Editor's note: Djoomart Otorbaev is the former prime minister of the Kyrgyz Republic, a distinguished professor of the Belt and Road School of Beijing Normal University, and a member of Nizami Ganjavi International Center. This is the second piece in his series on Maglev trains. The article reflects the author's views and not necessarily those of CGTN.

China does not stop in its quest to create a network of modern railways unparalleled in the world. According to the Ministry of Transport, China has the most extensive high-speed rail network globally, covering around 95 percent of cities with more than a million inhabitants. But directives jointly published in February aim to expand the country's transportation network by 2035 and beyond. By then 200,000 kilometers of railways, 460,000 kilometers of roads, and 25,000 kilometers of sea routes will be constructed. In addition, 27 major coastal ports and 36 inland ports, about 400 civil airports, and about 80 express postal hubs will be built.

The guidelines emphasize that the network aims to support the so-called National 123 transportation circle, which means achieving a maximum of one hour ride within a city for any given destination, a two-hour ride between urban clusters, and a three-hour ride to major cities. The Maglev system will become one of the essential components of this network.

According to the China Railway Rolling Stock Corporation, the Maglev project in China kicked off in full force in October 2016. After optimizing the system in January this year, the system began experimental testing. The trains can include two to 10 cars, each of which can accommodate more than 100 passengers. According to a CRRC report, it is the fastest ground transportation method for distances up to 1,500 kilometers.

In the process, Chinese scientists and engineers have introduced numerous innovations in Maglev technology. Among them are the latest electrical, anti-vibration, and information systems. The braking mechanism used will be 30 percent more efficient than the magnetic suspension train in Shanghai, which means that the braking distance of the train will be reduced from approximately 16 km to 10 km. 

Especially for this train, engineers have created a unique power supply system. When the speed of the train exceeds 100 km per hour, this operation becomes contactless. The new 5G format will ensure uninterrupted connectivity, and passengers will be able to charge their mobile phones wirelessly .

A real breakthrough was that the new train actively uses the technology of "high-temperature superconducting (HTS)." 

It uses two unique properties of high-temperature superconductors: the "Meissner effect," which allows the superconductor to repel magnetic fields around it to achieve complete levitation, and "flux pinning", which keeps the superconductor steady above its magnetic tracks, so it never falls off. It took researchers over 20 years for this technology to go from a university laboratory to fully-fledged industrial applications.

China ranks first in terms of the number of newest patents related to Maglev technology, according to a study by intellectual property service provider PatSnap. Their patent filings by 2021 stood at 43.52 percent, well above 20.57 percent for Japan, which came in second. However, Japanese patents were mainly related to the scientific properties of materials. 

In contrast, the Chinese patents were more focused on practical applications, including permanent magnets, rail beams, transportation technology, suspension frame, etc. It is no doubt that the research and development of Maglev technologies will contribute to the growth of other high-tech industries in China and worldwide.

Demand for such services already exists on the railways between Beijing and Shanghai, Chongqing and Chengdu, and Guangzhou and Changsha, said Feng Hao, a researcher at the Integrated Transport Institute of the National Development and Reform Commission. A few provinces and cities have already included the development of high-speed Maglev lines in their plans. Among such lines will be the Shanghai-Hangzhou and Chengdu-Chongqing routes.

When completed in 2030, the new magnetic suspension lines will cut travel times from Guangzhou to Shanghai to two and a half hours. Travel time from Guangzhou to Beijing will be just over three hours, which will halve the current travel time on the high-speed rail.

Combining Maglev technology with a vacuum tube would mean that air resistance would be hugely reduced, further increasing the train's speed. Elon Musk's Hyperloop concept uses a similar idea. Hyperloop is currently under development, but if it becomes a reality, it will revolutionize overland travel. With a speed of 1,200 km per hour, it will make it possible to get from Los Angeles to San Francisco in an incredible 35 minutes.

But dreams still go further. ET3 (Evacuated Tube Transport Technologies) combines maglev with a complete vacuum tube system. Passengers will be sitting in capsules the size of a car, and unique gateways at stations will allow the movement of people and goods without air entering the system. For long journeys, the speed can reach 6,500 km per hour, which means that it will be possible to get from New York to Beijing in two hours. The developers call it "space travel on Earth."

All mentioned above means that China is getting a step closer to bringing more air travelers down to earth. Professor of Beijing Jiaotong University Zhao Jian is doubtful that Chinese Maglev trains and related technologies will be in commercial demand abroad any time soon. Other countries will lack the economies of scale to develop such large-scale projects and struggle to make magnetic suspension lines profitable. "Maglev lines can only make money when a high-speed network with huge passenger flows is formed," Zhao said.

All this means that the current breakthrough of Chinese scientists and engineers in applying Maglev technology in future transportation will have excellent prospects. Once again, it turns out that China is not thinking for years but decades ahead.

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