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Off-Topic Discussion => General Discussion => Topic started by: Sandwich on December 15, 2003, 04:41:18 am

Title: Gotta love them MagLevs
Post by: Sandwich on December 15, 2003, 04:41:18 am
http://www.maglev.com/

They have a number of cool presentations, videos, and the like. I've always loved the whole concept of MagLev trains, and it's great to see that someone is actually and finally going ahead with building a system. :)
Title: Gotta love them MagLevs
Post by: karajorma on December 15, 2003, 05:02:48 am
Excellent. I had to write a paper on superconductors once and since then I've always loved Maglev trains.
Title: Gotta love them MagLevs
Post by: Nico on December 15, 2003, 06:06:53 am
Yeah, I like them to a lot ( they brought lots of cash in railroad tycoon :p ). they're very SF :D
Title: Gotta love them MagLevs
Post by: Odyssey on December 15, 2003, 11:46:31 am
[color=cc9900]Pity they'll never implement anything like it in the UK. Hell, we'd be lucky here if they even made current systems run on time...
I like the idea of combining linear electric motors with maglevs though. I've been trying to buy linear motors for ages, they're impossible to come across.[/color]
Title: Gotta love them MagLevs
Post by: Crazy_Ivan80 on December 15, 2003, 12:32:50 pm
Too bad it's in China
Title: Gotta love them MagLevs
Post by: vyper on December 15, 2003, 12:45:06 pm
My lecturer came back from a trip to China last week: He brought back a Soviet furry hat and a common army cap. He also had a picture of himself on some camel like animal.

Thats it, just thot I'd mention that.

Oh yes, MagLev - very nice technology, but unlikely to be taken-up by the major transport corporations for some time.
Title: Gotta love them MagLevs
Post by: phreak on December 15, 2003, 12:50:56 pm
High-speed trains would only be used in along the coasts here.  It would take 10+ hours to go from New York to LA.  Thats about a 4 hour flight.  If they can get high speed freight trains then they would be used.  thats all that trains are used for here anyways
Title: Gotta love them MagLevs
Post by: Nico on December 15, 2003, 01:00:45 pm
Quote
Originally posted by Odyssey
[color=cc9900]Pity they'll never implement anything like it in the UK. Hell, we'd be lucky here if they even made current systems run on time...
I like the idea of combining linear electric motors with maglevs though. I've been trying to buy linear motors for ages, they're impossible to come across.[/color]


Mmh, actually, there's already maglevs in UK, in London I believe. I think it's between a railroad station and some other location. the thing is very slow, tho.
Title: Gotta love them MagLevs
Post by: Flipside on December 15, 2003, 01:25:42 pm
It's public Transport, it's in London, slow is a foregone conclusion :(

The problem with our rail system is that it spent about 5 years doing absolutely NOTHING except make money after it was privatised, it forced retirement on it's oldest (and most experienced) Engineers to save money, they dropped the contract with a track manufacturing company who's rails had never broken though weathering, to one who's rails suffer terribly from cold-stress, etc...
The only way to fix it is to give every Rail Commuter a week off work, employ thousands of Engineers/Labourers and stop British Rail for one week while they replace a large percent of the inner city Networks. This is about as likely as British Rail running MagLevs.
Title: Gotta love them MagLevs
Post by: Odyssey on December 15, 2003, 01:32:30 pm
[color=cc9900]Nico, I think you're talking about something that used to be in Birmingham, between a railroad station and Birmingham International. Got scrapped after a few years because we did it totally wrong, same as any other train system in this country ^_^
Flipside, I can only agree. There are so many reasons to leave this place.[/color]
Title: Gotta love them MagLevs
Post by: Gortef on December 16, 2003, 01:17:38 am
Quote
Originally posted by Nico
Yeah, I like them to a lot ( they brought lots of cash in railroad tycoon :p ).  


And Transport Tycoon Deluxe ;)
Title: Gotta love them MagLevs
Post by: Nico on December 16, 2003, 03:57:20 am
Quote
Originally posted by Odyssey
[color=cc9900]Nico, I think you're talking about something that used to be in Birmingham, between a railroad station and Birmingham International. Got scrapped after a few years because we did it totally wrong, same as any other train system in this country ^_^
Flipside, I can only agree. There are so many reasons to leave this place.[/color]



Ah well, too bad :p
Well, still, you completed it, in France, we started some hugeass monorail systtem, but we didn't even complete it. When you go in the south of france, you can look at that giant rail spaning dozens of kilometers, completly useless. Guess they dropped it for the TGV, it was before I was born, I think.