High-speed rail (HSR) is a type of passenger rail transport that operates significantly faster than traditional rail traffic. As of 2012 the maximum commercial speed was about 300 km/h (185 mph) for the majority of installed systems (China, Germany, Italy, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, UK), 310 km/h (195 mph) in Spain and 320 km/h (200 mph) in France. The Shanghai Maglev Train reaches 431 km/h (268 mph).
High-speed trains travel at their maximum speed on specific tracks, almost all using conventional tracks, generally using standard gauge (except in countries like Russia, Finland and Mongolia, which continue to use Russian gauge), whilst avoiding at-grade crossings and minimizing curvature of the right-of-way.
The world speed record for conventional high-speed rail is held by the V150, a specially configured and heavily-modified version of Alstom's TGV which clocked 574.8 km/h (357.2 mph) on a test run. The world speed record for Maglev is held by the Japanese experimental MLX01: 581 km/h (361 mph).
While high-speed rail is usually designed for passenger travel, some high-speed systems also offer freight service. For instance, the French mail service La Poste owns a few special TGV trains for carrying postal freight.
Read more about High-speed Rail: Definitions, Rationale, Technology, Maximum Speed, Existing Operations, Major Markets, Chronology
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