A few years from now, a high-speed bullet train will be zipping along the rails in India—and here's the really cool part: It will go underwater.
Part of India's efforts to modernize its railway network, the train is planned for service between the cities of Mumbai and Ahmedabad; along the way, it would pass through a 13-mile undersea tunnel connecting Thane and Virar.
At the moment, the entire journey takes about seven hours. The new train, traveling at a speedy 350 kilometers per hour (217 mph), would reduce that to two hours.
The bullet train will be similar to the sleek Shinkansen of Japan—in fact, that country's government has agreed to cover 80% of the estimated $14.5 billion the project will cost. Analysts surmise that Japan is trying to counteract some of the infrastructure investments made in the region by rival China.
Construction is scheduled to begin next year and be finished by 2023.
