The 10 fastest trains on Earth
So you like going fast, huh? Well, unfortunately for you, the law says speeding is illegal, and even on a race track, you’ll be lucky to see speeds higher than 150 mph unless you’re in something wildly expensive. The easiest way to get your speed fix would be to ride some of the fastest roller coasters in the world, but what if even the fastest roller coaster in the world isn’t enough to scratch that itch?
The obvious solution is to book a ride on one of the fastest trains in the world. Unfortunately for our U.S. readers (so, like 95 percent of you), the U.S. doesn’t have high-speed rail, so experiencing any of these trains is going to require a little international travel. Then again, who wouldn’t want to see France at nearly 200 mph? And that’s not even the fastest one we found.
Click through to plan your next vacation or just get sad about all the trains the U.S. is missing out on.
Trenitalia Frecciarossa 1000
Country: Italy
Traveling Speed: 186.4 mph
Top Speed: 242 mph
Korail KTX-Sancheon
Country: South Korea
Travel Speed: 190 mph
Top Speed: 262 mph
Renfe AVE 103
Country: Spain
Travel Speed: 193 mph
Top Speed: 251 mph
ONCF Al Boraq
Country: Morocco
Travel Speed: 199 mph
Top Speed: 222 mph
JR Shinkansen
Country: Japan
Travel Speed: 199 mph
Top Speed: 275 mph
SCNCF TGV
Country: France
Travel Speed: 199 mph
Top Speed: 357 mph
DB ICE
Country: Germany
Travel Speed: 205 mph
Top Speed: 229 mph
CR Fuxing
Country: China
Travel Speed: 217 mph
Top Speed: 261 mph
CR Hexie
Country: China
Travel Speed: 217 mph
Top Speed: 302 mph
Shanghai Maglev
Country: China
Travel Speed: 286 mph
Top Speed: 311 mph