claims government just 'verbally' approved something that would change US forever

Billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk said on Thursday that the U.S. government has approved a plan that would forever change how Americans travel.

The pioneer of private space exploration, Tesla founder and PayPal co-founder tweeted that he received "verbal" government approval to build a new "HyperLoop" underground train system that would take passengers from Washington, D.C., to New York City in a fraction of the time it takes now.

"Just received verbal govt approval for The Boring Company to build an underground NY-Phil-Balt-DC Hyperloop. NY-DC in 29 mins," Musk tweeted.

Just received verbal govt approval for The Boring Company to build an underground NY-Phil-Balt-DC Hyperloop. NY-DC in 29 mins.

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 20, 2017

Currently, the Amtrak train system connects the nation's capital to Baltimore, Philadelphia and on to New York City.

The 230-mile trip between Washington, D.C., and New York City currently takes around 3 hours on Amtrak's Acela Express. The jaunt takes just 55 minutes by plane, but then passengers have to account for travel to and from the airport in both D.C. and New York. While Washington's Reagan National Airport is just a few minutes south of the District, it can take up to one hour to get from the center of Manhattan to any one of New York City's three major airports: Newark, LaGuardia, or John F. Kennedy International Airport.

Musk said Thursday, however, that his HyperLoop system would transport passengers from "city center to city center."

Musk said there would also be "up to a dozen or more entry/exit elevators in each city," referring to both D.C. and New York City.

City center to city center in each case, with up to a dozen or more entry/exit elevators in each city

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 20, 2017

It's unclear as to who exactly in the government gave Musk the "verbal" approval for the project.

A White House official did not explicitly confirm Musk's tweet, but said that the administration has had "promising" conversations.

“We have had promising conversations to date, are committed to transformative infrastructure projects, and believe our greatest solutions have often come from the ingenuity and drive of the private sector," the official said.

While Musk claimed he received "verbal" approval, he still acknowledged there's a long way to go to make his dream a reality.

"Still a lot of work needed to receive formal approval, but am optimistic that will occur rapidly," Musk tweeted.

Still a lot of work needed to receive formal approval, but am optimistic that will occur rapidly

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 20, 2017

Musk has previously expressed interest in building a HyperLoop that he said would transport passengers from Los Angeles to San Francisco and another HyperLoop system in Texas, according to CNN.

(H/T: The Hill)

Editor's note: This post has been updated with a comment from a White House official.