Hokuriku Shinkansen

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Hokuriku Shinkansen
W7 series set W3 20150207.jpg
A JR West W7 series train on the Hokuriku Shinkansen
Overview
Native name 北陸新幹線
Type Shinkansen
Status Operational
Locale Japan
Termini Takasaki
Kanazawa
Operation
Opened 1 October 1997
Operator(s) JR East, JR West
Depot(s) Nagano, Hakusan
Rolling stock E2 series, E7 series, W7 series
Technical
Track gauge 1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in)
Minimum radius 4,000 m
Electrification 25 kV AC, 50/60 Hz, overhead catenary
Operating speed 260 km/h (160 mph)
Route map
Hokuriku Shinkansen map.png

The Hokuriku Shinkansen (北陸新幹線?) is a high-speed shinkansen railway line jointly operated by East Japan Railway Company (JR East) and West Japan Railway Company (JR West), connecting Tokyo with Kanazawa in the Hokuriku region of Japan. The first section, between Takasaki and Nagano in Nagano Prefecture, opened on 1 October 1997, originally called the Nagano Shinkansen (長野新幹線?) (Takasaki is linked to Tokyo by the Joetsu Shinkansen). The extension to Toyama in Toyama Prefecture and Kanazawa in Ishikawa Prefecture opened on 14 March 2015.[1] Construction of a further section onward to Fukui and Tsuruga in Fukui Prefecture commenced in 2012, with scheduled opening in fiscal 2022. The options for the route of the final section to ultimately connect to the Tokaido Shinkansen are being studied, with four alignments being considered, connecting at Maibara, Kyoto, or Shin-Osaka.

Train names and service patterns

Since March 2015, services on the line are split into four types, with train names as listed below.[2] Trains operate over the Joetsu and Tohoku Shinkansen tracks between Tokyo and Takasaki.

  •      Kagayaki: Tokyo - Kanazawa, limited-stop service, since 14 March 2015
  •      Hakutaka: Tokyo - Kanazawa, mostly all-stations service, since 14 March 2015
  •      Tsurugi: Toyama - Kanazawa, all-stations shuttle service, since 14 March 2015
  •      Asama: Tokyo - Nagano, mostly all-stations service, corresponding to existing Nagano Shinkansen service introduced in 1997

The original Nagano Shinkansen Asama services introduced in 1997 replaced the conventional Shinetsu Main Line limited express services, also named Asama, which previously took 2 hours 50 minutes from Tokyo (Ueno Station) to Nagano. Following the opening of the Shinkansen, part of the conventional line was abandoned between Yokokawa and Karuizawa. This section included the steeply-graded Usui Pass which required the use of bank engines on all trains.

Stations

Station name Japanese Distance from Takasaki (km) Transfers Location
Tohoku Shinkansen
Tokyo 東京 -108.6 <templatestyles src="Plainlist/styles.css"/>
Chiyoda Tokyo
Ueno 上野 -105 <templatestyles src="Plainlist/styles.css"/>
Taitō
Ōmiya 大宮 -77.3 <templatestyles src="Plainlist/styles.css"/>
Ōmiya-ku, Saitama Saitama
Joetsu Shinkansen
Ōmiya 大宮 Ōmiya-ku, Saitama Saitama
Kumagaya 熊谷 -40.7 <templatestyles src="Plainlist/styles.css"/>
Kumagaya
Honjō-Waseda 本庄早稲田 -19.6 Honjō
Takasaki 高崎 0.0 <templatestyles src="Plainlist/styles.css"/>
Takasaki Gunma
Hokuriku Shinkansen
Takasaki 高崎 Takasaki Gunma
Annaka-Haruna 安中榛名 18.5 Annaka
Karuizawa 軽井沢 41.8 ■ Shinano Railway Line Karuizawa, Kitasaku Nagano
Sakudaira 佐久平 59.4 ■ Koumi Line Saku
Ueda 上田 84.2 ■ Shinano Railway Line
Ueda Electric Railway Bessho Line		 Ueda
Nagano 長野 117.4 ■ Iiyama Line
■ Shinano Railway Kita-Shinano Line
Nagano Electric Railway Nagano Line		 Nagano
Iiyama 飯山 147.3 ■ Iiyama Line Iiyama
Jōetsumyōkō 上越妙高 176.9 ■ Echigo Tokimeki Railway Myōkō Haneuma Line Jōetsu Niigata
Itoigawa 糸魚川 213.9 <templatestyles src="Plainlist/styles.css"/>
Itoigawa
Kurobe-Unazukionsen 黒部宇奈月温泉 253.1 Toyama Chihō Railway Main Line Kurobe Toyama
Toyama 富山 286.9 <templatestyles src="Plainlist/styles.css"/>
Toyama
Shin-Takaoka 新高岡 305.8 ■ Jōhana Line Takaoka
Kanazawa 金沢 345.4 <templatestyles src="Plainlist/styles.css"/>
Kanazawa Ishikawa
Under construction; scheduled to open in fiscal 2022
Komatsu 小松 372.6 ■ Hokuriku Main Line Komatsu Ishikawa
Kagaonsen 加賀温泉 387.2 ■ Hokuriku Main Line Kaga
Awaraonsen 芦原温泉 403.4 ■ Hokuriku Main Line Awara Fukui
Fukui 福井 421.4 <templatestyles src="Plainlist/styles.css"/>
Fukui
Nanetsu[Note 1] 南越 440.4   Echizen
Tsuruga 敦賀 466.1 <templatestyles src="Plainlist/styles.css"/>
Tsuruga
(Route between Tsuruga and Shin-Osaka not yet finalized.)

