The world's most spectacular high speed trains

By Sanskrity Sinha | March 09 2011 7:36 AM

Photo: REUTERS/Ho New

1. Bombardier Double-deck train, Switzerland

A picture from an animation of the new train from Canada's Bombardier Inc, one of the world's leading rail equipment manufacturer, is shown in this handout photo. Bombardier Inc won an order for 59 double-deck trains worth $1.7 billion, from Swiss Federal Railways (SBB) in May 2010. These trains run at speeds of up to 160 kilometers per hour on various European rail routes.

Photo: REUTERS/KYODO Kyodo

2. Hayabusa bullet train, Japan

The newly debuted Hayabusa shinkansen or bullet train departs from Aomori station in Aomori, northern Japan on March 5, 2011. The Tohoku Shinkansen Line which is the first new model deployed by the service's operator, East Japan Railway Co., since December 1997. Hayabusa can travel at speeds of up to 300 kilometer per hour and it has the longest nose of any shinkansen at 15 meters. According to the East Japan Railway Co., Hayabusa is a fast way to travel between Tokyo and various cities in the Tohoku region.

Photo: REUTERS/Jason Lee

3. CRH Harmony bullet train, China

A visitor looks at the head of a CRH (China Railway High-speed) Harmony bullet train at an exhibition for the Seventh World Congress on High Speed Rail in Beijing December on 7, 2010. China plans to build 13,000 km (8,078 miles) of high-speed railway by 2012, more than the rest of the world combined. Bullet trains are serving a new high-speed railway linking Shanghai and Hangzhou in Shanghai. CRH bullet trains' speeds vary from 250 to 350 kilometers per hour.

Photo: REUTERS/Heino Kalis

4. High-speed AVE train, Spain

A high-speed AVE train, which has a top speed of between 300-350 kilometer per hour (186-217 mph), is seen at the Joaquin Sorolla station in Valencia. The train provides a one-and-a-half hour one-way ride linking Madrid and Valencia in Spain. AVE train also links Madrid to Barcelona in less than three hours on a one-way ride.

Photo: REUTERS/Lehtikuva Lehtikuva

5. Allegro train, Finland & Russia

An Allegro train travels at a railway station in Helsinki. The new high speed rail link, the Allegro train between Helsinki, Finland and St Petersburg, Russia came into service in December 2010. The Allegro train cuts the travelling time between Helsinki and St Petersburg by two hours.