Tōkaidō Shinkansen
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Tōkaidō Shinkansen (東海道新幹線?) is the original high-speed Shinkansen line that opened in 1964 between Tokyo and Shin-Ōsaka. It is operated by the Central Japan Railway Company (JR Central), and formerly by JNR, Japan National Railways.
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[edit] History
The Tōkaidō Shinkansen line was originally conceptualized in 1940 as a 150 km/h (93 mph) dedicated railway between Tokyo and Shimonoseki, which would have been 50% faster than the fastest express train of the time. The beginning of World War II stalled the project in its early planning stages, although a few tunnels were dug that were later used in the Shinkansen route. Since the line goes through Japan's three largest metropolitan areas, it is the most heavily travelled of all Shinkansen routes.
Construction of the line began on April 20, 1959 under JNR president Shinji Sogō and chief engineer Hideo Shima. It was completed in 1964, with the first train travelling from Tokyo to Shin-Ōsaka on October 1 of that year. The opening was timed to coincide with the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, which had already brought international attention to the country. Originally the line was referred to in English as the New Tōkaidō Line. It is named after the Tōkaidō route of Japan used for centuries.
The line carried its 100 millionth passenger in 1967, and its billionth in 1976, and 4.16 billionth on its 40th anniversary in 2004.
A new Shinkansen stop at Shinagawa Station opened in October 2003, accompanied by a major timetable change which increased the number of daily Nozomi services.
All Tōkaidō Shinkansen trains to and from Tokyo make station stops at Shinagawa and Shin-Yokohama stations. (Before March 2008, alternating Nozomi and Hikari services stopped at either or both of these stations.)
A new station, Minami-Biwako, was planned to open in 2012 between Maibara and Kyoto. Construction started in May 2006, but in September 2006, the Otsu district court ruled that the ¥4.35 billion bond that Ritto city had issued to fund construction was illegal under the local finance law and had to be cancelled. The project was officially cancelled in October 2007.[1]
[edit] Trains
There are three types of trains on the line: from fastest to slowest, they are the Nozomi, Hikari, and Kodama. Many Nozomi and Hikari trains continue onward to the Sanyō Shinkansen, going as far as Fukuoka's Hakata Station.
Nozomi trains cannot be used by tourists using the Japan Rail Pass.
Train sets on the line include:
- 300 Series Nozomi / Hikari / Kodama
- 500 Series Nozomi
- 700 Series Nozomi / Hikari / Kodama
- N700 Series Nozomi / Hikari
The Hikari run from Tokyo to Osaka took four hours in 1964; this was shortened to 3 hr. 10 min. in 1965. With the introduction of high-speed Nozomi service in 1992, the travel time was shortened to 2 hr. 30 min. The introduction of N700 series trains in 2007 further reduced the Nozomi travel time to 2 hours, 25 minutes.
As of March 2008, Hikari services travel from Tokyo to Shin-Osaka in approximately 3 hours, with all-stopping Kodama services making the same run in about 4 hours.
[edit] Stations
Kodama trains stop at all stations. Nozomi and Hikari trains have varying stopping patterns.
[edit] Notes and references
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[edit] External links
- Pictures of the Tōkaidō Shinkansen route (English captions)
