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Transrapid ·

Rising Demand: SMT Shortens Headways

Due to increased passenger numbers on the Transrapid line in Shanghai, the headway will be shortened from September 1, 2023. Soon, trains will run every 20 minutes between Pudong Airport and Longyang Road Station (previously: 30 minutes). The rise in passenger numbers may be linked to the lifting of various COVID restrictions.

Transrapid in Shanghai (SMT) Image: Thyssenkrupp Transrapid

Due to increased passenger numbers on the Transrapid line in Shanghai, the headway will be shortened from September 1, 2023.

Soon, trains will run every 20 minutes between Pudong Airport and Longyang Road Station (previously: 30 minutes). The rise in passenger numbers may be linked to the lifting of various COVID restrictions.

The SMT, based on the TR08, reaches top speeds of up to 300 km/h. The commercial top speed of 431 km/h is currently not on the timetable, as it would bring no time advantage on the line, which is only 29.9 km long. To ease the burden on Shanghai’s overloaded power grid, the trip now takes 8 minutes instead of 7 minutes and 18 seconds.

The vehicles used on the SMT line were built by ThyssenKrupp in Kassel. They have now been in service on the SMT line for a cumulative total of almost 25 million kilometers, proving what the Transrapid is capable of. The Transrapid can accelerate to 300 km/h in just 98 seconds: an ICE (Germany’s high-speed train) with identical capacity needs 3.3 times as long (324 seconds).

Source for the timetable change: https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/RBK_EvYK7dVcYunlL9jwmQ

Source for the Shanghai power grid: https://www.shine.cn/news/metro/2306167998/

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