Amtrak is developing a high-speed fleet to replace their Acela Express line in 2021, but they're not the norm yet.
An Acela Express train
China's Shanghai Maglev train line has been around since 2004, and is still the fastest commercial service train in the world.
Shanghai's Maglev (magnetic levitation) train.
Amtrak trains chug along between 100 and 150 miles per hour.
Most trains travel at 100 miles per hour.
Bullet trains reach speeds of up to 186 miles per hour.
That's 300 kilometers per hour.
The interior aesthetic of an Amtrak train resembles an airplane.
An Amtrak conductor inspects a luggage compartment.
The color scheme is different on bullet trains, but it's the same idea.
The interior of a bullet train.
Business class in the US is a slight upgrade, but nothing Earth shattering.
Amtrak business class
On bullet trains in China, business class seats recline with a footrest.
Business class on a bullet train.
American Amtrak service attendants wear collared shirts and scarves.
An Amtrak worker on the job in a dining car.
China's bullet train service attendants add a hat.
A train attendant inside a CRH 380A bullet train.
Amtrak's Northeast Corridor accounts for one third of Amtrak's traffic.
It stops in Washington, DC, Philadelphia, New York City, and Boston.
In China, the high speed railway between Beijing and Shanghai is one of the busiest.
It transports passengers 819 miles in just five or six hours.
Penn Station in New York City is where Amtrak gets the most riders.
It's their busiest train station in the US.
Beijing South Railway Station is the city's largest train station at over 502,000 square feet.
Beijing South.
Amtrak's high prices dampen its popularity. A 225-mile trip from New York to Washington, DC, on the Acela express line costs $165.
An Amtrak Acela Express train.
China's high speed trains are significantly cheaper. A a 260-mile trip from Beijing to Jinan starts at $28.
A worker stands among Harmony bullet trains at a high-speed train maintenance base in Wuhan, Hubei province.
The view from both trains is pretty spectacular.
An Amtrak train travels along the coast of the Pacific Ocean.
Even if it is a bit of a blur.
A bullet train passes snow covered crops in Louyang, China, while traveling 186 miles per hour.
• Don't insult other visitors. Offensive comments will be deleted without warning.
• Comments are accepted in English only.
• No swearing words in comments, otherwise such comments will be censored.
• Your nickname and avatar are randomly selected. If you don't post comments for 7 days, they both are reset.
• To choose another avatar, click the ‘Random avatar’ link.
