Approximately eight million people travel between Melbourne and Sydney each year, and that number is set to double within the next 25 years. There is doubt that the country’s current infrastructure can meet this demand, so international design firm Hassell Studios set about to prove there was a better solution than 16-lane highways and endless traffic. The firm recently unveiled the Australian High Speed Vehicle (A-HSV), a double-decker train concept that could revolutionize the way Aussies travel.

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Post tags: australia, australia high speed rail, australia high speed train, green transportation, Hassell Studios, high speed rail, HK Monaro, Melbourne, muscle car, sydney, traffic, train, urban commuting

The Coalition for Sustainable Rail (CSR) has announced plans to create the world’s first carbon-neutral high-speed locomotive. Working with the University of Minnesota’s Institute on the Environment (IonE) and the nonprofit Sustainable Rail International (SRI), CSR plans to “create the world’s cleanest, most powerful passenger locomotive, proving the viability of solid biofuel and modern steam locomotive technology”.

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Post tags: alternative fuels, BIOCOAL, biofuel, carbon neutral train, CARBON-NETURAL, Coalition for Sustainable Rail, high speed rail, LOCOMOTIVE, rail, SOLID BIOFUEL, train, trains, Transportation Tech, University of Minnesota

The European Platform on Mobility Management (EPOMM) just unveiled a new interactive web tool that makes it easy to compare transportation data between cities internationally. Now analysts, designers, and planners can conveniently view data on transportation habits in hundreds of cities. Unfortunately, all of this data highlights how far behind American cities are compared to European cities.

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Post tags: alternative transportation, bikes, bus, cars, commute, epomm, european platform on mobility management, green transportation, interactive map, subway, switchboard, tems, train, transit, urban transportation, walk

While politicians on both sides of the aisle in the U.S. are debating the benefits of high-speed rail, the news in Italy is that Michelangelo’s statue of David may be at risk of being toppled by the construction of a high-speed rail line nearby. The statue’s flimsy ankles apparently could give way due to vibrations during construction, the Telegraph is reporting.

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Post tags: Accademia Gallery, Accademia Gallery high speed rail, David, florence, high speed rail, high-speed rail italy, hsr florence, Michelangelo, Michelangelo’s statue of David, rail, Statue of David, train

In October, Inhabitat brought you news about China claiming to have broken the speed record for locally produced trains with one of their scheduled service trains reaching an impressive 262 mph. Now, they’ve not only gone and beat that speed, but decimated it by an extra 40 mph. That’s right, one of China’s high-speed rail trains has reached an astounding 302 mph.

Read the rest of Chinese Commercial Train Obliterates Speed Record At 302MPH

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Post tags: 300mph, Beijing, beijing shanghai high speed rail, china, china 302mph, china high speed record, chinese, chinese high speed train 302mph, chinese train speed record, fast, fastest, high speed rail, HighSpeedRail, inhabitat china high speed, rail, record, shanghai, speed, train, trains, world record, WorldRecord, worlds fastest, WorldsFastest

Think public transportation isn’t sexy? What about if BMW designs your city’s subway system? The luxury auto maker did just that in Poland, where it plans to launch the Inspiro subway car. Created by BMW’s DesignworksUSA team, the Inspiro features an energy-efficient lightweight aluminum chassis that is 97.5% recyclable, a vast interior, tree branch-shaped handholds and plenty of room for maps and other relevant information.

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Post tags: BMW, inspiro, Poland, public transportation, subway, train, warsaw

China’s high speed rail service has been making headlines for months, breaking speed records, and announcing plans to make rail links from Asia to Europe. However this week, the Chinese rail service is claiming yet another record has been smashed by one of their locally produced trains reaching a top speed of 262 miles per hour – the fastest ever by a scheduled train. But there is a bit of controversy – read on to see why some people are questioning China’s claim.

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Post tags: bullet train, BulletTrain, china, china high speed rail, chinese, CRH380, green transportation, Hangzhou, high speed, high speed rail, HighSpeed, HighSpeedRail, train, Travel, traveling

Good news for European jet-setters: traveling from the U.K. to Germany and Holland is about to get a whole lot easier. German rail company Deutsche Bahn is in the testing stages for a cross-channel bullet train route from London to Frankfurt and Amsterdam — and it could be ready within three years. This marks the first time that there will be direct rail service from London to Amsterdam.

