Skip to main content

China tests 600km/h maglev vehicle in Shanghai

A maglev vehicle capable of 600km/h has run on a line at Tongji University
By David Arminas June 29, 2020 Read time: 1 min
The Shanghai Transrapid, in action here, was the world’s first commercial high-speed maglev (© Yinan Zhang/Dreamstime)

A maglev vehicle capable of 600km/h has conducted its first test run on a line at Tongji University in Shanghai, according to Chinese media.

The trial took place June 21, noted a report by China Global Television Network (CGTN), a Beijing-based state-run media outlet. The news was passed on by the International Maglev Board.

Engineers at the research and development centre of the state-run CRRC Qingdao Sifang – makers of high-speed trains – said the maglev (magnetic levitation) vehicle showed stable suspension and guidance during the multi-condition tests.

All key technical indicators met the design specifications and expectations.

The next step is to move the train into the marketplace, said the CGTN report.

China has said that it aims to put a 500km/h maglev line into commercial operation by 2025.

A Shanghai-Hangzhou 600km/h high-speed maglev has been included in the 10 so-called super transport projects within the province in the coming years.

The project, with CRRC Qingdao Sifang being responsible for the technical aspects, has input from more than 30 enterprises, universities and research institutes.

Scientific cooperation with German universities and German industry supports the development, according to CGTN.

Related Content

  • October 8, 2020
    Volocopter plans commercial eVTOL in Japan
    Drone firm has also entered partnership to test air taxis in Paris
  • August 7, 2017
    Hyperloop One completes inaugural test run
    Hyperloop One successfully completed its second phase of testing, achieving 192 mph and travelling almost the full distance of the 500-metre DevLoop track in the Nevada desert, in a tube depressurised down to the equivalent of air at 200,000 feet above sea level. The Hyperloop One XP-1, the company’s first-generation pod, accelerated for 300 metres and glided above the track using magnetic levitation before braking and coming to a gradual stop.
  • March 14, 2012
    Automatic signal control to prevent emergency vehicle collisions?
    Field trials under way in Arizona promise eradication of accidents between emergency vehicles at intersections – as part of a national focus on ‘intelligent signal’ infrastructure. Collisions between police cars, ambulances and fire crews as they reach intersections at the same time, with equal priority given by all signals set on red, are as serious as they sound absurd. For emergency teams and those in need of their help, the consequences are dire. The solution could come from application of connected veh
  • October 22, 2014
    Bespoke ITS is helping to reduced collisions on America’s rural roads
    David Crawford cherrypicks conference and award highlights Almost 30% of all US citizens live in rural areas or very small communities, and 34 of the 50 states exceed this level in their own populations, with the proportions rising as high as 85%. And although rural routes carry only 35% of all traffic, the accidents that occur on them account for some 54% of all US road traffic accident deaths.