No limits: World's fastest trains

By hitting 406 kilometers per hour (252 miles per hour), the German Intercity-Express (ICE) was the fastest train in the world. More than 11,000 horsepower was needed in order for the ICE to reach this speed between the cities of Würzburg and Fulda! But this was 30 years ago and a lot has happened in the meantime — with much of the action in Asia.

But the German speed dream was short-lived. Just two years later, a French Train a Grande Vitesse (TGV) hit the 515-kilometers-per-hour mark and "pulverized" the German record, as France's state railway still boasts today. In 2007, the latest version, the AGV, reached 574 kilometers per hour. As a rule though, the trains travel at a maximum of 320 kilometers per hour.

The Japanese weren't just standing by the wayside, but developed one of the most iconic trains in the world, the Shinkansen, better known as the bullet train. In normal operation they travel a maximum of 320 kilometers per hour — similar to the French AGV. Incidentally the long nose is not just for looks but there to help eliminate the problem of "tunnel boom" when entering tunnels at high speeds.

But the Chinese also want a piece of the record pie. And by now Chinese trains are making it close to the 500-kilometers-per-hour mark. China's new express train Fuxing Hao ("Renaissance") travels up to 350 kilometers per hour between Shanghai and Beijing. It only takes four and a half hours for the 1,300-kilometer journey. In a few years developers want to average 400 kilometers per hour.

In 1980, Germans built a test track for a magnetic-levitation or maglev train. This marvel of engineering was driven, guided and held in suspension by powerful electromagnetic forces. During trial runs on a 30-kilometer test track, the train reached speeds of up to 450 kilometers per hour. Billions were invested, but in 2011 the government stopped funding the project.

In Germany the magnetic-levitation era was over. But the Chinese kept at it. The Shanghai Maglev Train or Shanghai Transrapid is currently the world's fastest commercial train in operation. Magnetic levitation technology allows it to reach an operating speed of 430 kilometers per hour. The 30.5-kilometer journey from busy Shanghai to the airport now takes just eight minutes.

Shanghai is not alone. South Korea also has a new maglev train called the Ecobee. This urban line connects Incheon Airport with Yongyu which is 6 kilometers away. Opened in 2016, the government initiated this ambitious project in 2006 to show off its range of magnetic technologies; though this unmanned train can only travel at a speed of around 80 kilometers per hour.

Not far behind, in Japan a maglev train is set to connect Tokyo with Nagoya by 2027. The train will float 10 centimeters (4 inches) above the tracks and be powered by electrically charged magnets. But this train will be much faster than its Korean cousin. The Japanese journey is set to take only 40 minutes, instead of the 90 minutes with the bullet train today.

An idea for a completely new high-speed transport system comes from Elon Musk, the founder of the space company SpaceX and the car maker Tesla. In his "Hyperloop" passengers are electrically driven in capsules at speeds of around 1,225 kilometers per hour in vacuum tubes. The first tests are running in California, but France is getting on the Hyperloop bandwagon too by building its own test track.