See them here. Pertinent now that President Obama plans one for the US.
This is not a high-speed train, but I thought I’d drop this in, since it does not deserve its own thread. I often make reference to the Skytrain, which is our elevated train. It’s just received praise here. It really did transform life to some extent when it began operations 9-1/2 years ago. Before that, getting anywhere and back inside Bangkok was often an all-day journey in itself. It’s cheap (40 baht, or US$1.14, maximum) and efficient.
Interesting slideshow! The only one I have personal experience with is Japan’s Shinkansen, which is really something-- even though it’s old enough that some of the trains (especially on the Tokaido line) are looking a little worn…
I believe the Car Talk guys a while back made the (only half tongue-in-cheek) proposal that the government bail out the US automakers ONLY on the condition that they pour all of their innovation into new high-speed rail systems.
The Skytrain is indeed quite nice, especially 1) being able to see stuff as you go by, and 2) getting a blast of arctic air every time you step on board. The MRT (Bangkok’s subway system) is also very good, and a bit newer than the Skytrain (it’s also virtually identical to the design of Singapore’s MRT, which was done by the same company).
I took a third-generation Intercity-Express from Brussels to Frankfurt a few years ago. The rated speed for that line is 300 kph, and the monitors said we were doing 296. (Got started a little late, I think the engineer was trying to make up time.) High-speed trains can’t go around sharp curves, and I don’t think the can go over sudden hillcrests, either. There was a series of short tunnels; all of a sudden the sound would change slightly and lights would go whizzing past the windows at 180 miles per hour. I was in the first car, so I could look through a glass partition and through the windshield. And I had a nice chat with a Canadian couple I was sitting near.
There have been a few long and exhausting Great Debates about the prospects of high-speed rail in the U.S. I don’t know when, how, or if we’ll ever have it, but I can say that it’s a very nice way to travel.
We’ve ridden one of those in the link, the Maglev. Took it to the airport when flying back from Shanghai. Very nice.
Here in England we will soon (well, in 214 days’ time) have our first proper high-speed services from Kent into London on the line that links St Pancras with the Channel Tunnel.
Some of the time savings will be marked: for example, the 59 mile journey from Ashford to London current takes, on average, 83 minutes but the high-speed trains will do it in just 37.
But because the high-speed trains will also operate on the existing network, for some people there will be no time saving at all. There will be a supplement for any journey that includes the high-speed line itself.
Many commuters in Kent are vehemently against the high-speed services, for various reasons which include (a) their fare increases have been on average 2% higher than the rest of the network since 2007 to pay for the new trains, which are being built by Hitachi in Japan (b) many will not benefit from any journey time savings © the high-speed services go to St Pancras in north London whereas Kent commuters generally want to be south of the river Thames.
When was that? They retired the original 0 series was retired last year, but it had been a long time since I ever saw one. The oldest trains you’re likely to ride nowadays is the 300 series, which isn’t all that old.
I was disappointed by the list as it didn’t have any real information to compare the various services. Also, it’s important to distinguish between lines and the trains that run on them. The Shinkansen refers to lines on which several different types of trains run, from the 0 series I mentioned above to the brand new N700 series. Technologically, they’re quite different beasts.
I once read somewhere that the recent Shinkansen trains were the most efficient means of transportation. The formula used the time and energy required to move a certain number of passengers a certain distance. I’ll try to see if I can find it. Certainly, the Shinkansen lines are the safest form of transportation. 45 years, 4.5 billion passengers, and only one accident, in 2004, caused by a large earthquake which resulted in 0 deaths and 0 injured. That’s a pretty good record.
I think the 500 series was the most amazing, even though its performance has been surpassed by newer trainsets. (More pictures in the Japanese version of the page.) Not the most comfortable though - I think it sacrificed interior space (ceiling height) for the sake of speed. But that is cool, in a way.
Heh, here in Austin, we can’t even get a regular little lite rail service working. It’s way over schedule, over budget, a management scandal, and now stalled due to safety violations. Makes me weep for the future.
And speaking of our low-speed-but-efficient Skytrain, one of the new extensions opens for service today (Friday). You can now ride it across the river to the Thonburi side. This is the first extension since the Skytrain began. Others are in the works.