China reports a world speed record
Written by William C. Vantuono, Editor-in-ChiefA Chinese high speed trainset broke a world record Friday, Dec. 3, for the fastest unmodified revenue-service train, reaching 481.1 kph (298.9 mph), Chinese state media reported. News of the purported world speed record first appeared on CNN.
According to Xinhua, China’s official news agency, a CRH380 EMU (electric multiple-unit) trainset, operated “as fast as a low-cruising jet plane” during a trial run on the soon-to-open Beijing-Shanghai high speed line. Xinhua claimed the CRH380 broke a previous world speed record for an unmodified trainset set by China in September, when a train on the Shanghai-Hangzhou high speed line attained 416.6 kph (258.3 mph).
The overall world speed record for any kind of steel-wheel train is 357 mph, set by a modified Alstom SNCF TGV Duplex.
To see a video of the Chinese CRH380, CLICK HERE.
