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Wednesday, June 5th, 2019

China Says Its New Bullet Train Will Hit 373 mph

Author:     David Grossman
Source:     Popular Mechanics
Publication Date:     May 24, 2019
 Link: China Says Its New Bullet Train Will Hit 373 mph
Stephan:   Here is an update on the Chinese highspeed train project I have been following, and reporting on, for some time. As you read this bear in mind that the average speed for a passenger train in the U.S. is 59 mph, significantly less than the automobile speed on an interstate highway. The Chinese and the Japanese have railroad technologies so far advanced over that of the United States, that America is not even a competitor. While they, particularly the Chinese, are building rail systems all over Asia and, now, Europe, there is no international market for American made trains.  In the U.S. itself the average age of a passenger rail car in 2018 was 19.6 years. Think about what that all means in terms of jobs.

Chinese 373 mph train
Credit: Popular Mechanics

A state-owned rail company in China has built the prototype for a blazingly fast maglev train. The new prototype, built by the China Railway Rolling Stock Corporation (CRRC), is being designed to carry passengers at 373 mph (600 km/h). China hopes the train will be serving passengers in 2021.

“Take Beijing to Shanghai as an example — counting preparation time for the journey, it takes about 4.5 hours by plane, about 5.5 hours by high-speed rail, and [would only take] about 3.5 hours with [the new] high-speed maglev,” said CRRC deputy chief engineer Ding Sansan, head of the train’s research and development team, in a statement to CNN.

The prototype has been in development for around three years, Ding says. His team feels they have created a lightweight and high-strength train body that will serve as a testing foundation for five more prototypes after this one. To compliment and serve the progress Ding’s team is making, CRRC Qingdao Sifang, a subsidiary of the […]

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