Shanghai and neighboring Zhejiang Province are considering a proposal for a magnetic levitation (maglev) train to link the two areas, today's Eastday.com learned from a forum to promote economic cooperation within the Yangtze River Delta area held last Friday in Hangzhou, capital of Zhejiang.

Experts of the two areas have started the research for the proposal.

As proposed, after the 170-kilometer maglev line is completed, a ride between Hangzhou and Shanghai connecting Hangzhou and Shanghai's Pudong International Airport would take only 26 minutes.

German-developed maglev technology will be adopted for the line, Xu Kuangdi, Dean of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, said Monday in Beijing. Compared with Japanese technology, which uses superconductor materials, the German technology is cheaper, the ex-Mayor of Shanghai noted.

The German technology works well with the maglev line in Shanghai, the world's first maglev line in commercial use.

Starting in 2001, Shanghai, Zhejiang and Jiangsu have held annual forums to promote closer cooperation within the three areas. The meetings have borne fruit: the three areas have made breakthroughs in resource sharing, inter-provincial tourism, regional environmental improvement and human resources. 

2004/12/01 
Source: Xinhuanet