High-speed Japanese trains: description, types and reviews

2024 Author: Henry Conors | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-12 02:41

Asia and Europe are complete opposites. It is very difficult for a European to understand how an Asian builds his life, what he thinks about, what rules he obeys. But still, the eastern countries attract tourists with their beauty and originality, besides, many Asian states can boast of a high standard of living and new technologies introduced into the life of ordinary people. Japan is especially interesting in this regard. Those who have had the pleasure of traveling through the Land of the Rising Sun will never be able to forget the Japanese trains that cover many kilometers in just a matter of minutes.

Japan is a country of high technology and patriarchal traditions

Japan is located in East Asia and covers almost seven thousand islands. This geographical feature affects the whole way of life of the locals. The country's population of 127 million lives in large cities. Onlyless than five percent of all Japanese can afford to live outside the metropolis, and this division is very conditional. Indeed, in Japan it is difficult to find an area that would not be used for the benefit of the state. The Japanese are trying to build up every millimeter of land with various buildings, as a result, only coastal strips remain free, subject to periodic flooding.

But the Japanese have learned to deal with this disaster, for many years they have been moving deep into the Pacific Ocean and the South China Sea, creating artificial islands. A severe shortage of free land has forced Japan to develop a high-tech water settlement program that has performed very well over the past decades.

Features of Japanese life force the population to constantly move around the country. Every day, several thousand people travel from the suburbs to work in their offices located in Tokyo or Osaka. Avoid crowds during peak hours and save time with a Japanese bullet train.

Shinkansen - High Speed Rail

For Russians, traveling by rail can hardly be called comfortable and fast. The average resident of our country, going on vacation, tries to choose air transport. But in the Land of the Rising Sun, all records in terms of popularity and demand are beaten by Japanese trains. This is a very special type of transport that can cover a distance of 600 kilometers in just a couple of hours.

High-speed trains and railwayThe road in Japan is called "Shinkansen". Literally, this name can be translated as "new trunk line". Indeed, during the construction of this highway, the Japanese used a lot of new technologies and for the first time moved away from the traditional type of railway adopted at that time.

Now the Shinkansen connects almost all the cities of Japan, the length of the line is more than 27 thousand kilometers. Moreover, 75 percent of the railway track belongs to the largest company in Japan - Japan Railwais Group.

Japanese bullet train: first run

The need for new railway lines appeared in Japan before the eighteenth Summer Olympics. The fact is that until that time the railway track was a narrow-gauge railway. This fact did not meet international standards and significantly slowed down the development of the industry. Therefore, in 1964, the first Shinkansen line was launched, connecting Tokyo and Osaka. The length of the railway was just over 500 kilometers.

At that time, high-speed trains in Japan broke all records, reaching a speed of 220 kilometers per hour. Despite the difficulties in the economy, the Japanese government managed to allocate funds for the development of the railway industry in the country. As a result, the Shinkansen has become one of the brightest symbols of the Land of the Rising Sun.

Development and Features

Initially, high-speed Japanese trains were planned to be used as a means of transporting passengers and goods. But from this plan very quicklyrefused, and now the Shinkansen only carries passengers. At night, the line is completely closed, maintenance of the stations and the railway track is carried out until six in the morning.

The new highway began to make a profit very quickly, in three years it fully paid off due to the ticket price. Even now they are quite high. For example, a trip from Tokyo to Osaka will cost an adult $130. But for the Japanese, this amount is not too serious, they easily give this money for fast and comfortable movement around the country.

Now most Japanese trains reach speeds of 320 kilometers per hour. For this, all the old lines have been redone, but the Japanese do not stop there. They are working on the creation of new lines, on which the speed limit will exceed 590 kilometers per hour.

Daily, high-speed Japanese trains carry up to 400,000 passengers. The rapid development of the railway industry led to the decline of Japan's civil aviation. Domestic flights are practically not in demand, and air carriers suffer huge losses. Many airlines are trying to attract passengers by lowering the price of flights to the minimum limit.

What do Shinkansen trains look like?

Tourists call Japanese trains "bullets" or "platypuses", which is caused by the appearance of the train itself. It consists of 16 cars, the head car has a slightly elongated front part, resembling a spout. It is worth noting that the Japanese paid the appearance of theirhigh-speed trains a lot of attention. Almost all of them are painted silver with the addition of green or turquoise paint. Against the backdrop of urban landscapes, it looks very impressive.

Up to ten trains can operate simultaneously on one line, the interval of movement does not exceed five minutes even during peak hours.

