14 DAY TRIAL // A new world speed record for a train on rails is to be established on Tuesday by French TGV.
Organizers will intend to reach at least 560 km (350 mi) per hour on a 73 kilometer (45.3 mile) stretch between Paris and the eastern city of Strasbourg.
The new Train a Grande Vitesse (TGV) would "depasse" a 17-year-old record of 515.3 km (320.2 mi) per hour, set by an elder version of the TGV.
The novel model, part of a 30 million euros (40 million dollars) project, is on trials since January and has already reached velocities of 559kph (347mph).
The TGV could exceed the overall world train speed record of 581kph (360.8 mph) achieved in 2003 by a Japanese magnetic levitation (Maglev) train.
The specially modified train, named V150, is made to move at 150 m (495 ft) per second.
"Beyond the technical exploit, this is part of an attempt to record data on the behavior of the infrastructure and of the rolling stock in extreme conditions which are impossible to carry out in the laboratory," said a statement by the SNCF, the rail network operator RFF, and Alstom, makers of the train.
The record attempt could boost Alstom's sales of TGVs, in a multi-billion-dollar market involved in an increasing competition with regional air links.
Japan's Shinkansen "bullet train" and Germany's Siemens, producers of the Inter-City Express (ICE), are the other main competitors in the market.
The Shinkansen, made by Kawasaki, Hitachi and Nippon Sharyo, has been on the market since 1964.
The Shinkansen and the ICE currently function on average at approximately 300kph (186 mph) but a novel Japanese train, the Fastech 360Z, which is on trials, could work at 360kph (223.5 mph).
The average velocities for the TGV are roughly 300kph (186 mph), but on the new Paris-Strasbourg line, under construction for five years, they could travel at 320kph (198.7mph).
The new line involved about 10,000 workers and 78,000 tonnes of steel, as much as in eight Eiffel towers.
"If we beat this record, that will put us in a good position with respect to our competitors who do not have this technology," said Philippe Mellier, the head of Alstom's train unit.
The main customers of high-speed trains are China, South Korea and Taiwan but Turkey, Brazil and Argentina are to join the club.