Tsunami, earthquakes, and nuclear radiation in the past, Japan proceeds to build a magnetic train that defies Newton's laws of physics.
Sarah Laskow of Good Magazine reports that the Central Japan Railway has been authorized and funded to construct a maglev train that connects Tokyo-Nagoya-Osaka.
Maglev technology "channels magnetic force to levitate the train almost four inches above the track and propel it forward at speeds over 300 miles per hour," explains Laskow. In the U.S. context, the commute from NYC to D.C. will take less than an hour.
Having ridden in one of the test trains, Secretary of Transportation LaHood concedes: "I have to say, those trains are fast. Very fast."
The $112 billion project will be completed in 2027.
Read the full story: Japan Will Build Blazingly Fast Tokyo to Osaka Maglev Train
Chinese Rail Firm Pursuing High-Speed Rail Ambitions in California, Indonesia
The China Railway International Group, working with the Chinese Export-Import Bank, responded to the California High-Speed Rail Authority's "expressions of interest." They teamed up with China Development Bank to beat out the Japanese in Indonesia.
Japan Sets Train Speed Records Twice in a Few Days
Maglev trains owned by Central Japan Railway were clocked traveling at speeds of 603 km/h, less than week after traveling 590 km/h to set a record last set in 2003.
Surveying the World's Fastest Trains, and a Possible New Entry to the List
The Telegraph compiles a list of the fastest train trips in the world, from the 90 minute journey from Brussels to Paris at 186 miles per hour to Shanghai's 268 mile per hour maglev train. A new service is poised to join them.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
California plans to bury El Niño’s downpour
If the state plays its cards right, it may be able to store a billion acre-feet of El Niño’s water in aquifers.
Desperate measures: Advocates weigh draining Lake Powell to fill Colorado River
Draining the reservoir could reduce evaporation losses by a couple hundred thousand acre-feet.
Los Angeles just elected an urban planner as its mayor
Transportation analysts are optimistic that Raman will be more aggressive in addressing transit issues than Bass.
Mamdani’s pied-à-terre tax survives legal challenge
A panel of judges found that the plaintiffs failed to demonstrate injury as a result of New York City's implementation of the tax.
Eastern Nebraska is running out of electricity
Data centers and electrification are straining eastern Nebraska’s grid, throttling economic development.
FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
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Rutgers University, Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy
One Hundred Miles
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