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The train that never came; how maglev technology was derailed
(techcentral.co.za)
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this post was submitted on 12 Aug 2025
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No, the other commentator is right.
What they said is that you add 100 km/h, and you gain 2h when you add it to a slow train with 100 km/h, but if you add 100 km/h to a fast train with 400 km/h, you only gain a few minutes.
That is called diminishing returns.
That's not diminishing returns in terms of time and speed, which is CanadaPlus' point. 100km/h faster is 100km/h faster, not 100% increase each time. The time reduction is perfectly in line with the added speed, so for 100 kilometers of distance:
100km/h = 1hr -> 200km/h = 1/2hr -> 300km/h = 1/3hr -> 400km/h = 1/4hr
It would be diminishing returns if doubling the speed each time didn't halve the travel time, but "diminishing input = diminishing output", or 100% -> 50% -> 25%, etc, is not diminishing returns, that's linear.
The first time they added/input twice as much speed. The second time they didn't.
An actual example of diminishing returns would be the cost to speed ratio, where doubling the budget each time will not result in a doubled speed, e.g.
$10m = 100km/h -> $20m = 200km/h -> $40m = 325km/h -> $80m = 525km/h