Real Estate Investor Magazine South Africa Real Estate Investor Magazine - Dec/Jan 2018 | Page 28
COVER STORY
Rewriting the Future
Elon Musk’s Effect
on Property
VITALS
I
f Elon Musk’s vision is anything to go by, the way we live
in five years’ time will be unrecognisable. Known for his
fantastical ideas, the entrepreneur has big plans for the way
we interact with the world. At the centre of these is transport.
Hyperloop
Elon Musk brought the concept of the Hyperloop to the fore-
ground in 2013, when he released an open-source document
detailing the high-speed, long-distance transport system. Then
no more than a concept, the idea took flight in the subsequent
years, with several start-ups developing their own renditions of
the technology. In August of this year, Musk announced that
his company (The Boring Company) would begin developing
the project themselves. In a statement, the company states that
they “plan to build low-cost, fast-to-dig tunnels that will house
new high-speed transportation systems.”
The idea behind a Hyperloop was born from the need to
provide more efficient transport. While it may be too early
to speculate on its appearance in local cities, the goal isn't too
far removed from efforts around the country to provide more
reliable and sustainable transport solutions.
Traditional cities were designed, to a large extent, around
cars. With population growth and urbanisation on the rise,
it's the cities that have been hit the hardest. Traffic conges-
tion and pollution levels have soared. In the much-publicised
Tom-Tom traffic report (based on 2016 data), Cape Town was
reported to experience a congestion level of 35%. This is an
increase from the 25% measured in 2009. East London scored
a 29% congestion level, up from 16% in 2009. By contrast,
Recife in Brazil managed to lower its congestion levels from
45% (in 2009) to 37% in 2016.
Electric cars
Less radical, but no less interesting, the rise of electric cars
changed how cities operate. Cape Town’s MyCiTi recently
announced a pilot project in using battery-operated electric
buses.
According to a July 2017 article by Business Tech, popular-
ity of electric and hybrid cars are become increasingly rational
in resource-scarce South Africa. Fluctuating fuel prices, paired
with the clear environmental effects of conventional vehicles,
mean that alternatives are more important than ever. In reality,
however, we are unlikely to see the scale of change witnessed in
global community. This is due, in part, to a lacking infrastruc-
ture and oftentimes unreliable electricity supply.
Internationally, Tesla seems to lead the way on publicising
electric cars. The much-anticipated Model 3 went on sale ear-
lier this year, with a waiting list for deliveries spanning to at
least mid-2018. The company predicts that it will commence
production of right-hand drive vehicles from 2019 onwards.
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DECEMBER 2017/JANUARY 2018 SA Real Estate Investor Magazine
Born: 28 June, 1971 (Pretoria)
Best known for: SpaceX, Tesla
First software sale: Aged 12, he sells a game he
developed and coded himself
Education: Degrees in Economics and Physics
THE EFFECTS ON PROPERTY
Assuming we won’t be leaving for Mars within the
next few years (although Musk would argue this), it
seems our cities will continue to exist - albeit vastly
differently. The latest Knight Frank Global Cities
report investigated the effects of Musk’s innova-
tions on the city of tomorrow. Below are some of
the key points:
Parking
In a future where driverless cars can be rented out
to other commuters, parking won’t be an issue
anymore. This means that less land needs to be
used for, effectively, wasting space. The results
are far-reaching: imagine all the parking lots in
the CBD. Now, imagine that space being used for
actual things. From accommodation, to pedestrian
walkways, parks, or offices.
Solar energy
With SolarCity’s advances in solar and battery
power, it’s only a matter of time before solar panels
are visible (or rather, invisible) on all buildings. With
technology advancing, it has become possible to
produce solar panels that blend in with the build-
ing, creating a more aesthetically pleasing result.
Super commuting
Remember the hyper loop from before? Once
this becomes a reality, commutes will become
relatively irrelevant. As a result, residential areas
further from the CBD will become viable options
for professionals, business will move faster and
smoother, and we’ll have far fewer impatient and
exhausted people.