Maglev trains, short for “magnetic levitation,” are supposed to be the future of high-speed rail transportation, but face many logistical challenges. They are based on the principle of electromagnetic levitation, thanks to powerful magnets installed under the wagons and can reach much higher speeds than conventional trains, despite their much more expensive infrastructure, deciphers the online media Futurism. Low-speed Maglev models are already in circulation in South Korea and Japan, but China is hard at work on a model that it says already reaches 650 km/h. His goal? 800 km/h.
It was in 2019 that Chinese media first mentioned a floating train prototype, announcing at the same time the opening of an experimental research and development laboratory, as well as a pilot training center in the coastal city of Qingdao, in Shandong province (east China). After reaching the 650 km/h mark in June 2025, the team of developers unveiled their Maglev system during the 12e World High-Speed Rail Congress, which took place July 8-11 in Beijing.
The ultra-fast train is equipped with rubber wheels that allow it to reach 100 to 200 km/h. Once the optimal levitation speed is reached, the wheel system retracts and the device remains suspended a little more than a centimeter above the rails.
A global speed race
Li Weichao, director of the test laboratory, told the Chinese channel CGTN that the train can reach 650 km/h over a distance of 1,000 meters, but that “its typical operating speed is 800 km/h”. According to the researcher, the entire construction should be completed by the end of the year and the platform will meet the necessary conditions for its approval. “It’s the fastest speed in the world”, he enthuses.
These tests are indeed very promising, but their large-scale deployment is a major challenge for the Asian power. Japan, although a pioneer in high-speed trains, postponed the launch of its 55 billion euro Maglev project by almost ten years: a political standoff is slowing down its deployment, crystallized around the creation of a tunnel crossing the Japanese Alps.
In the United States, a similar project connecting Washington to Baltimore in just fifteen minutes has also stalled due to political disputes between federal and local agencies. Here again, it is the environmental impact of such a system which is singled out. China, meanwhile, already has the fastest magnetic levitation train in circulation, linking Shanghai to Hangzhou. For the moment, its top speed is “only” 431 km/h.