Notes

  1. ↑ Tentative name.

Rolling stock

  • E2 series 8-car "N" sets, used on Tokyo - Nagano Asama services only
  • E7 series 12-car "F" sets" (since 15 March 2014)[3]
  • W7 series 12-car "W" sets" (since 14 March 2015)

With the start of Nagano Shinkansen services, trains were operated by a new fleet of JR East E2 series 8-car sets. A fleet of 17 new E7 series 12-car trainsets were phased in from March 2014, and these were augmented by a fleet of 10 JR West W7 series 12-car sets introduced from March 2015. As of March 2015, the original Nagano Shinkansen 8-car E2 series trains remain on services as far as Nagano.[4]

  • A Nagano Shinkansen E2 series "N" set, June 2002

  • An E7 series train, April 2014

Former rolling stock

The original E2 series 8-car "J" sets, primarily used on Tohoku Shinkansen services were also used on some Asama services until they were subsequently lengthened to 10 cars. One specially-modified 200 series set, numbered F80, was used on additional Asama services in February 1998 during the 1998 Winter Olympics held in Nagano. The train was modified to operate on both 25 kV AC 50 Hz and 60 Hz overhead power supplies, incorporated weight-saving measures to comply with the 16 tonne axle load restriction, and included additional control equipment to cope with the 30‰ gradient of the Nagano Shinkansen.[5] Its maximum speed was limited to 210 km/h.[5]

  • A Nagano Shinkansen E2 series "J" set, February 1998

  • An E4 series set

  • Modified set F80 on a Nagano Shinkansen Asama service, February 1998

History

Nagano Shinkansen

The initial section between Takasaki and Nagano opened on 1 October 1997.

Between May 2012 and March 2014, station platforms on the Nagano Shinkansen had their platform roofs extended to handle the E7 series 12-car trains which entered service in March 2014 ahead of the March 2015 opening of the extension beyond Nagano.[6] The Hokuriku Shinkansen extension from Nagano to Kanazawa opened in March 2015.[6] The 113-km extension from Kanazawa to Tsuruga was approved for construction in June 2012.[7]

From the start of the revised timetable on 15 March 2014, E7 series trainsets were introduced on Asama services.[3] Initially used on seven return services daily, this number was increased to eleven return services daily from 19 April 2014.[3]

Extension beyond Nagano

Construction of the Hokuriku Shinkansen extension near Kanazawa Station in March 2008

Construction of the extension from Nagano to Kanazawa was completed on 24 May 2014.[8] When services commenced in March 2015, the travel time from Tokyo to Toyama was reduced to about 2 hours, with Kanazawa an additional 30 minutes away.[8] Final permission to start construction to Fukui was granted in December 2011, with modification works to Fukui Station already in progress for several years in anticipation of the extension.[9] The extension to Tsuruga was approved for construction on 30 June 2012,[10] and is scheduled to open in fiscal 2022.[11] Beyond Jōetsumyōkō Station, the line is operated by West Japan Railway Company (JR West) instead of East Japan Railway Company (JR East).[12]

