Video Saturday – How the Shinkansen (Japanese Bullet Train) work?

Apart from a love of air travel, I like trains… Yes, it is rather nerdy but there is it.

One system that I love is the Japanese Shinkansen system (or to the rest of the world – Bullet Trains).

JR Central N700A Shinkansen at Shinagawa Station, Image Economy Class and Beyond

JR East E2 Shinkansen at Shinagawa Station, Image Economy Class and Beyond

Well, earlier this month, The Shikansen system (a literal translation Shinkansen is “New Trunk Line”) celebrated its 50th Anniversary in service, when the first service completed the Tokyo to Osaka (operating on the Tōkaidō Shinkansen), the network has grown across Japan, allowing people to reach destinations quickly on a point to point basis (and in some cases, putting air routes out of action due to the frequency and speed of the services).

And with zero fatalities during the first 50 years of operations – something unparalleled in the world.

For today’s video, lets look behind the system, as Richard Hammond of Top Gear fame uses a bit of Top Gear logic and a lot of demonstrations to show the engineering connections that make up the Shinkansen.

Here’s the NHK World report about the 50th Birthday Celebration.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tjBYKBySKzw

The effect of the Shinkansen cannot be overstated. This kicked off high speed rail development around the world, as countries still seek to build their own high speed networks.

As countries seek to build their own high speed systems, sometime they need to look back at Shinkansen and make an important note. It’s not just the train, the track and the signalling – it’s the entire system that makes it work.

Happy Birthday Shinkansen!

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