Show Bullet and train John M. M Glionna Mt ti Los Angeles Times n OVA If 1 I Th This sis is d a h nation t on d t tto to speed And to ride Japans Japan's super or bullet train is to zip into the future at speeds reaching miles per hour From Nagoya to Tokyo Toko the scenery whizzes past in ina a dizzying blur as the sleek engine with its like bullet-like nose floats the cars along elevated tracks without the clack of the lumbering US U.S. trains that make you feel as though youre you're chugging along like cattle to market These days Californians dream of a future with speed high-speed elevated rails that would link Southern California and Las Vegas in less than two hours or LA and San Francisco in slightly more than 2 1 Japan meanwhile will soon have a class of trains that could make the trip in less than half that time This is a nation where its it's not nearly enough that the trains run on time they've got to break land records And even that's not enough By 2025 a network of bullet trains connecting major cities is to feature magnetically levitated or linear motor trains running at speeds of more than mph Developed for use during the Tokyo Olympics in 1964 the trains were the brainchild of Hideo Shima a government engineer who died a decade ago at 96 Over the years the trains have signaled Japanese prosperity Designed to traverse Japans Japan's mountainous terrain the trains use tunnels and viaducts to go through and over obstacles rather than around them They travel on elevated tracks t without road crossings and andr r naf apart part from cori ti rail An automated control I system eliminates eliminates' the need for signals Officials boast that on average the trains are less than half a minute late each year which includes delays caused by earthquakes typhoons snow and heavy rain During the lines line's 45 year history and transport of 7 billion passengers there have been no deaths from derailment or collisions A new E 5 series of trains scheduled to take to the rails in 2011 promises speeds of nearly mph improved suspensions and a car-body car tilting system to make the ride more comfortable around curves reclining Power-reclining shell seats in first class will provide what engineers call calla a peaceful and soothing time during your travels Amtrak eat your heart out But Japan isn't stopping there The trains planned t for r 2025 will reduce the travel time between Tokyo and Nagoya to 40 minutes from about 90 minutes At that speed commuters could g go from Los Angeles to the San Francisco Bay Area in slightly more than an hour Rail officials say as many as passengers could use the line daily For the most part you dont don't realize youre you're traveling faster than almost any other man-made man land vehicle until you look lookout lookout lookout out the window and see the scenery passing by so fuzzily that thai you think you youve you've ve lost your glasses For most of the ride you settle into your seat purchase a beer or coffee coffee from the passing aSSi snack cart and realize once again that youre you're not in America anymore |