Tōhoku Shinkansen
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| Tōhoku Shinkansen | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Tōhoku Shinkansen bilevel E4 series train |
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| Info | |||
| Type | Shinkansen | ||
| Locale | Japan | ||
| Termini | Tokyo Hachinohe |
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| Stations | 21 | ||
| Operation | |||
| Opened | 23 June 1982 | ||
| Owner | JR East | ||
| Depot(s) | Tokyo, Sendai, Morioka | ||
| Technical | |||
| Line length | 593.1 km | ||
| Track gauge | 1,435 mm | ||
| Electrification | 25 kV AC, overhead catenary | ||
| Operating speed | 275 km/h | ||
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The Tōhoku Shinkansen (東北新幹線) is a Japanese high-speed Shinkansen rail line, connecting Tokyo with Hachinohe in Aomori Prefecture for a total length of 593 km, Japan's longest Shinkansen line. It runs through the more sparsely populated Tōhoku region of Japan's main island Honshū. It has two spur lines, Yamagata Shinkansen and Akita Shinkansen, not shown on the map. The line is operated by East Japan Railway Company (JR East).
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[edit] Timeline
- November 28, 1971: Construction starts on line.
- June 23, 1982: Ōmiya-Morioka section opens.
- March 14, 1985: Ueno-Ōmiya section opens.
- June 20, 1991: Tokyo-Ueno section opens.
- October 1998: 1 billionth passenger carried on Tōhoku, Jōetsu and Nagano Shinkansen lines.
- December 1, 2002: Morioka-Hachinohe section opens.
An extension from Hachinohe to Shin-Aomori is under construction and is scheduled to open in December 2010.[1] From Aomori, construction is underway to continue the line under the name Hokkaidō Shinkansen, passing through the world's longest railway tunnel, the Seikan Tunnel to Shin-Hakodate on Hokkaidō, and eventually all the way to Sapporo.
The mountainous terrain that the line passes through has necessitated heavy reliance on tunnels. The Iwate-Ichinohe Tunnel on the Morioka-Hachinohe stretch, completed in 2000, was briefly the longest land rail tunnel at 25.8 km, but in 2005 it was superseded by the Hakkōda Tunnel on the extension to Aomori, at 26.5 km. The Lötschberg Base Tunnel in Switzerland has now superseded both.
[edit] Services
There are currently three services in operation:
- Hayate, Tokyo - Hachinohe limited-stop, starting December 2002
- Yamabiko, Tokyo - Sendai limited-stop, and all-stations to Morioka, starting June 1982
- Nasuno, Tokyo-Kōriyama all-stations, starting 1995
One service has been discontinued:
- Aoba, Tokyo - Sendai all-stations, June 1982 - October 1997 (consolidated with Nasuno)
Through trains on the Akita Shinkansen and Yamagata Shinkansen lines also run on Tōhoku Shinkansen tracks from Morioka and Fukushima respectively.
The maximum line speed is currently 240 km/h between Ōmiya and Utsunomiya, 275 km/h between Utsunomiya and Morioka, and 260 km/h between Morioka and Hachinohe. From early 2011, the maximum line speed is scheduled to be raised to 275 km/h between Ōmiya and Utsunomiya, and to 300 km/h between Utsunomiya and Morioka. The line speed will be further increased to 320 km/h between Utsunomiya and Morioka from early 2013.[1]
[edit] Rolling stock
As of June 2009, the following types are used on Tōhoku Shinkansen services.
- 200 series: Yamabiko / Nasuno services
- 400 series: Tsubasa / Nasuno services
- E2 series: Hayate / Yamabiko / Nasuno services
- E3 series: Komachi / Tsubasa / Yamabiko / Nasuno services
- E4 series: Max Yamabiko / Max Nasuno services
- E5 series: Hayate services (from spring 2011)
- E6 series: Komachi services (from March 2013)
[edit] Types no longer used
- E1 series: Max Yamabiko services (July 1994–December 1999)
[edit] Non-revenue-earning types
[edit] List of stations
[edit] Planned extension
| Station | Japanese | Distance (km) (from Tokyo) |
Transfers | Location | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hachinohe Station | 八戸 | 593.1 | Hachinohe Line, Aoimori Railway Line | Hachinohe | Aomori Prefecture |
| Shichinohe-Towada Station | 七戸十和田 | 628.2 | Shichinohe | ||
| Shin-Aomori Station | 新青森 | 674.9 | Ōu Main Line, Hokkaido Shinkansen (2015?) | Aomori | |
[edit] See also
Media related to Tōhoku Shinkansen at Wikimedia Commons
[edit] References
- JR Timetable, December 2008
- ^ a b JR East press release: "東北新幹線八戸～新青森間の開業時期について" (10 November 2008). Retrieved on 11 November 2008. (Japanese)
[edit] External links
- JR East website (Japanese)
- Japan blasts longest land tunnel
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