In Munich there is a big discussion these days about the Maglev-Train from the airport to Munich-Downtown. I don’t understand the issue. It is a german technology and the train is much more cost- and energy efficient than any other train.
The german ICE is much more expensive due to the high repair and maintenance cost, but the big cooperations want to make money and do not want to kill their own money machine.
Due to the lack of physical contact between the track and the vehicle, there is no rolling friction, leaving only air resistance.
The Transrapid technology is already many years old and it the best example how slow Germany can be. So don’t discuss about it – we want the Transrapid!
The Shanghai maglev cost 9.93 billion yuan (US$1.2 billion) to build. This total includes infrastructure capital costs such as manufacturing and construction facilities, and operational training. While high-speed maglevs are expensive to build, they are less expensive to operate and maintain than traditional high-speed trains, planes or intercity buses.
As Marcel Reichart also described on his latest trip to china: “Germany is slow, China is the future.”
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