Just over 60 years ago, in the early hours of October 1, 1964, an elegant blue and white train glided smoothly through Tokyo’s urban outskirts, on tracks that took it south toward the city of Osaka. This was the beginning of the age of “bullet trains” in Japan, widely considered the symbol of the country’s impressive rebirth after World War II.
With the Tokyo Olympics that same year, the technological marvel of the 1960s marked the return of the Japanese nation to the international scene.
In the six decades since the launch of the first train, the word Shinkansen — which means bullet train in Japanese — has become an international synonym for speed, efficiency and modernity.
Japan remains a world leader in railway technology. Powerful conglomerates like Hitachi and Toshiba export billions of dollars worth of trains and equipment every year around the world.
Since the inauguration of the 515 km long Tokaido line connecting Tokyo and Shin-Osaka in 1964, the Shinkansen network has constantly expanded. Today, trains reaching speeds of up to 320 km/h run on routes that branch out from the capital, heading north, south and west, connecting cities such as Kobe, Kyoto, Hiroshima and Nagano.
In addition to being a symbol of recovery, the Shinkansen is also a essential tool for economic development Japan’s leader and an agent of change in a country deeply rooted in tradition.
Crossing borders
The development of the Shinkansen owes much to Japanese railway history . Instead of the “standard” gauge of 1435 meters, used in North America and much of Europe, the Japanese country chose a narrower one, of 1067 meters. Although this choice made construction in mountainous terrain easier, capacity was limited and speeds were low.
With Japan’s four main islands stretching around 3000 km from end to end, journeys between major cities were long and often tiring.
In 1889, the journey from Tokyo to Osaka took 16 and a half hours by train — a huge improvement over the two or three week journeys made on foot a few years earlier. In 1965, the Shinkansen reduced the time to just three hours and 10 minutes.
Demand for a “standard gauge” rail network began in the 20th century, but work only began in the 1940s. The plan was part of an ambitious project to connect Japan to Korea and Russia via tunnels under the Pacific Ocean. .
Defeat in World War II halted plans until the mid-1950s, when the Japanese economy was recovering strongly, and communication between its major cities became essential.
While much of the network serves the most populated regions of Honshu, Japan’s largest island, long sea tunnels allow bullet trains to run hundreds of kilometers to Kyushu in the far south and Hokkaido in the north.
Japan’s challenging topography and varied climate, from the cold northern regions to the tropical humidity of the south, have made Japanese railway engineers world leaders in solving new problems while pushing the boundaries of railway technology.
Among the most notable challenges are earthquakes. Japan is one of the most geologically unstable countries on the planet, susceptible to earthquakes, tsunamis and home to around 10% of the world’s active volcanoes.
Despite these difficulties, no passenger has ever died or been injured on a Shinkansen train due to derailments.
Japan’s railway revolution
The new generation of bullet trains, known as ALFA-X, is being tested at speeds of almost 400 km/h, although the maximum speed in service will be “only” 360 km/h.
Those new trains have a cutting-edge design characterized by long noses, not only to improve aerodynamics, but to eliminate the “sonic punches” caused by air pressure when entering tunnels — a particularly serious problem in densely populated areas.
Additionally, the experimental ALFA-X train features new safety technologies to reduce vibrations and noise and decrease the likelihood of derailments in large earthquakes.
More than 10 billion passengers have been transported comfortably and predictably by Shinkansen trains, making high-speed travel routine and practically guaranteed.
High-speed railways around the world
In 2022, more than 295 million people traveled on Shinkansen trains across Japan. It’s no surprise, then, that many other countries have followed Japan’s example and built their own high-speed railways over the past four decades.
Perhaps the best-known example is that of France, which has operated the TGV (Train à Grande Vitesse) between Paris and Lyon since 1981.
Like Japan, France has exported its technology to other countries, including Spain, Belgium, South Korea, the United Kingdom and Morocco, which opened Africa’s first high-speed line .
The future of railways looks promising, with the Shinkansen evolving and developing new projects globally. This could well mark a new golden age for railways, in a world increasingly concerned about the environmental impact of air travel.
The post How Japan’s bullet train revolutionized rail travel around the world appeared first on CNN Brasil V&G.
Source: CNN Brasil
Johanna Foster is an expert opinion writer with over 7 years of experience. She has a reputation for delivering insightful and thought-provoking articles on a variety of subjects. Her work can be found on some of the top online news websites, and she is currently lending her voice to the world stock market.
