But this should be done using maglev technology, replacing the outworn Victorian "wheels on tracks".
But maglev has never really taken off, mainly because of the expense.
WITH A MAXIMUM speed of 430kph (267mph), the Shanghai magnetic-levitation (or maglev) train is as much fairground ride as vital cog in the city's transport system.
The $50m is not intended for construction, but if it was, it would not even get the maglev out of downtown DC.
Hamburg to Berlin, which might have been the exception, does not have enough demand from passengers.It may be that maglev trains stand a better chance in countries where existing railways are less efficient, such as America and Britain.
With air travel threatened by emission taxes and heavier security, maglev trains may begin to look attractive over greater distances.Alternatively, of course, they could remain a white elephant.
On its website, ThyssenKrupp Transrapid boasts that it "enjoys an exclusive market position" to supply key maglev components.A "moving platform" scheme proposed by Priestmangoode is more technologically ambitious than maglev trains even though it relies on conventional rails.
Furthermore, the Superbus does not yet exist, whereas maglev trains are already operating successfully in Shanghai.The future of the project is uncertain.
