Japan pioneered the high-speed shinkansen or "bullet train", which now links Japan's largest cities at speeds of up to 320 km/h (200 mph). In recent years, however, it has often become a slang expression for any passenger train that reaches high speeds. Examples of Category 3 railway businesses include the Kōbe Rapid Transit Railway company and the government of Aomori Prefecture with regards to the Aoimori Railway. The six passenger operating companies of the JR Group are separated by region, but many operate long-distance train services beyond their regional boundaries. Examples include the Keihin-Tōhoku Line and the Shōnan-Shinjuku Line. The rail system of Japan consists of the following (as of 2009):[18]. The bullet train then whizzes on to Kumamoto, home of an impressive castle and a train ride from Mount Aso, the world's largest live volcanic caldera. It is used relatively little for freight transport, accounting for just 0.84% of goods movement. The speed of the Shinkansen bullet trains have changed over the years. The Japan Rail Pass does not cover the Nozomi bullet train. Thus, if riding the shinkansen, for instance, rather than purchasing a single shinkansen ticket, one purchases two tickets: a fare ticket (乗車券) for the distance traveled, and an additional shinkansen ticket (新幹線特急券, shinkansen tokkyūken, shinkansen special express ticket) to allow one to ride the shinkansen for that distance, rather than ordinary trains. Train numbers are almost exclusively for professional use. These include the Chūō Main Line west of Takao, the Minobu Line, and the Yosan Main Line west of Kan'onji　(3,900 mm (12 ft 10 in) height). [13], The following 16 companies are classified as the major private railways and are operating 2,870.1 kilometers of railways. The Shinkansen network uses standard gauge. Suicides often cause delays on the lines on which they occur. In both cases, the average delay is less than a minute. Automated guideway transit (rubber-tired motor cars running on concrete guideways) has also developed in Japan. Japan has an extensive and very efficient rail network, you can pretty much assume that trains go almost everywhere you'd want to visit. A ticket required for a travel by railway is called a fare ticket (乗車券, jōshaken), the price of which is fare (運賃, unchin). E5 Series Shinkansen Hayabusa trains, which entered service in March 2011, with an initial maximum speed of 300km now run on the Tohoku Shinkansen Line with a maximum operating speed of 320kmph. The process of ticket reservation utilizes the train names instead of the train numbers. Consequently, Japan had a greater need for new high-speed lines than countries where the existing standard gauge or broad gauge rail system had more upgrade potential. More than sixty additional kilometers of subway were under construction in 1990 by the two companies. As per news reports, Japan's bullet train has the capability of reaching a highest speed of 400 kms per hour. Fukuoka, Kobe, Kyoto, Nagoya, Osaka, Sapporo, Sendai, Tokyo and Yokohama have subway systems. 2. In some cases the current route of a railway has changed but the historic line name has not reflected the change, in which case the operational name will be different from the original line name. "Tōyoko Line") or the name of operator (e.g. In this video you can see the compilation of the famous high speed bullet train Shinkansen in Japan at full speed (The Yellow Doctor). Including generous portions of rice, the ekiben was a complete meal. Only a fare ticket is required to ride local trains. The JR Group lies at the heart of Japan's railway network, operating almost all intercity rail services and a large proportion of commuter rail services. All the railway and tram lines in Japan are named by the operators. Rail transport in Japan is a major means of passenger transport, especially for mass and high-speed travel between major cities and for commuter transport in urban areas. Passengers refer the railway by the name of line (e.g. Japanese trains are clean, comfortable and unbelievably punctual. Nevertheless, advances in pantograph technology have largely eliminated the need for separate rolling stock in these areas. [25] Many stations (eki) around the country soon began to make special bento featuring local specialties such as seafood, meat or vegetables. In a one-year period from April 2009, a total of 9.46 billion passengers (118 billion passenger kilometers) traveled on these major railways. It is the busiest high-speed rail service in the world, carrying more than 420,000 passengers on a typical weekday. Bullet train speed varies slightly but they usually travel between 150 mph and 187 mph (241 kph and 300 kph). The railway business was evaluated line-by-line in order to identify significantly unprofitable lines for closure. Japan's railways carried 9.147 billion passengers (260 billion passenger-kilometres) in the year 2013-14. One of the reasons for this situation was the sharp increase of ridership on the railways in the rapid growth of the postwar economy that could not be handled by small original railway terminals in the city center. For example, in JR, surcharges include: An unusual feature of Japanese surcharges, compared with other train systems, is that they often require a separate ticket. The original bullet train line, the Tokaido Shinkansen, opened in 1964 and runs from the capital city Tokyo to Osaka, a distance of about 340 miles. Railways are the most important means of passenger transportation in Japan, maintaining this status since the late nineteenth century. The Shinkansen averaged 100 mph to 131 mph (160 kph to 210 kph) in its earlier days. Their bullet train Shinkansen was one of the first of its kind and opened for public use in 1964. https://www.infobloom.com/what-is-the-average-bullet-train-speed.htm The top speed … An important aspect of the romance of the rails in Japan is the ekiben, the station bento lunchbox. Save the most bizarre for last, as the 1,000-year-old cedar trees and sprawling vegetation on Yakushima island envelop explorers in a lost world. Japan's bullet trains connect not only big cities like Tokyo and Osaka but also run through virtually every populated area of the country. Shinkansen trains, known as high-speed trains (bullet trains) or super express in Japan, are famous for their fast speed , punctuality , comfort and safety . Stops included, that's a trip of … Rail transport services in Japan are provided by more than 100 private companies, including The journey of less than four hours rivals flying times. 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