SpeedSpeed
Rail speed record
603 km/h
374.7 mph
- Record holder
- L0 Series
- Date
✓ Value cross-checked in a second source
The L0 Series is a maglev train: this guidance system does not use a conventional railway line.
How the record evolved
The last record set in each decade, up to the current record (highlighted).
| Year | Record | Holder |
|---|---|---|
| 603 km/h | L0 Series | |
| 581 km/h | MLX01 | |
| 515.3 km/h | SNCF TGV Atlantique | |
| 411.5 km/h | LIMRV | |
| 331 km/h | Jeumont-Schneider SNCF BB 9003-9004 | |
| 205 km/h | DRG SVT 137 233-234 "Bauart Leipzig" | |
| 48 km/h | Stephenson's Rocket |
Put them in order
Sort these records from the oldest to the most recent.
- 515.3 km/hSNCF TGV Atlantique
- 603 km/hL0 Series
- 331 km/hJeumont-Schneider SNCF BB 9003-9004
- 48 km/hStephenson's Rocket
What to remember
On Japan's Yamanashi Test Track, a crewed seven-car L0 Series train reached 603 km/h (375 mph) on 21 April 2015. This prototype maglev, built on the Japanese-designed SCMaglev system, holds the rail speed record.
“Rail” is meant broadly here: some guidance techniques, such as JR-Maglev, do not use a conventional railway line. For a test vehicle derived from a commercial train, the best mark is 574.8 km/h, set by the TGV on 3 April 2007.
Before it, the record went through 48 km/h for Stephenson's Rocket in 1829, 411.5 km/h for the LIMRV in 1974, 515.3 km/h for the TGV Atlantique in 1990, 581 km/h for the MLX01 in 2003. Since 1829, the speed has been multiplied by 12.56. Developed by the Central Japan Railway Company (JR Central) for the Chūō Shinkansen line between Tokyo and Osaka, the L0 is planned to run at 500 km/h in commercial service, with journeys of 40 minutes between Tokyo (Shinagawa Station) and Nagoya.
Related records
Sources and licences
- Value, holder and date: Wikipedia article “List of speed records in rail transport” (revision used 1378984260). Data from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Photo: Saruno Hirobano, Photo licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 (Wikimedia Commons).
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