Japan railway news – Page 11
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NewsSeries W7 Shinkansen ready to start testing
JAPAN: JR West is preparing to start testing the Series W7 trainsets it is acquiring for use on the Hokuriku Shinkansen which opens for revenue service in March 2015. Two trainsets are being commissioned at Hakusan depot, around 10 km west of Kanazawa, ready for the start of test running ...
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NewsExtra station to serve Shinagawa redevelopment
JAPAN: East Japan Railway has announced plans to build a 50th station on its busy Yamonote Line circular suburban railway in southern Tokyo. As yet un-named, the station is intended to spur urban development on a 13 ha site currently occupied by stabling sidings for the 1 067 mm gauge ...
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NewsOdakyu Electric Railway to test all-SiC power module
JAPAN: Odakyu Electric Railway has placed the first order for Mitsubishi Electric Corp’s all-silicon carbide traction inverter designed for 1 500V DC overhead supplies. The 3·3 kV, 1 500 A inverter will be installed in a Series 1000 four-car urban EMU in December. Along with four high-efficiency motors the new ...
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NewsHokkaido Shinkansen trainsets ordered
JAPAN: JR Hokkaido confirmed on April 16 that it had ordered four 320 km/h trainsets from Hitachi and Kawasaki Heavy Industries to operate its share of services on the Hokkaido Shinkansen. Designated Series H5, the trains are based on the Series E5 sets which JR East operates on the Tohoku ...
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NewsHS2 signs up Japanese consultants
UK: HS2 Ltd has signed a contract for consultancy services with Japan International Consultants for Transportation, a company owned 53% by East Japan Railway. The contract with an undisclosed value began on January 31 and runs for four months to May 31. Areas covered by the deal include ways of ...
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NewsEU and Japan negotiate opening rail markets
INTERNATIONAL: Representatives from European Union and Japanese railway operators and the supply industry attended the first meeting of the EU-Japan Industrial Dialogue on Railways which was held in Brussels on March 27. The event was organised by the European Commission's Internal Market & Services department and Japan's Ministry for Land, ...
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NewsHitachi Rail Global moves to UK and announces expansion plans
HITACHI: On March 20 Hitachi Ltd announced that 'to further accelerate the globalisation of the rail systems business', the headquarters of Hitachi Rail Global would move from Japan to London, with head of Hitachi Rail Europe Alistair Dormer appointed to the new post of Global CEO, Hitachi Rail, from April ...
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NewsSeries E7 debuts on Nagano Shinkansen
JAPAN: JR East officially launched its first dual-system Series E7 Shinkansen trainsets in revenue service on March 15, in conjunction with the country’s national timetable change. Developed jointly with JR West, which has ordered its own build designated Series W7, the new trainsets are intended to operate Hokuriku Shinkansen services ...
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NewsSiC power module offers savings
INVERTER: Mitsubishi Electric Corp has launched a traction inverter system for 1·5 kV DC applications which it says incorporates the first all-silicon carbide power modules using SiC for both transistors and diodes. This reduces power loss, size and weight compared to conventional IGBT power modules or hybrid modules with silicon ...
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JR Central names Chairman
JAPAN: JR Central has announced that its current President Yoshiomi Yamada (left) is to become Chairman of the company with effect from April 1. He will succeed Yoshiyuki Kasai (centre), who becomes Chairman Emeritus, and will in turn be replaced as President by the railway’s current Executive ...
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NewsBattery EMU ready to start testing
JAPAN: East Japan Railway's Series EV-E301 prototype 1·5 kV DC/battery electric multiple-unit was delivered to the Karasuyama Line on January 22, ready for the start of test running. Branded 'Accum', the two-car unit is derived from the experimental 'Smart Denchi-kun' battery railcar which was tested on the same line in ...
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NewsJR East reorganises train building activities
JAPAN: With effect from April 1 East Japan Railway is to transfer its Niitsu Rolling Stock Plant manufacturing business to Japan Transport Engineering Co, the former Tokyu Car business which JR East acquired from Tokyu Corp in April 2012. The transfer to J-TREC is to be undertaken through a company ...
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NewsThales wins East Japan Railway CBTC contract
JAPAN: East Japan Railway has selected Thales as preferred bidder for a contract to design a communications-based train control system for Joban Local Line in the greater Tokyo area. The scope includes 14 stations on the 29·7 km Ayase - Toride route, along with 70 trainsets. Subject to a final ...
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NewsJR East unveils first Series E7 high speed train
JAPAN: The first Series E7 high speed trainset built by Kawasaki Heavy Industries and JR East subsidiary J-TREC was unveiled on November 29. JR East has ordered 17 of the 260 km/h trainsets, while JR West has ordered 10 which it will designate Series W7. Following testing, the first trainsets ...
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NewsFeature articles in the December 2013 issue of Railway Gazette International
Comment UK: still tinkering after 20 years News Main Line Urban Rail Market Industry Innovations Analysis Operators eye French regional services All Aboard FloridaEuropean rail is still getting saferUS tank cars in the spotlightSwiss safety reviews report backArgentina: a happy new year?Network Rail funding determinedTrans-Asian integration debated ...
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NewsJR East to install ATACS on Tokyo suburban line
JAPAN: East Japan Railway has confirmed its intention to introduce its Advanced Train Administration & Communications System on the Tokyo suburban network in the autumn of 2017. The company announced on October 8 that the moving-block train control system will be deployed on the 37 km Saikyo Line between Ikebukuro ...
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NewsChuo maglev route announced
JAPAN: Central Japan Railway Co has revealed details of the alignment of the planned maglev line from Tokyo to Nagoya. Announcing the route on September 18, the company said that it aimed to start construction work on the ¥5·4tr project next year, subject to government approval. Releasing information about station ...
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NewsMaglev testing extended
JAPAN: Trials resumed on August 29 at the magnetic levitation test facility in Yamanashi prefecture following completion of work to extend the guideway. Transport Minister Akihiro Ota and JR Central Chairman Yoshiyuki Kasai were on board a demonstration run that day which attained a speed of 505 km/h. Tests on ...
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NewsPrototype commuter EMU car on test in Tokyo
JAPAN: Japan Transport Engineering Co and Tokyo commuter operator Tokyu Corp have begun testing a prototype Sustina lightweight stainless steel electric multiple-unit car. Developed for both domestic and export markets, the vehicle is undergoing trials in revenue service as part of a Series 5050 EMU on the Toyoko Line. Sustina ...
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NewsShibuya Hikarie EMU enters service
JAPAN: Tokyu Railway has started putting into service a new generation of 1067 mm gauge commuter EMUs designed for through running onto neighbouring networks. This follows the transfer of operations at its Tokyo Shibuya station from the former elevated terminus to a low-level station allowing through running with Tokyo ...