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Post tags: Amsterdam, bullet train, deutsche bahn, FRANKFURT, high speed rail, London, train

When we first saw this amazing mobile subway garden, we were floored – but then we realized that it doesn’t exist yet. That’s right, the green art project for Chicago is still being worked on, and there is a chance that without additional funding it might not become a reality. The basic gist of the installation is a native plant garden that would live right on top of the rolling stock of a CTA train. If you want to see the mobile garden come to fruition, visit this link and let them know!

+ Mobile Garden Chicago

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Post tags: Art, cta, eco design, eco-art, garden, Gardening, green design, joseph baldwin, mobile garden, train, urban green space

Los Angeles is taking a progressive look at public transportation and railLA is leading the way, bringing together the forces of the Los Angeles Chapters of the American Institute of Architects and the American Planning Association (APA). Today marks the launch of the railLA exhibition, LA Beyond Cars: A Global Perspective on Rail and Public Space. Locals and visitors alike are invited to view new ideas for establishing sustainable public transportation in a city laden with cars.

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Post tags: aia, AIA Los Angeles, APA, APA Los Angeles, green transportation, high speed rail, inhabitat, Inhabitat LA, Inhabitat Los Angeles, public transportation, railLA, sustainable transportation, train

The downturn in the economy only added to what was already a desperate situation in Detroit, Michigan. Over at the Architect’s Newspaper we spotted this great idea to bring the bustling atmosphere of Detroit back to life through futuristic transportation infrastructure. Dave Bing, Detroit’s Mayor announced in his State of the City address a series of drastic measures to get the city on its feet. Among those measures is re-creating the urban density that once made Detroit hum with energy. Another is finally getting the funding to start the first phase of a light rail project that will provide much needed public transportation to the city’s population.

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Post tags: alternative transportation, commuter train, dave bing, detroit, green transportation, green travel, light rail, Michigan, train

China is speeding towards the future of public transportation with the launch of the fastest high-speed train on the planet! Averaging 217 mph (350 km/h), the new train is faster than a speeding bullet train, and will link Wuhan in central China to Guangzhou in the south, covering a total distance of 663 miles (1,068 km). The new rail service will cut the travel time between the cities from over 6 hours down to 2 hours and 45 minutes. Note to the US: we need one of these!

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Post tags: china, green design, high speed rail, high speed rail line, sustainable design, sustainable transportation, train, US, world's fastest train

This week the UK joined the ranks of many other European countries as it unveiled its first domestic high-speed rail service. The 140 mph Japanese-built Javelin trains will be slightly more expensive to ride than their slow-poke counterparts, but they will drastically cut down on journey times.

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Post tags: green design, green transportation, high speed rail, high speed train, Javelin, London, sustainable design, train, trains, UK

Instead of acting as one of the most bland parts of city landscapes, what if manholes served a purpose? That’s what designers Cheolyeon Jo and Youngsun Lee propose with their “Eco Sign“, an electronic manhole cover that gives directions to the closest train or bus stop.

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Post tags: bus, Electricity, green design, hydroelectric, kinetic energy, manhole, rainwater, renewable energy, sustainable design, train

Japan’s Kawasaki Heavy Industries Ltd. recently announced that it is developing the country’s fastest high speed train! Named the “Environmentally Friendly Super Express Train” (efSET), the modern marvel will propel passengers along at 217 miles per hour, besting the record-holding Shinkansen‘s 186mph. The streamlined design also promises to be less noisy, more energy efficient, and will feature a state-of-the-art electrical control system.

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Post tags: bullet train, fastest train, Japan, kawasaki, train

We’ve done bikes, cars, boats, and even planes here at Transportation Tuesday, but we never expected to see this one. As part of General Electric’s ecomagination campaign, the engineers behind this project dreamt up a way to transform one of the oldest and most powerful forms of transportation in the planet into an energy efficient marvel. Introducing, the Hybrid Locomotive!


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Post tags: battery, diesel, ecomagination, GE, GE Evolution Hybrid, general electric, hybrid, salt, train