Japan: Maglev Train Breaks Own Speed Record

[mahatmakanejeeves]

1. About the proposed line:

Chūō Shinkansen

The Chuo Shinkansen (中央新幹線?) is a planned Japanese maglev line designed to ultimately connect Tokyo, Nagoya, and Osaka. Its initial planned route is between Shinagawa Station in Tokyo and Nagoya Station in Nagoya, with stations in Sagamihara, Kanagawa, Kofu, Yamanashi, and Nakatsugawa, Gifu, as well as an as-yet undetermined location in Nagano Prefecture. The line is expected to connect Tokyo and Nagoya in 40 minutes, and eventually Tokyo and Osaka in 67 minutes, running at a maximum speed of 505 km/h (314 mph). About 90% of the 286-kilometre (178 mi) line will be built underground or through tunnels.
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Construction schedule and costs

JR Central announced in December 2007 that it planned to raise funds for the construction of the Chuo Shinkansen on its own, without government financing. Total cost, originally estimated at 5.1 trillion yen in 2007, escalated to over 9 trillion yen by of 2011. Nevertheless, the company has said it can make a pretax profit of around 70 billion yen in 2026, when the operating costs stabilize. The primary reason for the project's huge expense is that most of the line is planned to run in a tunnel (about 86% of the initial section from Tokyo to Nagoya will be underground) with some sections at a depth of 40 m (130 ft) (deep underground) for a total of 100 km (62 mi) in the Tokyo, Nagoya and Osaka areas.

If I'm doing the calculation right, 9 trillion yen is 75 billion dollars.