PublicTransport- The future

Magnetic levitation? faster, safer & better way of transport...German engineering has solved the puzzle and made it a reality after years of research, trials and vigorous tests.
China has taken a big leap forward in mass rapid public transport by investing in this futuristic transit system in one of its big cities; Shanghai!

Indeed, the Maglev is faster than any speeding locomotive precisely because it's as much like a plane as any railroad we've known.
The Shanghai Maglev Train or Shanghai Transrapid "Shanghai Magnetic Levitation Demonstration Operation Line") is the first commercial high-speed maglev line in the world. The system and trains were built to the Transrapid standard. Construction began in March 2001, and public service commenced on 1 January 2004.
During a test run on 12 November 2003, a maglev vehicle achieved a Chinese record speed of 501 km/h (311 mph).
The train set and tracks were manufactured using German technology.
True, the train has no wings, but no wheels or engine, either. Transrapid, the German firm that developed the system, describes the Maglev as "the first fundamental innovation in the field of railway technology since the invention of the railway."

Magnets are the attraction. First, powerful magnets lift the entire train about 10 millimeters above the special track, called a guideway, since it mainly directs the passage of the train.

Other magnets provide propulsion, and braking, and the speeds - up to 500 kph in test runs; a good 60 percent faster than the renowned Bullet Trains - are attained largely due to the reduction of friction.

The line runs from Longyang Road station in Pudong, on the Shanghai subway line 2 to Pudong International Airport. The journey takes 7 minutes and 20 seconds to complete the distance of 30 km. A train can reach 350 km/h (220 mph) in 2 minutes, with the maximum normal operation speed of 431 km/h (268 mph) reached thereafter.
The line is operated by Shanghai Maglev Transportation Development Co., Ltd. As of May 2008, the line operates daily between 06:45–21:30, a one-way ticket cost ¥50 (US$7.27), or ¥40 ($5.81) for those passengers holding a receipt or proof of an airline ticket purchase. A round-trip return ticket cost ¥80 ($11.63) and VIP tickets cost double the standard fare.