World's Fastest Train on Track for Beijing-Shanghai Line

[brooklynite]

Source: Mass Transit

BEIJING: China finished laying the tracks for its most important and symbolic high-speed train line yesterday, linking capital Beijing to financial centre Shanghai. The 1,318km railway - about the distance between Singapore and Phuket - is slated to start ferrying passengers next October, a year ahead of schedule.

It is expected to hit a top speed of 380kmh (238 mph), slashing travelling time from the current 10 hours to just four.

By bridging the traditional divide between northern and southern China, the line has earned the tagline as 'crown jewel' of China's burgeoning high-speed rail network.

Operators are already bragging that they will run it at 500kmh during tests next March, breaking the 416.6kmh mark at pre-launch trials of the Shanghai-Hangzhou line in September.

Meanwhile, Amtrak's plan is that if they can find $117 Billion, they could achieve something like this in 30 years.



Read more: http://www.masstransitmag.com/publication/article.jsp?siteSection=3&id=12980

[KansDem]

1. "...they could achieve something like this in 30 years."

But the technology to scan train passengers for possible terrorists is here now!

[MBS]

2. Amtrak has to deal with things that China doesn't

CONSTANT BATTLE FOR FUNDING
a bizarrely,defiantly anti-train policy is an integral part of the Republican platform, at both the national and local level. With the surprising exception of Trent Lott, Repubs have fought Amtrak funding, and also all funding for light rail, every step of the way.
The new WI governor is so anti-train that he vows to rip up any tracks that are built in the newly approved (contract and everything) Milwaukee-Madison line. Their opposition is not even close to rational.

Sen. Kerry, who's consistently pushed for development of a high-speed rail system in the US, has noted, with utter frustration, how disgraceful it is that we're so behind in this area.
Really, it's just NUTS that we can't summon the political , BIPARTISAN will to make this happen. It's in our economic interest,and even in the interest of national security, in addition to the obvious environmental benefits.

CONSTANT BATTLE WITH THE FREIGHT LINES and commuter trains for track rights.
Amtrak, especially any dedicated high-speed rail line, really, really needs its own tracks. Yet it has to share its tracks with freight lines and commuter lines in most parts of the country. Freight trains are supposed to give Amtrak the right of way, but most of the time do not (that's the main reason for delays on long-distance Amtrak trains.
Lack of funding adds to the problem since Amtrak needs extra $$ to build dedicated tracks.
Amtrak trains would run much faster if they had control over their own tracks: it's the main thing inhibiting speed on the Acela; and a truly high-speed line can't be built without dedicated tracks.

[liberal N proud]

3. Amtrak will never have high speed

The conservatives and teabaggers who are against government along with their corporatist lobbyist will prevent the US from ever enjoying high speed rail.

[Posteritatis]

4. Not just them; there's no shortage of people here who hate the concept

And that's without getting into the ones who claim the US has some magical unique geography that makes it the only place on Earth passenger rail can't work.

[Lagomorph]

5. I checked it out on Google Earth....

in 3D mode. there is good flat terrain the entire distance. Looks like all they have to do is a little stabilizing and lay the track.

We certainly wouldn't be so fortunate going coast to coast in the US. Along the East coast it wouldn't be too bad, but along the west coast there is so much federal "do not touch" land, it would be hard to build a straight, flat track anywhere except California's central valley. The rest of the route would have to be short sections of straight flat track with tunnels and bridges between. The land along the coast is OK for old style "slow railroads" but re-engineering is gonna be hugely expensive.

[brooklynite]

6. You wouldn't build HSR Coast to Coast...

...it'll never be competitive with planes for that distance, and the passenger densities city to city wouldn't be high enough. Think NYC-Chicago in 3-4 hours or San Diego-Seattle in 6-7 hours as the outside limits

[AndyTiedye]

13. At Those Speeds, You Could Get Coast-to-Coast Overnight

An overnight coast-to-coast sleeper train would be a winner.
Sure, it's still slower than a jet, but far more comfortable.

[liberal N proud]

14. I would use it coast to coast

I would use it from here (Cleveland) to Chicago or here to Kansas City and beyond.

Leave the car at home and fuck the airplane.

[LostHighway]

7. ....and in 30 years the U.S. and China will likely be reversed in terms of status

And I wonder why. We're actively destroying our industrial base and making it harder for basic things like a functioning public transport system to exist while other countries are building up theirs.

[bongbong]

8. 30 years???

It won't be that long. Maybe 5-10 years.

[Vogon_Glory]

9. We Can't Do It; We'll Be Lucky to Keep Amtrak

Bravo for the Chinese (And the Japanese, and the French, the Spanish, the Germans, etc.) for building high-speed passenger rail lines. Too bad we can't build a high-speed rail line in this country.

Unfortunately, US passenger rail policy has been heavily influenced by anti-"big-gummint" yahoos (Subsidized by oil companies) who see such projects as "socialistic."

This last election bodes to be a severe setback for ANY sort of intercity passenger rail system, high-speed or conventional. Unfortunately, with the "TEA bag" mentality, the US will be lucky to keep Amtrak funded and even partially operating.

-----------

Welcome to the USA: home of the village idiots of the industrialized world.

:argh:

:dem:

[madrchsod]

10. it`s never going to happen in the usa

our country is to developed to lay high speed rail across the country. the best we can do is 100-300 miles between major cities.

[Ginto]

11. I imagine that the Chinese deal with eminent domain differently than we do.

We had our chance to do this 50 years ago. Now with population growth and building expansion in the US we will never see it.

[truthisfreedom]

12. I recently rode on the mag-lev high-speed train from Shanghai's airport to downtown...

It was a total rush seeing the overhead speed indicator shoot up to 300km/hr. Really a fun ride... cut my travel time from 45 min by taxi to just 15 short minutes racing through industry and wilderness.