(acronym for magnetic levitation) High-speed surface transport using the repellent force of superconductive magnets (see superconductivity) to propel and support, for example, a train above a track.
Technical trials on a maglev train track began in Japan in the 1970s, and a speed of 500 kph/310 mph has been reached, with a cruising altitude of 10 cm/4 in. The train is levitated by electromagnets and forward thrust is provided by linear motors aboard the automobiles, propelling the train along a reaction plate.
A small low-power maglev monorail system is in use at Birmingham Airport, England. A subway line using maglev carriages began operating in Osaka, Japan, 1990.
The German government approved a plan to build the world's first commercial maglev 1994. The Berlin–Hamburg line will cost DM8.9 billion (Ł3.5 billion). The three-hour journey time will be reduced by a third.