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Difference Between Bullet Train and Normal Train

  • Admin
  • 16 Oct 2023
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Trains have been quite a popular mode of transportation from the 19th century. The first steam train was built in the year 1804. Initially, people thought that the speed of the trains would make the people unconscious. However, with time, trains became more advanced and today it is one of the best and the most reasonably priced mode of transportation to long distances.

What is High Speed/Bullet Train and Normal train?

Bullet Train

Trains that move at a speed of 250 kmph or above are referred to as speed trains or bullet trains. For safety reasons, the speed limits might also be lowered. There are a total of 16 nations that have these bullet trains. China has 27000 km tracks for the high speed trains and this is the longest track in the world. Other countries like Germany, France etc. have as much as 1000 kilometer long tracks dedicated for high speed trains.

Normal Train

The trains that run on the ballasted tracks and have a speed of around 160 kmph and in some case a speed of 200 kmph is the normal trains.

Infrastructure of the Bullet train and Normal Train

Bullet Train Infrastructure

There are some tracks constructed only for the bullet trains. There are also certain other tracks that have been upgraded for the running of the high speed trains. For the tracks that are exclusively constructed for high speed trains should have a speed limit of at least 250 km/hr.

On the other hand the speed limit of 200 km/hr is to be maintained on tracks that have been upgraded for high speed trains.

In most cases, it has been observed that the bullet trains run on the conventional tracks. But these tracks are constructed with materials that are much stronger. On these tracks, it is necessary for the train to have a total of two engines or power cars. These are situated each on both ends. There are certain pantographs mounted on the roofs and these trains receive the power from these.

A larger portion of the regular routine alignments are also kept straight and this supports high speed. It is true that most countries have dedicated tracks for these bullet trains, however, they can also run on conventional tracks with much lesser speed.

Normal Train Infrastructure

The normal trains are the ones that have changed the background of the transportation. This happened when locomotive was launched in England for the first time in the year 1797. The locomotive is that part of the train that helps the other train parts to move. It was just after that the railroads started being constructed.

Moreover, both the freight cars as well as the passenger cars were connected to the steam. The operation of the steam locomotives depended completely on the burning coal. This was used to heat the water in the boiler. When the water vaporized then the steam came out through the valves.

This would help the piston move back and forth. The piston motion was then transferred to the train wheels and this powered the movement of the train.

How do the Bullet train and Normal Train work?

Bullet Train Work

The bullet trains have magnetic levitation. These electromagnets tend to leviate these bullet trains at a very short distance just above the railway tracks. There is also a thrust created by these trains and it is this thrust that helps the trains to move.

These trains also have better controls as neither the brakes nor the acceleration depends on the friction between the various tracks. Moreover constructing trains is also not very easy.

Normal Train Work

The steam engines were then replaced by new technology. It was during this time that the diesel engines came into existence.

After that, there were certain engines that started running on electricity. These were the ones that actually replaced the diesel engines at a later stage.

Read more: Most Important Thing To Carry While Traveling In Trains

Differences between Bullet train and Normal train

Bullet train

Normal Train

1. Bullet train speed varies between 250 to 350 km/hr. 1. Normal train speed between 160 Km/hr 200 km/hr.
2. Maximum 2 or lesser number stoppages. 2. Higher number of stoppages
3. High speed trains believe in magnetic levitation. 3. The normal trains run on a ballasted track

Also Read : World’s 10 Most Dangerous Train Routes

Reason why Bullet trains are needed

Each day traveling by air is becoming less expensive. As a result, the demand of traveling by air has increased to a great extent.

On the other hand, there are some passenger trains that are mostly overcrowded. This is true for some of the routes and not for all of them. It is therefore required to transport a high number of people from one place to another in an environment-friendly way.

Also Read : 10 International Train Routes from India To Other Countries

Why trains are still popular?

In order to transport heavy freight from one place to another, it is very important for the trains to operate properly. In the initial years, coal was used in order to power the steam locomotives.

But today there are electric power plants that help in running these trains. With the invention of airplanes and automobiles, the popularity of trains also decreased to a great extent. This is because with the invention of these people were able to reach their destinations at a much higher speed.

But the passenger trains today have a new market. They mainly transport people within and around the large cities. These routes are fixed and there are also no traffics.

As a result, the underground subway trains and the above-ground commuter trains have become highly popular especially in metropolitan areas. These trains are highly popular in New York City.

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