China Faces NIMBY

"For the last two weekends, protesters opposed to plans to extend the city's fastest-on-earth magnetic levitation train--the maglev--took to the streets in marches that organizers dubbed 'collective walks,' to avoid seeming too controversial when confronting a regime that often deals harshly with acts of dissent."

"The maglev, which can rocket passengers at record-breaking speeds well over 200 miles per hour, currently connects the Pudong airport at the eastern edge of the metropolis to a nearby subway station. The authorities want it to do much more. The first extension in the works would link Pudong's new airport to the old Hongqiao airport west of the city."

"This has angered residents of some largely middle-class neighborhoods through which the new rail line would run. They claim that proximity to the path of noisy maglev trains would make their property values plummet, disturb the tranquillity of their homes and perhaps even pose health hazards to their children."