The Associated Press is reporting that a Japanese railroad will spend $3.1 billion (thats BILLION) on Maglev (Magnetic) trains over the next decade.

A snippet from the release:

Shanghai's maglev line covers the 19 miles to the city's Pudong International Airport in just eight minutes at speeds of up to 270 mph. Launched in early 2004, it is the world's first commercially operating magnetic levitation train line.

Planners eventually want Japan's maglev service to connect Tokyo and Osaka with high speed trains, shortening the trip between Japan's two biggest cities to an hour, compared with the Shinkansen bullet train's 2.5 hours.

Central Japan Railway completed a maglev test run Saturday with about 100 passengers, and the company is still planning a special event on Nov. 22-24, inviting 1,800 people to ride the train at its test center.

This is very exciting news. Could you imagine a Maglev train from NYC to Los Angeles? What about from London to Berlin? Or Paris to Madrid? While the cost is very high, eventually more providers will come into the picture and the price will drop. While I don't think this will ever replace inner city metro travel, it certainly could replace short airplane trips.

I certainly hope that one day I get a chance to ride on a Maglev. And of course report on the trip for InsideTransit! And if Central Japan Railway needs another person to fill their 1,800 invite for November, put me down!