GROUPS FLOAT MAGNETIC TRAIN PLAN FOR L.A.; HIGH-SPEED RAIL LINK AMONG AIRPORTS IN WORKS.

Byline: David Bloom Daily News Staff Writer

A superfast train that could link most of the suburban airports in Los Angeles - zipping riders from the Antelope Valley to Burbank in 10 to 15 minutes, for instance - was proposed Thursday before the Southern California Association of Governments.

Several groups backing mostly magnetic levitation, or maglev, technology told members of the regional planning group that such a high-speed train could draw nearly 340,000 riders a day and link up with a similar statewide system for San Diego, Sacramento and San Francisco.

One proposal touted at the meeting would have trains run on elevated tracks to the airports in Palmdale, Burbank and Ontario, as well as Union Station in downtown Los Angeles and converted military air bases at El Toro and Moreno Valley, supporters said.

Other approaches would allow for both express trains and more localized, very frequent service along such a route.

``We certainly believe maglev serves the Southern California area best,'' said Andrei Leschick, executive director of the Southern California Inland Maglev Alliance. ``It will provide the opportunity for greater ridership, so there will be greater revenues, and then you can increase the private-sector participation.''

The Southern California Association of Governments is considering including a high-speed rail line linking the airports as part of its proposed regional transportation plan, which outlines where the area's dollars will be spent in the next several years on transportation.

The association, which has representatives from city and county governments from Ventura to Imperial counties, took testimony on the idea Thursday, but members didn't express a position.

The regional plan is due for final adoption April 16.

Maglev is being considered along with more established high-speed rail technology, such as Tokyo's bullet trains and France's TGV, for the state and local lines.

But maglev supporters said their approach has many benefits vs. older high-speed rail, largely because the train wraps around the rail but doesn't actually touch it, floating in a magnetic field without friction a few centimeters from the surface.

As a result, maglev is far quieter, uses nearly one-third less power, has no exhaust emissions and fewer other environmental impacts, can't derail and has dramatically lower maintenance costs, said Daniel Flanagan, managing director for Transrapid International USA, a European-based joint venture building a 180-mile maglev system in Germany between Hamburg and Berlin.

Other companies are building maglev projects in Japan, England and Pittsburgh. The Los Angeles project would cost $6.2 billion for 240 miles of track, Flanagan said. That's roughly what the Metropolitan Transportation Authority has spent so far to build about 60 miles of subway and light rail in and around Los Angeles.

In wide-open areas such as between Palmdale and Burbank, the train could hit speeds of 220 mph, making a 30-mile commute a matter of a few minutes, Flanagan said. The governments association is projecting extremely high ridership, he said, which would allow fares to be as low as $5.