Japan's Floating Maglev Train Glides toward Debut

Floating trains from the future have finally arrived in Japan. The country that built the world's first dedicated high-speed rail lines has unveiled a magnetic levitation train capable of traveling at speeds of more than 310 mph.

The new train designed by Central Japan Railway Company is scheduled to start service between Tokyo and Nagoya in 2027, according to The Daily Telegraph. Its ability to glide above the ground on magnets would cut down travel times from the 90 minute journey aboard a "shinkansen" bullet train to just 40 minutes aboard the maglev train.

Japan's bullet trains first led the world into the high-speed rail age, but the aging technology will be 60 years old by 2025. The Central Japan Railway Company aims for their maglev train to not only service Japan, but also to possibly connect U.S. cities such as Boston, New York and Washington D.C.

China became the first country to deploy an operational maglev train running from Shanghai in 2010.

Source: The Daily Telegraph

This story was provided by TechNewsDaily, a sister site to LiveScience. Follow TechNewsDaily on Twitter @TechNewsDaily, or on Facebook.