The U.S. Department of Transportation awarded $27.8 million to a study of magnetic levitation railway in Maryland, Northeast Maglev LLC said in a statement Saturday.
The company is seeking to bring a Japanese maglev system, with a value of $10 billion, to the 64-km-long (40-mile-long) Washington-Baltimore corridor, a trip that could take 15 minutes. Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Wayne Rogers said last year he planned to ask for federal funds this year, and that Japan has offered to provide half the money.
Maglev trains rely on magnetic power to float the cars above the ground, eliminating the friction of steel tracks. The trains start off running on wheels — the kind used on F-15 fighter jets — until they're going fast enough for the magnets to kick in and create lift.