How Japan's maglev train would handle the world's most epic journeys
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Version 0 of 1. How quickly could you cover some of the world’s most epic journeys if trains were capable of the record-breaking 603km/h (374mph) speeds that the Central Japan Railway train can do? Related: Japan's maglev train breaks world speed record with 600km/h test run Maglev – short for “magnetic levitation” – train lines through Russia, the US or Africa would make some rail journeys almost as fast as flying – with greater comfort and a better chance of a good night’s sleep. Moscow to Vladivostok – 15 hours It’s the 9,289km (5,771-mile) Trans-Siberian journey that takes seven-and-a-half days on one of the greatest engineering achievements of the 19th century. If you travelled by maglev, you could go the length of Mother Russia in just over 15 hours, starting with black coffee in Europe at 7am and arriving in time for a vodka in the Far East at 10pm. New York to Los Angeles – 7 hours 45 mins The meandering 41-hour drive from east to west coast takes you past Lake Michigan, skirting Death Valley and through Las Vegas – and through an awful lot of farmland. It’d take you just an afternoon to do it by maglev. Sydney to Perth – 7 hours 20 mins You can do this epic journey by travelling via Adelaide on the Indian Pacific train, travelling from Wednesday until Saturday afternoon. A maglev would whizz you along the Great Australian Bight to cross the country in a tenth of the time. Land’s End to John o’Groats – 90 mins OK, there’s no train station at either of those British spots, but bear with me. You can travel by train from Penzance in Cornwall to Wick in the Scottish Highlands in just over 24 hours with a number of changes. Step on to a maglev and it would take 90 minutes. Cape Town to Cairo – 17 hours 30 mins What a dream railway journey – through South Africa, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Tanzania, Kenya, Ethiopia, Sudan and Egypt. Sadly, it doesn’t exist. By car it takes 156 hours (and we’re not sure Google Maps takes adequate account of road surfacing). But you could be at the Pyramids in under a day’s travel from Cape Point if someone built a 10,441km (6487-mile) maglev across the continent. |