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Japan's maglev train gets facelift

Oct 20 (NHK) - Central Japan Railway Company unveiled the interior of the latest version of its magnetic-levitation train on Monday.

The railway operator has been running the new model on test tracks in Yamanashi Prefecture, central Japan, since August.

The passenger cars have larger seats than the previous version. Sound insulation panels have been installed on the ceiling to reduce noise.

Outside the train's nose section is more rounded compared to the previous design.

Air resistance has been cut by about 13 percent, reducing power consumption and noise.

In a test run on Monday, the train reached its maximum operating speed of 500 kilometers per hour just 2-and-a-half minutes after setting off.

Passengers will be able to travel the nearly 300 kilometers from Tokyo to Nagoya in just 40 minutes when it comes into service.

Central Japan Railway plans to continue the tests until fiscal 2022 in order to determine the train's specifications for commercial operation.

The company is aiming to launch the next-generation railway service in 2027.

But a dispute with local authorities over the construction of a tunnel could delay that.

Source: ANNnewsCH

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