Nation & World: Saturday, January 10, 2004
After $2.4 billion, Japan's maglev train has no clear future
By Kenji Hall
The Associated Press
TSURU, Japan — With a slight jerk and a high-pitched whine, the world's fastest train accelerates from a standstill so quickly that the excited passengers are pushed deep into their seats.
Reaching 310 mph takes less than 90 seconds for Japan's maglev train, which derives its name from its use of an electromagnetic cushion that supports and propels the train instead of wheels. Officials point to the high-tech showpiece as the future of mass transit.
But after four decades and $2.4 billion spent on research, the Japanese maglev has just one station, no ticket booths — and no clear future.
"We want to build the line as soon as possible," said Yutaka Osada, deputy chief of Central Japan Railway's maglev research division. "But the government has to decide because it will pay to start construction."
In April, a government panel of experts applauded the progress. But the experts said the project's costs are still too high, and said they would reassess the situation in 2005.
Skeptics, who claim prestige, not pragmatism, drives the project, say the maglev may never travel beyond its 11.4-mile test track in Tsuru, west of Tokyo.
Experts concede that the trains are no more environmentally friendly than existing electric railways, notably the Shinkansen "bullet trains" that traverse the mountainous countryside and connect major cities at up to 186 mph.
Few countries have poured as many resources into maglev development.
China began daily runs of the world's first commercially operated maglev on Jan. 1, but the $1.2 billion German-built system in Shanghai spans only 18 miles. Earlier plans for an 800-mile Shanghai-to-Beijing line were canceled.
Germany, meanwhile, has scrapped plans for its own line between Hamburg and Berlin.
Central Japan Railway wants to build a maglev line from Tokyo to Osaka, linking the nation's two largest cities in just one hour, the same as commercial flights. Its bullet trains require 2-½ hours to make the 310-mile trip.
Building the train's electromagnetic guideway could set back taxpayers $85 billion, or roughly $274 million per mile. That's three times what it costs to lay bullet-train tracks. Maglev trains would tack on another $6.48 billion.
The technology is certainly cutting edge. To float 4 inches above its tracks, the maglev is equipped with superconducting magnets that must be cooled to around minus 500 degrees Fahrenheit.
The concrete guideway, crammed with power cables, sensors and two types of magnets, is smooth and safer than rails during an earthquake. Tunnels are shaped to keep the shock waves of a speeding train from shattering windows on nearby buildings.
Central Japan Railway's Osada says his team is simplifying parts to make the system cheaper. A new lead car with a flatter, elongated nose has cut noise and turbulence.
The prototype maglev has traveled more than 207,000 miles — equal to eight times around the globe — and carried nearly 70,000 people in tests without an accident.
There's almost no danger of derailing because the guideway walls are half as tall as the train. In a power outage, air-flap brakes like those airplanes use and retractable wheels would be deployed to bring the train to a gradual stop.
But the ride is still more roller coaster than mass transit: exhilarating and bumpy. It's also noisier inside than on bullet trains.
Copyright © 2004 The Seattle Times Company
archives.seattletimes.nwsource.com |
