Chūō Shinkansen

Chūō Shinkansen
L0 series train on the Yamanashi test track
Route length:	Total: approx. 438 km, of which under construction: 236.9 km, completed: 48.7 km
Power system :	33,000 V  ~
Maximum slope :	40  ‰
Minimum radius :	8,000 m
Top speed:	505 km / h

The Chūō- Shinkansen ( Japanese. 中央 新 幹線 ) is a maglev train line of the type JR-Maglev from Tokyo via Nagoya to Osaka in Japan that is under construction in sections . It is the result of research started in the 1970s by Japan Airlines and the Japanese State Railways and is currently being carried out by the Central Japan Railway Company . The trains are known in Japan as the Linear Motor Car ( リ ニ ア モ ー タ ー カ ー , rinia mōtā kā ).

history

Since the mid-1980s, an alternative to the Tōkaidō Shinkansen route between Tokyo and Osaka had been discussed again and again , as the very large and growing passenger demand on Japan's oldest Shinkansen requires an extremely dense train sequence. On the one hand, this means that de facto no route capacity is available for future service expansions and, in addition, the route represents a critical point in the Japanese transport network in the event of external disruptions. The following key points were therefore defined at an early stage:

• use in the speed range from 300 km / h to approx. 600 km / h,
• a significant reduction in track maintenance costs (compared to wheel-rail),
• the halving of travel time compared to the existing high-speed bike / rail connection between Tokyo and Osaka,
• a significant reduction in noise levels as well
• a reduction in ground vibrations.

Even then, these key points indicated that the company was specifically looking at a maglev train, which initially could not be implemented due to the dramatic debt situation of the Japanese state railway (split up and privatized in 1987) and due to the recession in Japan in the 1990s.

On December 25, 2007, the JR Central announced the start of planning for the construction of the route from Tokyo to Nagoya.

Yamanashi test track

In the years 1990 to 1996 an 18.4 kilometer test track was built in Tsuru , Yamanashi Prefecture , on which extensive tests of the Maglev technology took place between 1997 and 2011. On December 2, 2003, a test train reached a top speed of 581 km / h. The route had already been designed so that it could later be integrated into the Chūō Shinkansen. The expansion to 42.8 kilometers began in 2008 and was completed in 2013. On August 28, 2013, test drives began on the extended test track in order to be able to test in particular the vehicles of the Shinkansen series L0 under conditions that come close to later commercial use. On April 21, 2015, a new world speed record of 603 km / h was set.

1st construction phase: Tokyo (Shinagawa) - Nagoya

Route variants between Kofu and Nakatsugawa

The Ministry of Land and Transport (MLIT) approved on October 31, 2014 the construction of the first construction phase from Tokyo to Nagoya. This was preceded by a multi-year route discussion in which three variants had been examined in detail, which differ in their route between Kofu and Nakatsugawa .

variant	route	Length (km)	Cost ( JPY )	Shortest travel time	Demand forecast
A.	via Kiso valley	334	5.63 trillion	46 minutes	15.6 billion pkm
B.	via Ina-Becken ( Chino , Ina , Iida )	346	5.74 trillion	47 minutes	15.3 billion pkm
C.	under the Japanese Alps and via Iida	286	5.10 trillion	40 minutes	16.7 billion pkm

While Nagano Prefecture worked  towards connecting the region with the new magnetic levitation train, JR Central preferred a more direct route under the Akaishi Mountains in the Japanese Alps from the start. On September 18, 2013, JR Central announced that route variant C should be implemented as the most cost-efficient one. 246.6 kilometers (approx. 86%) are realized in tunnels, 23.6 km (approx. 8%) on viaducts, 11.3 kilometers (approx. 4%) as bridges and only 4.1 km (approx %) are at ground level. The viaducts are equipped with noise barriers or completely enclosed in order to keep the noise pollution of the route environment as low as possible. The Yamanashi test track will be integrated into the new line. JR Central is expecting construction costs of 4.158 trillion yen (around 29.6 billion euros or 35.9 billion Swiss francs ) without taking into account the costs already spent on the Yamanashi test track and the necessary vehicle procurement.

Unlike the Tōkaidō Shinkansen , which is to be relieved of the Chūō Shinkansen and  begins at Tokyo Station , the Chūō Shinkansen will have its underground line terminus at Shinagawa Station . This requires the construction of a very deep tunnel in the Tokyo metropolitan area, so that the platforms of the Chūō Shinkansen in Shinagawa will be 40 meters below the surface. In Nagoya , a new station complex (“JR Gate Tower”) was completed in 2017, which contains the underground station for the maglev train as a preliminary construction work.

