Tokaido Shinkansen

In 1964, Shinkansen (which means "new trunk line" and is also known as the bullet train) between Tokyo and Shin-Osaka became the world's first high-speed railway system, running at a maximum business speed of over 200 km/h (130-160 mph).

The nose profile, starting with the original "000 series, was reportedly based on that of the DC-8 airliner, which represented the state of the art of international air travel at the time. The Shinkansen standard track gauge of 1,435 mm enabled 25 m long bodies to be built 400 mm wider than previous conventional trains running on the standard Japanese 1,067 mm gauge. Initially formed as 12-car units, all cars were powered, relying on a new 25 kV AC (60Hz) overhead supply. Power was provided by 185kW traction motors driving each axle.

By 1992, the number of passengers transported by Shinkansen was over 600,000 a day on an average, reaching about four times of those carried by airplanes. The 0 series of shinkansen cars are on display at several locations around the country, including transport museums in Tokyo and Osaka. Also, end vehicles from the "WIN350" and "STAR21" test trains are also on static display at the RTRI wind tunnel facility in Maihara.

Tokaido Shinkansen (bullet train)

Anonymous — Wed, 25 Jul 2012 07:40:11 +0000

Tokaido Shinkansen (bullet train)

(not verified) Wed, 07/25/2012 - 03:40

Society

Main Category

Sub Category

Era

Date Created

Location Country

Coordinates

35.680833, 139.766944

Address1

Tokyo to Shimonoseki

Address2

??? Marunouchi, Chiyoda-ku, T?ky?-to

City

Nagoya

State

Ch?bu region

Country

Japan

Zip

100-0005

Website

http://www.ieeeghn.org/wiki/index.php/Milestones:Tokaido_Shinkansen_%28Bullet_T…

Creator

Shima, Hideo

The Tokaido Shinkansen, the world's first inter-city, high-speed railway system, began operations on its route of over 500 kilometers between Tokyo and Osaka more than thirty years ago, in 1964. After its establishment, the Tokaido Shinkansen made a major contribution to Japan's rapid post-war economic growth as the country's principal transportation artery. Today (1997), more than two hundred and eighty Shinkansen trains operate between Tokyo and Osaka each day, with eleven departures an hour at peak times, and a daily ridership of more than 360,000 passengers.

The Shinkansen can be summed up as an inter-city passenger transportation system that has been developed by constantly seeking to expand the limits of the special advantages of railways, including safety, reliability, high speed, and large transportation capacity. The success of Japan's Shinkansen has led to the reevaluation of railways round the world, and a number of nations are now operating and planning high-speed railways based on concepts similar to that of the Shinkansen.