Why did China build a high-speed train that loses money every single day?

Countries & Cities · Published 3 October 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: The Shanghai Maglev is a marvel of engineering, hitting speeds of 431 km/h. Yet, it operates at a massive deficit, serving as a demonstration project rather than a profitable transit line. It was designed to showcase the future of rail, but its path to expansion was blocked by public protest.

Opened in 2004, the Shanghai Maglev was the world's first commercial high-speed magnetic levitation line. Built by a German joint venture of Siemens and ThyssenKrupp, the project cost 10 billion yuan—approximately US$1.33 billion—to construct. The line connects Longyang Road station to Pudong International Airport, covering 30 km in just over eight minutes. While it once reached operational speeds of 431 km/h, this was reduced to 300 km/h in May 2021.

The line was never intended to be a simple market solution. Instead, it served as a high-stakes sales tool to convince China to adopt maglev technology for its national high-speed rail network. However, the vision of a maglev-connected China failed to materialize. Plans for a major extension to Hangzhou were repeatedly suspended, first in 2008 due to public protests over electromagnetic radiation fears, and later because conventional high-speed rail proved more practical. Despite an environmental assessment confirming the line's safety, residents remained wary of the proximity of the track to their homes.

Today, the maglev remains a niche service. It struggles with low ridership, often operating at only 20% capacity, largely because it terminates at the outskirts of the city rather than the center. While it has safely transported over 50 million passengers and covered millions of kilometers, the line continues to operate at a significant financial loss. It stands as a testament to a grand technological ambition that was ultimately eclipsed by the rapid, more cost-effective expansion of China's conventional high-speed rail network.

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