The official start of construction for the first construction phase was on December 17, 2014, and commissioning is planned for 2027. In the meantime, the start of operations on the section between Tokyo and Kōfu has been considered for 2020 in order to be able to demonstrate the new technology to the world public at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo - like the Tōkaidō Shinkansen in 1964 . However, this would have led to a significant increase in costs, since in the run-up to the Olympic Games it was to be expected that personnel costs would rise sharply due to the large construction activity.

Route

railway station	Japanese	Distance from Shinagawa (km)	Transfer options	place
Shinagawa	品 川 駅	0.0	JR East Keihin-Tōhoku Line , Tōkaidō Main Line , Yamanote Line , Yokosuka Line , JR Central Tōkaidō Shinkansen , Keikyū Main Keikyū Line	Shinagawa	Tokyo prefecture
Kanagawa Prefecture Railway Station Planning Name	神奈川 県 駅	?	JR East Yokohama Line , Sagami Line , Keiō Dentetsu Sagamihara Line	Sagamihara	Kanagawa Prefecture
Yamanashi Prefecture Station Planning Name	山 梨 県 駅	?		Kofu	Yamanashi Prefecture
Nagano Prefecture Station Planning Name	長野 県 駅	?		Iida	Nagano Prefecture
Gifu Prefecture Railway Station Planning Name	岐阜 県 駅	?	JR Central Chūō Main Line	Nakatsugawa	Gifu Prefecture
Nagoya	名古屋 駅	285.6	JR Central Tōkaidō Shinkansen, Tōkaidō Main Line, Chūō Main Line, Kansai Main Line , Takayama Main Line , Nagoya Rinkai Kōsoku Tetsudō Aonami Line , Nagoya Higashiyama Line , Nagoya Sakura-dōri Line	Nagoya	Aichi prefecture

Vehicle use

After completion of the Chūō Shinkansen, the vehicles of the Shinkansen series L0 will be used, which are currently being tested extensively on the Yamanashi test track under real conditions and thus brought to series production. Despite the world record run on April 21, 2015 at 603 km / h, the trains will be operated at a maximum of 505 km / h after the line opens.

2nd construction phase: Nagoya - Osaka

The realization of the 2nd construction phase of the Chūō Shinkansen between Nagoya and Osaka is planned by 2037 at the latest. The travel time between Shinagawa and Osaka is said to be 67 minutes, which is over an hour faster than the fastest connection on the Tōkaidō Shinkansen (2 hours 22 minutes).

Individual evidence

1. ↑ リ ニ ア 中央 新 幹線 ： ＪＲ 東海 、 ５ 兆 円 全額 負担 東京 - 名古屋 、 ２５ 年 開業 へ 事業 化 . In: Mainichi Shimbun. December 25, 2007, archived from the original on December 27, 2007 ; Retrieved December 26, 2007 (Japanese). 
2. ↑ Martin Kölling: Japan's Transrapid has wheels. In: Handelsblatt. August 29, 2013. Retrieved August 29, 2013 . 
3. ↑ 603 km / h: Japanese magnetic levitation train sets world record. In: Spiegel Online. April 21, 2015, accessed April 24, 2015 . 
4. ↑ ^{a b} 中央 新 幹線 （東京 都 ・ 名古屋 市 間） の 環境 影響 評 評 価 準備 書 に つ い て . JR Central, September 18, 2013, accessed April 24, 2015 (Japanese). 
5. ↑ JR 東海 、 リ ニ ア 中央 新 幹線 の 工事 計画 申請… 10 月 に も 着 工 へ . Response, August 27, 2014, accessed April 24, 2015 (Japanese). 
6. ↑ ^{a b} 中央 新 幹線 品 川 ・ 名古屋 間 の 工事 実 施 計画 (そ の 1) の 認可 申請 に つ い て . JR Central, August 26, 2014, accessed April 24, 2015 (Japanese). 
7. ↑ Planned start of maglev trains brings construction boom, concern in Nagoya. (No longer available online.) In: Asahi Shinbum. January 29, 2014, archived from the original on January 4, 2015 ; accessed on April 24, 2015 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  
8. ↑ Kevin Smith: JR Central starts construction on Chuo maglev. In: International Railway Journal. December 18, 2014, accessed April 24, 2015 . 
9. ↑ JR Tokai may open new maglev train station in Yamanashi before '20 Olympics. In: The Japan Times Online. February 19, 2014, accessed April 24, 2015 . 
10. ^ Maglev line gets a green light. In: The Japan Times Online. October 22, 2014, accessed April 24, 2015 . 

Web links

Commons : Chūō-Shinkansen  - collection of images, videos and audio files

• Maglev - German site about the Japanese Maglev train
• Information from JR-Central about the Chuo Shinkansen (English)
• Linear Chuo Express (Japanese)
• Detailed information on the test track (English)