US Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood has taken a test ride on a next-generation high-speed train that a Japanese railway company hopes to sell to the US.
LaHood visited a test site in Tsuru city, west of Tokyo, on Tuesday to ride the experimental magnetically levitated train.
The 4-car train traveled at speeds over 502 kilometers per hour as Central Japan Railway President Yoshiyuki Kasai explained to LaHood how superconductivity technology makes such speeds possible.
The company plans to introduce the train on a new link between Tokyo and Nagoya in 2027. It also hopes the US will adopt the technology for the country's planned high-speed train network.
LaHood said he was amazed by the train's speed. He added that the ride was the main purpose of his visit, and that he had an extremely significant experience.
Kasai said LaHood told him that train ran so smoothly that he almost forgot how fast it was going.
2010/05/11 18:14(JST)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/JR-Maglev
Tokyo Osaka 440km 67min JPY15,050- USD167.22 on 2010/05/11
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shinkansen
