Ride the Bullet

Transportation Secretary Ray Lahood hopped on a bullet train in a suburb of Tokyo earlier today, and experienced the thrill of a 312-mile-an-hour commute. Now there's speculation that the technology, which has been adopted for use by the Central Japan Railway Co., could make its way to the United States. It uses technology from Siemens and other companies.

That would really shake up the morning rush hour in cities across the U.S. There's talk it could be used for a proposed $5.8 billion rail link between Washington and Baltimore. The line, already served by the relatively speedy Amtrak Acela, makes the trip in 33 minutes. The Japan Central train, which uses magnetic levitation technology in which the rail car floats above the track, would cut the time to 18 minutes.

Traveling at 312 miles an hour is bound to alter everyone's perspective on running out to buy a quart of milk in the middle of the afternoon. There's a special two-time zone's away? Go for it. Here's a new expanded sense of what's close-by. Everything, really.

• From New York City to Albany, New York: The current train trip is two hours and forty minutes. It's a four-hour drive, assuming that you sit in traffic for a bit. On the bullet train, the 160 mile trip could be made in a little more than half an hour.
• New York to San Francisco: It's now a six-hour plane ride or a two-day car trip. Or a three-day odyssey by train. Using maglev technology, the 3,000 mile trip from New York to Fisherman's Wharf would be a a relaxing 10 hours.
• Chicago to Las Vegas: This 1,800 mile trip now takes 28 hours by car. How irritating. With the bullet train you can be leave the loop at lunch and be in Vegas in time for the early bird supper at 6.
• Bob Dylan is playing at a high school football stadium in Billings, Montana, but you live in Taos, New Mexico. There's no reason why you can't make it to the show. The 838 mile trip is less than three hours by maglev train.
• The baked potato stand at the mall in Huntsville, Alabama has a special on your favorite stuffed spud, but you are visiting family in Ft. Lauderdale? Place your order online right now, because it's just a two and a half hour train ride away, and you know it's worth it.