this post was submitted on 08 Sep 2023
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You still need rubber wheels when it's stopped and at low speed. They retract when it's fast enough for the maglev to take over.
The electrical conductors are expensive as shit. The ones in the train need to be super cooled or something. The track ones need to be built along the entire length. On three sides, one vertically and two horizontally. Along with massive power lines along the whole length. They don't need to move to be expensive.
The right of way needs to be very straight. So compared to normal high speed, you have to spend much more on buying land, earth moving, tunneling, etc.
All this needs to be maintained to an extremely high degree because you can't accept a failure. The engine on a high speed rail fails and you just slow down, no biggie. HSR track is fairly robust and can easily be inspected visually. Since it has the same base as normal passenger and freight you have an entire industry knowledge and inspection machines. Any part of maglev fails and you have a catastrophic failure.
maglevs arent using fuckin superconducters to levitate, it's basic magnetic repulsion. Get whatever fictional version you've got in your head cleared up.
Both of you guys are correct, because there are two types of maglev trains; the Japanese tech (Shinkansen) and the German design (trans rapid).
I didn't even know Germany designed maglev train tech, usually when these trains are mentioned it's related to Japan or China. Interesting
The Germans built a maglev test track over 20 years ago
In case you wanna read more about how it failed: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lathen_train_collision
The Chinese maglev IS the German Transrapid. The Chinese donβt have the mental horsepower too design this kind of stuff