Sponsored by In August 1998, the Australian government announced its preferred tenderer to build a high-speed rail line between Sydney and Canberra. The choice was not without controversy. Worldwide, the debate continues about the merits of different kinds of very fast train.
Australian trains are plodders.
The TGV routinely travels at 300 kilometres per hour through the French countryside and has been clocked at 515 kilometres per hour in test runs. The bullet train averages 262 kilometres per hour between stations and has recorded 443 kilometres per hour in test runs, while the ICE has a top operational speed of 280 kilometres per hour and has recorded 408 kilometres per hour in trials. They all have steel wheels that run on steel tracks. They have aerodynamic designs to decrease wind resistance - in some ways they look like long, thin aeroplanes without wings. Nevertheless, these trains can also run on conventional lines at reduced speeds, a great advantage when approaching major urban centres.