Test-running

Test-running on the JR East section of the line between Nagano and Kurobe-Unazukionsen commenced on 1 December 2013, initially at low speeds using the "East i" test train.[13] From 6 December, test-running commenced using 10-car E2 series trainsets, with running speeds gradually increased to the full line speed of 260 km/h.[13] Test-running continued until the end of March 2014.[13] Test-running on the entire line between Nagano and Kanazawa (Hakusan Depot) started on 1 August 2014, using the "East i" test train.[14] Test-running using W7 series trains commenced on 5 August 2014, initially at low speed, on the JR West section between Kanazawa and Jōetsumyōkō.[15]

Future plans

Construction of the Hokuriku Shinkansen near Fukui Station in August 2007

The route of the final section from Tsuruga to Osaka is not yet finalized. The following four options under consideration.[11]

  1. Maibara Route (米原ルート?): This involves building a full standard shinkansen track to Maibara Station. It is one third of the length of the Obama Route, and provides good access to both Kyoto and Nagoya. It would result in longer travel time to Osaka than the other options, and trains would have to use the existing, already near-capacity Tokaido Shinkansen tracks between Maibara and Shin-Osaka, although capacity constraints may become less of an issue when the Chuo Shinkansen opens to Osaka, proposed for 2045.
  2. Kosei Route (湖西ルート?): This involves no new track construction; instead, this proposal would upgrade the Kosei Line to Kyoto, either by regauging or dual-gauging the line to support Mini-Shinkansen, or alternatively utilising Gauge Change Train (GCT) operations. This is the cheapest option, but means train speeds will likely be limited to a maximum of 160 km/h (100 mph) and hence travel times will be longer than the other options. If the West Kyushu Shinkansen to Nagasaki (due to open by 2023) is successfully operating with GCTs by that time, it may increase the attractiveness of this option.
  3. Obama Route (小浜ルート?): First proposed in 1973,[11] this route involves building a full standard shinkansen track via Obama and Kameoka. It is the shortest route to Osaka, but also the most expensive (approximately 1 trillion yen), and would bypass Kyoto.
  4. Obama-Kyoto Route (小浜・京都ルート?): This option was first made public in August 2015, and involves following the proposed Obama Route west as far as Obama and then building shinkansen track southward to link with the Tokaido Shinkansen at Kyoto. Including Kyoto on the route is seen as important to increase tourism.[11]

Conventional lines running parallel to the Hokuriku Shinkansen

With the opening of the initial Nagano Shinkansen section in October 1997, the section of the conventional (narrow gauge) Shinetsu Main Line running along approximately the same route between Karuizawa and Shinonoi was transferred from the control of JR East to a newly established third-sector railway operating company, Shinano Railway, becoming the Shinano Railway Line.

With the opening of the Hokuriku Shinkansen extension north of Nagano on 14 March 2015, the conventional lines running along approximately the same route were transferred from the control of their respective JR owning companies to newly established third-sector railway operating companies funded primarily by the prefectural and municipal governments through which the lines pass. A total of 252.2 km of route between Nagano and Kanazawa was transferred to four separate operating companies, including 75.0 km of the Shinetsu Main Line between Nagano and Naoetsu, and 177.2 km of the Hokuriku Main Line between Naoetsu and Kanazawa.[16] Details of the four third-sector operating companies and their respective lines are as shown below.[16]

Section Length (km) Former line name Former operating company Date transferred New line name Operating company
Karuizawa - Shinonoi 65.1 Shinetsu Main Line JR East 1 October 1997 Shinano Railway Line Shinano Railway
Nagano - Jōetsumyōkō 37.3 14 March 2015 Shinano Railway Kita-Shinano Line
Jōetsumyōkō - Naoetsu 37.7 Myōkō Haneuma Line Echigo Tokimeki Railway
Naoetsu - Ichiburi 59.3 Hokuriku Main Line JR West Nihonkai Hisui Line
Ichiburi - Kurikara 100.1 Ainokaze Toyama Railway Line Ainokaze Toyama Railway
Kurikara - Kanazawa 17.8 IR Ishikawa Railway Line IR Ishikawa Railway

References

  1. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  2. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  4. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  7. ↑ Kyodo News, "Bullet-train extensions approved", The Japan Times, 30 June 2012, p. 2
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  9. ↑ [1] Archived 5 January 2012 at the Wayback Machine
  10. ↑ [2] Archived 5 July 2012 at the Wayback Machine
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 11.3 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  12. ↑ Kyodo News, "DPJ may OK three new bullet-train sections", The Japan Times, 17 December 2011, p. 1.
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  14. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  15. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.

External links

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