You know what type of propulsion system is needed...gravitomagnetic (the good ol' "anti-gravity" drive
). Get these systems up and running and you won't have to worry about expendable rocket stages, or throw weights of rockets, carrying capacities etc etc. You could lift 100 ton into orbit for about the same price as it weighs and it'd get there just as quick or quicker than by a rocket. And a lot safer too. You could lift 10,000 ton into orbit, if you wanted to. No rocket could ever do that. All we need is a reliable and powerful power source to power the drive system.
What's needed is for the engineers and scientists to stop stuffing around with what is essentially 900 year old technology and start to think beyond the box. Then push for the funding to make things happen.