Chūō Shinkansen

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Chūō Shinkansen (中央新幹線^?) is a proposed maglev line connecting Tokyo, Nagoya, and Osaka, Japan. Currently the only part of the line that exists is the Yamanashi test track. It is proposed to connect Tokyo and Nagoya in the first stage in 40 minutes, and eventually Tokyo and Osaka in an hour. It is a culmination of the maglev development since the 1970s, a government funded project initiated by Japan Airlines and the former JNR. JR Central now operates the facilities and research. The trainsets themselves are popularly known in Japan as Linear Motor Car (リニアモーターカー, rinia mōtā kā^?), though there have been many technical variations.

In April 2007, JR Central President Masayuki Matsumoto said that JR Central would aim to begin commercial maglev service between Tokyo and Nagoya in the year 2025.^[1] On December 25, 2007, JR Central announced that they would begin construction on the track from Tokyo to Nagoya, costing about 5.1 trillion yen (44 billion USD) and scheduled to be completed by 2025.^[2][3]

[edit] Yamanashi Test Track

Formerly, a test track was built in Miyazaki Prefecture for maglev research and development in the 1970s. After many successes, an eighteen-kilometer test track with tunnels and bridges and slopes has been built between Otsuki and Tsuru, Yamanashi Prefecture. Although exact route planning and construction for the line have not begun, the Yamanashi track may be integrated into the line at a later date. The trainsets are currently being tested for durability and cost reduction, and have operating speeds of over 500 km/h (310 mph), making the Chūō Shinkansen the world's fastest railway. Citizens of Yamanashi Prefecture and government officials are eligible for free rides, and over 200,000 people have taken part.

[edit] Route choice

The Chūō Shinkansen's proposed route follows the Chūō Main Line between Tokyo and Nagoya, and the Kansai Main Line between Nagoya and Osaka through many sparsely-populated areas, but it was chosen as the Tōkaidō route is congested, and to provide an alternative route if the Tōkaidō Shinkansen were to become blocked by earthquake damage. JR Central sometimes refers to the track as the Tōkaidō Bypass.

JR Central announced in July 2008 that the Chūō Shinkansen would most likely start at Tokyo's Shinagawa station, citing difficulties in securing land at nearby Tokyo and Shinjuku stations for a maglev terminal.^[4]

A JR Central report on the Chūō Shinkansen was approved by a Liberal Democratic Party panel in October 2008, which certified three proposed routes for the Maglev. According to a Japan Times news article, JR Central supports the more direct route, which would cost less money to build than the other two proposals, backed by Nagano Prefecture. The latter two plans have the line swinging up north between Kōfu and Nakatsugawa stations to serve areas within Nagano.^[5] In June 2009, JR Central also announced the result of estimated research about comparing three routes, and it showed the most economic and fastest one is the shortest Plan C, with long tunnels under Japan Alps (Akaishi Mountains). ^[6]

The details of three route between Tokyo (Shinagawa) - Nagoya

[edit] Costs

On December 25, 2007, JR Central announced that it plans to raise funds for the construction of the Chūō Shinkansen on its own, without government financing. Total cost is estimated to reach 5.1 trillion yen.^[7] The company said it can make a pretax profit of around 70 billion yen in 2026, when the operating cost stabilizes.^[8] The primary reason for the project's huge expense is that it is planned to run in a tunnel for more than 60% of the entire line, and 40 m underground (deep underground) for a total of 100 km in the Tokyo, Nagoya and Osaka areas.

[edit] Technical

On December 2, 2003, MLX-01, a three-car train set a world record speed of 581 km/h (361 mph) in a manned vehicle run. It also passed another record of two trains passing each other at a combined 1,026 km/h (638 mph). The "linear" term is in reference to the use of a linear motor as its method of propulsion.

[edit] References

[edit] See also

• JR-Maglev
• Maglev train
• Transrapid
• Aérotrain
• High-speed rail
• Shinkansen

[edit] External links

• Central Japan Railway's information about the Chūō Shinkansen
• JR Central's website for the Linear-Express service (in Japanese)
• Linear Chūō Express (in Japanese)
• Photo Page with info about the Chuo Shinkansen (in English)

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