The world’s fastest maglev train, the 500km/h Series Lo prototype from JR Tokai, made its first public run on Saturday. One hundred lucky passengers took part in a 44km trip between Uenohara and Fuefuki… which took just five minutes to complete once the train got up to speed.
This, of course, is just the first in a number of test runs the company is conducting on its test track in Yamanashi Prefecture over the next eight days. Barring any setbacks, the blindingly fast locomotives — even speedier than the existing class of 320km/h bullet trains — will enter service between Tokyo and Nagoya in 2027. [BBC via Independent]