Japan makes bid for world’s fastest train.

The competition for the world’s fastest train is heating up.

Last December, a Chinese passenger train achieved a new record by traveling 302 miles per hour during a test run on a still-unopened line between Beijing and Shanghai. Now, Japan’s Central Japan Railway Company has announced that it plans to beat that record by building a new train between Tokyo and Nagoya, to be completed by 2027.

The new line, which is estimated to cost about $64 billion, will extend for about 178 miles. The company expects trains running on it to reach speeds up to 310 miles per hour. The line will cut travel time between the two cities by 40 minutes.

It currently takes an hour and a half using trains that run at about 167 miles per hour.
The trains increase their speeds by using magnetic levitation — where friction is reduced because powerful magnets raise the train above the track.