Japanese rail company to build $45 billion MagLev train

In the United States we've squandered hundreds of billions of dollars in the last five years. Our political "leaders" bicker over fuel economy rules that ultimately still won't get us to where most of the world already is today. Meanwhile the rest of the world is racing ahead, developing technologies that will provide real transportation alternatives. Japan and Europe have long had trains that go well over 200mph. The Japanese are now preparing to step up to the next level. The Central Japan Railway Co. is preparing to build a 290km magnetically levitated (maglev) train line between Tokyo and central Japan. The target speed for the train is 310 mph. Central Japan Railway has a maglev test train that ran 361 mph in 2003. The company is now planning to move ahead with the project in spite of not getting any government subsidies.

[Source: AFP]