Chinese and German experts recently held a discussion in Tianjin on the possibilities of building a magnetic levitation (maglev) train line between Beijing and Tianjin, the Xinhua News Agency reported yesterday.

Experts hope that the maglev train will help alleviate the expected traffic headaches in Beijing when it hosts the 2008 Olympic Games.

According to the report, the number of passengers coming in and out of the Beijing airport this year is estimated at more than 27 million, which will far exceed the designed capacity of the airport.

But experts attending the discussion suggested that the most simple and economical choice is to use Tianjin airport, which has long played the role of a reserve airport for Beijing and is only 137 kilometres from Beijing airport.

But some others believed that maglev trains should not be used at this time because it could costs over 100 billion yuan (US$12 billion), the report said. Maglev trains are no stranger to China. One is currently under construction in Shanghai and discussions are ongoing about the possibility of building one between Beijing and Shanghai.

( China Daily September 20, 2002)