The builders quote a very favorable comparison with a German high-speed train, but the problem is that they did so without considering a commercial seating in the Transrapid. Note that the maglev also needs electricity to keep the trains afloat, not just for propulsion -- hence more realistic estimates put maglev and normal high-speed about level in long-distance operation, albeit with the maglev going faster. On shorter distances or with many stops, the maglev even consumes significantly more, as I found in a calculation regarding the now killed Metrorapid project.

_{*Lunatic*, n.
One whose delusions are out of fashion.}