Is it convenient to travel on high-speed trains in Japan? Reviews

It is worth noting that the Japanese approached their trains and the design of stations thoroughly. As travelers note, everything is strictly decorated, but very comfortable. There are soft chairs in each car, you can buy coffee and other drinks in special vending machines. During the journey, special people offer to buy lunch. Moreover, judging by the reviews of tourists, the menu is very diverse. You can try traditional Japanese dishes such as sushi, and ordinary sandwiches known throughout the world.

The only thing that will not please you while traveling is the landscape outside the window. Almost the entire route runs through cities and industrial zones. During the journey, the landscape does not change, and it is difficult to see something beautiful and traditional for Japan. If you come to the Land of the Rising Sun in winter, then keep in mind that a beautiful winter and Japanese trains are absolutely incompatible things. You will not be able to enjoy the snow-covered gardens, although their replicated views are one of the hallmarks of Japan. All the beauty of Japanese gardens is concentrated in city parks; outside their borders, a dullindustrial landscape.

The stations where the trains stop are very strict, but it is not difficult to navigate inside. Each station has many signs made in different colors. Even intuitively, a tourist can understand where to go and where to buy a ticket.

Japanese high speed train uncensored

Since almost the entire population of a multimillion-strong country uses the services of high-speed trains, it is not surprising that the life of every Japanese is connected with them. The stories of Japanese erotomaniacs who specially travel by transport during peak hours to grope women have received great fame in the media.

The fact is that during rush hours people are literally packed into the cars. There are even specially trained people at the stations. They work equally well in the subway and at railway stations, where several thousand people gather at certain hours at the same time.

Such closeness to each other, not accepted in Japan, became the impetus for the development of a special kind of perversion - groping. Japanese men are closer to the woman and try to touch her intimate places, and many do it deliberately rude and arrogant. This led to the fact that during peak hours, rail transport began to be called the "Japanese pleasure train." Such violence lasted for several decades and reached its climax by the beginning of the 2000s. The policemen, to whom the detained men were brought, called them "ticans" or "chikans". Police make over 2,000 arrests of tickans a year, most often inthe women themselves lead the plot. Japanese women have ceased to be ashamed of such cases and are actively fighting against perverts. Although, according to women, there are no fewer ticks on trains. Moreover, their number is only increasing every year.

Women Only Carriages

In order to fight perverts, the Japanese government introduced special women's carriages as an experiment. They run in the morning and evening hours. On holidays, two carriages with the sticker "Women Only" are included in one train.

This practice was highly appreciated by Japanese women. They can ride high-speed trains without worrying about ticks. Women with children and disabled people of any gender can ride in women's carriages. Initially, such cars were introduced on the most popular routes, but now "Women Only" cars can be seen on any railway route in the country.

High-speed trains for multiple people

In recent years, in Japan, the population has been actively moving to megacities, villages are emptying, and some stations are closed. There are cases when Japanese schoolgirls on a train coming from the suburbs were the only category of passengers. Such routes are very unprofitable for the railway companies, but they are still not closed until the schoolgirls finish their studies. This concern for people is very characteristic of Japan and its government.

Types of high-speed trains

High-speed trains in Japan are divided intoseveral types, they differ in the class of wagons, speed and ticket price. The most expensive and comfortable are "nozomi". These trains are capable of reaching speeds of over 300 kilometers per hour. The number of stops on their route is limited, many tourists consider them to be an express train. Cars in such trains are among the most comfortable in Japan, they are designed by advanced companies known for their work for Japanese corporations.

The second category is hikari. They make a few more stops, tickets for their route will be underpriced. But in terms of class, the cars are not too different from the "nozomi", besides, the travel time increases by only 30 minutes.

Kodama trains are the slowest trains, stopping at all major stations, which significantly increases travel time. For example, the difference in time on the same route between "nozomi" and "kodama" is one and a half hours.

Magnev is the future of Japan's railways

Japanese specialists are constantly working to improve the transport so popular in the country. There are already lines running maglev trains. True, while this type of public transport is at the experimental stage. But it is worth noting that the experiment has already proved to be very successful. For example, a new Japanese train, launched in test mode, managed to exceed the speed of 600 kilometers per hour. Several trains on magneticcushion already run between major cities in Japan on a regular basis, but their speed does not exceed 500 kilometers per hour.

It is likely that in the future all the country's railways will be transferred to a new mode of operation, and Japanese trains will again beat all world speed records.

High-speed underwater tunnels

The island location of Japan gave experts the idea of creating underwater tunnels, which will relieve land railways and subways. The project is still under development, but it is already known that it will connect major cities with the island of Hokkaido, and the line will be 54 kilometers long.

Japanese specialists plan to complete all calculations by next year, and in four years to start building a new high-speed highway that will run under the Tsugaru Strait.

It is not known how the future of Japanese high-speed trains will turn out, but one thing is for sure right now - they will be the fastest and most comfortable in the world. Otherwise, they simply don't know how in Japan.