ABSTRACT
In opting for a transport system for the twenty-first century, this chapter proposes that China will need to consider broad economic and ecological arguments if it is to sustain its current growth patterns. As both European and US manufacturers and consumers, and now Chinese consumers, become more closely interdependent it is time to look closely at the balance of air, land and sea freight costs. Using a dedicated (traditional) railway train, the end-to-end delivery time of containers from China to Europe is currently about fifteen days, but maglev ultra-high-speed systems could reduce this to two days. In comparison, air freight is limited to about 100-140 tonnes per plane (fast, but expensive per tonne/km), and post-Panamax boats carrying over 10,000 containers take thirty-five days from Asia to Europe, or forty-five days if the ships have to round the Cape of Africa, if they are too big for the Suez canal. Of all systems, maglev has the lowest cost per kilometre, can deliver in volume and is very fast.
