All aboard! Japanese trains just got faster – new record set at 603 km/h

Hmmm … perhaps there will no longer be a need for short haul flights in the not too distant future. What with Japanese trains being able to travel at 600 km/h, who needs to go through the hassle of boarding a plane, which only goes a couple of hundred kilometres faster. From planes that can fly around the world purely on solar energy to trains zooming off at record speeds, what will we have next? Flying cars perhaps? Maybe the cartoon series The Jetsons was not too far off the mark with this idea! – Tracey Ruff

Kiyotaka Matsuda

(Bloomberg) — A record for the world’s fastest train has been set – at 603 kilometers per hour (375 miles per hour).

A magnetically levitating train operated by Central Japan Railway Co. making a test run is seen on an experimental track in Tsuru, Yamanashi Prefecture, in this photo taken by Kyodo April 21, 2015. Japan's experimental magnetically levitating train or maglev managed to break the new world speed record on Tuesday with a top speed of 603 kilometres (374 miles) per hour, Central Japan Railway, also known as JR Tokai said.   Mandatory credit REUTERS/Kyodo ATTENTION EDITORS - FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NOT FOR SALE FOR MARKETING OR ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS. THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. IT IS DISTRIBUTED, EXACTLY AS RECEIVED BY REUTERS, AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS. MANDATORY CREDIT. JAPAN OUT. NO COMMERCIAL OR EDITORIAL SALES IN JAPAN.  TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY.
A magnetically levitating train operated by Central Japan Railway Co. making a test run is seen on an experimental track in Tsuru, Yamanashi Prefecture, in this photo taken by Kyodo April 21, 2015. REUTERS/Kyodo

A Central Japan Railway Co. magnetic-levitation train traveled at the record-breaking speed in a test run within Yamanashi prefecture, beating the company’s own record of 590 kmph set last week. JR Central, as the company is also known, held the record since 2003, when its train hurtled at 581 kmph. At the record speed, a London-Paris journey would be over in about 50 minutes, less than a quarter of the current time.

The record-breaking run is part of the tests before JR Central can start commercial operations in 2027 on the Tokyo- Nagoya line, which it’s constructing at a cost of 5.52 trillion yen ($47 billion). Japan has been seeking to sell its high-speed train technology to the U.S. and previously had high-profile travelers such as then California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and transportation secretary Ray LaHood five years ago.

Japan is looking for an overseas customer for maglev technology as the country works toward opening its first major line. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has said the government may provide financing to support Central Japan Railway Co.’s bid to provide trains for a Washington-Baltimore line.

Magnetic-levitation trains, or Maglevs, rely on magnetic power to float the cars above ground, eliminating the friction of steel tracks. The trains start off running on wheels until they’re going fast enough for the magnets to kick in and create lift.

In August 2013, JR Central started resuming trials for the maglevs that will complement the Shinkansen bullet-train network, which was introduced in 1964 and where trains now go as fast as 320 kmph. The company spent five years building a 24- kilometer extension of a test track to send coaches as fast as 500 kmph, the speed at which commercial operations will take place.

At that speed, the maglevs will whisk passengers to Nagoya from Tokyo in as little as 40 minutes for the 286-kilometer journey, from as short as 95 minutes.

Worldwide, two maglev lines are already operating. In Shanghai, a train built with technology developed by Siemens AG and ThyssenKrupp AG whisks passengers along at 431 kmph from Pudong International Airport to the outskirts of the city’s financial district. A low-speed version called Linimo, with a top speed of 100 kmph, started operations on an 8.9 km track in Nagoya in 2005.

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