Developer Says Train Broke Speed Marks

Two world speed records fell as a Japanese train streaked to 329 mph in both manned and unmanned runs, according to its developer. The test runs were carried out on a special track near Kofu, 70 miles west of Tokyo, and involved a prototype that cost $43.3 million to develop. The three-car train is a superconducting magnetically levitated linear motor vehicle, or MLX01. Unlike conventional trains, the trains have magnets that lift them slightly off the track, eliminating most friction. Nobuyuki Kokubun of the Railway Technical Research Institute said the unmanned run broke the previous record of 321 mph set in southern Japan in 1979 by a precursor, the ML-500. The manned test surpassed the record of 312 mph, which the same train set last month. The same technology is also being developed in Germany.