Shanghai spent $1.25 billion to build the world's fastest train, but residents would rather take the bus

[w¡n9Nµ7 §£@¥€r 123]

Aug. 1 (Bloomberg) -- Shanghai spent $1.25 billion building the world's fastest train to the city's Pudong International Airport. Cindy Huang would rather catch a bus.

The 50 yuan ($6.60) train fare is too costly for most Shanghainese, says Huang, a human resources officer. The magnetic-levitation, or maglev, line also terminates in Pudong's suburbs, 12 kilometers from downtown, meaning most travelers must get other transportation to reach their final destinations.

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The project has been plagued by ridership that is less than a quarter of what was expected, protests by residents concerned about radiation and construction costs twice those of other high-speed trains.

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"It's the last chance to convince the rest of the world that the maglev is an interesting system,'' he says. ``If it's not realized in China, that may be the end.''

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Unlike traditional trains, maglev models lack wheels and rails. They hover about a centimeter above their tracks, held and propelled by electromagnetic forces.

The first commercial maglev line opened in 1984 and covered 600 meters from the U.K.'s Birmingham International Airport to a railway station. It closed in 1995 after becoming unreliable.

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=206...p;refer=germany

[Heracles 417]

At least they're investing in the nation.

Since launching amtrak is yet to make a profit. Plus it is extremely expensive. Which is a joke considering it is rail based transportation.

[Ban Hammer 14,569]

sounds like the planners of this didn't do their research.....

[w¡n9Nµ7 §£@¥€r 123]

sounds like the planners of this didn't do their research.....

I don't think it's easy to project ridership levels. NJ Transit has commissioned a bunch of studies into what they're calling the "Monmount-Ocean-Middlesex" train line and 3 studies have come up with 3 widely divergent ridership projections. In a way, a project like this has some element of "build it and they will come", and that makes it even more difficult, because "how many will come and when" depends on a number of external factors like interest rates, green acre laws, building permits, etc etc etc.

[Dan J 277]

At least they're investing in the nation.

Since launching amtrak is yet to make a profit. Plus it is extremely expensive. Which is a joke considering it is rail based transportation.

Not all trains are bad. Minneapolis recently installed a light rail system that goes from Mall of America, by the airport and into Downtown. Ridership on the train has been much higher than what they expected. Now there are plans in the works for more trains on some of the really busy routes.

[Heracles 417]

At least they're investing in the nation.

Since launching amtrak is yet to make a profit. Plus it is extremely expensive. Which is a joke considering it is rail based transportation.

Not all trains are bad. Minneapolis recently installed a light rail system that goes from Mall of America, by the airport and into Downtown. Ridership on the train has been much higher than what they expected. Now there are plans in the works for more trains on some of the really busy routes.

While it is a start a lot more needs to be done. When it comes to stuff like maglev trains most Americans would be like mag_whaaaaaaaaaaaaatttttt...

A trip, for example, which would cost $55 in Europe costs about $300 on Amtrak.

[Schuller 0]

The culture in Shanghai tends to be a little showy. From the super expensive shops like Hermes/LV/Gucci to the beautiful decorations in all mid-priced restaurants/hotels, this MaglevTrain is just another flashy addition.

The only reason it is still running is so Shanghai can proudly boast they have the only operational MagLev in the world. I think this might have been their position from it's inception, since I think Germany and Japan both demonstrated that this type of train wasn't very practical. Better alternative is the wheeled high-speed train that uses traditional tracks and a low profile design, which China just started using (at least around Shanghai) earlier this year.

China has a most impressive public transportation system, that probably exceeds most of what is found in Europe and of course unquestionably better than the US public transportation system.

Nonetheless... the MagLev is really impressive ride . Anyone going to the Pudong Airport should try it once.

[Saddle Bronc 124]

At least they're investing in the nation.

Since launching amtrak is yet to make a profit. Plus it is extremely expensive. Which is a joke considering it is rail based transportation.

Not all trains are bad. Minneapolis recently installed a light rail system that goes from Mall of America, by the airport and into Downtown. Ridership on the train has been much higher than what they expected. Now there are plans in the works for more trains on some of the really busy routes.

While it is a start a lot more needs to be done. When it comes to stuff like maglev trains most Americans would be like mag_whaaaaaaaaaaaaatttttt...

A trip, for example, which would cost $55 in Europe costs about $300 on Amtrak.

Due especially to the sheer size of the US, Amtrak has another competitor (at least since 1945)--the AIRLINES.

Unfortunately, the fares of Amtrak roughly matching those of airlines for one-way journey (a fixed-jaw short return is oft cheaper than this) only adds insult to injury.

I checked the price of Amtrak from Union DC to Penn NYC, and it's about $200 (one way)--and I can get a 32-180 day return fare DCA-JFK for about the same.

Edited October 20, 2007 by CherryXS