Hokkaidō Shinkansen

Hokkaidō Shinkansen
Route length:	148.8 km
Gauge :	1435 mm ( standard gauge )
Power system :	25 kV 50 Hz  ~
Top speed:	260 km / h
Dual track :	whole route
Society:	JR Hokkaido
Legend ↑ Tōhoku Shinkansen 0.0 Shin-Aomori ( 新 青森 ) ↔ Ōu main line Shinjō-gawa Aomori depot Amida tunnel (190 m) Tsugaru Yomogida Tunnel (6190 m) 1. Sotokuroyama tunnel (146 m) 2. Sotokuroyama tunnel (683 m) Tateshita Tunnel (545 m) Tatesawa Tunnel (590 m) ↑ Tsugaru Lineage ↓ Kaikyō Line Ōhira tunnel (1510 m) Tsugaru tunnel (5880 m) 38.5 Okutsugaru-Imabetsu ( 奥 津 軽 い ま べ つ ) Tsugaru-Futamata ( 津 軽 二 股 ) ← Tsugaru Line Ōkawadai Tunnel (1337 m) 1. Imabetsu tunnel (160 m) 2. Imabetsu tunnel (690 m) 1. Hamana tunnel (440 m) 2. Hamana tunnel (280 m) 3. Hamana tunnel (170 m) 4. Hamana tunnel (140 m) Seikan tunnel (53,850 m) Tsugaru Street 1. Yunosato Tunnel (1167 m) Shiriuchi-gawa 2. Yunosato Tunnel (1638 m) Omonai-gawa 1. Omouchi tunnel (813 m) 2. Omouchi tunnel (1128 m) Mirokoshi-gawa 1. Mirokoshi tunnel (1634 m) 2. Mirokoshi tunnel (166 m) 3. Mirokoshi tunnel (322 m) 4. Mirokoshi tunnel (405 m) Tateari-gawa ↑ Kaikyō Lineage Kikonai-gawa 113.3 Kikonai ( 木 古 内 ) ← Esashi line Satsukari tunnel (1235 m) Kōren tunnel (1410 m) Izumisawa Tunnel (1720 m) Oshimatobetsu tunnel (8073 m) Shinmoheji Tunnel (3355 m) Mantarō tunnel (500 m) Hakodate depot ← ↓ Hakodate main line 148.8 Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto ( 新 函館 北斗 ) Murayama Tunnel (5265 m) Oshima Tunnel (26,470 m) Futamata Tunnel (1.5 km) Banjaku Tunnel (4.6 km) Sairei Tunnel (4.0 km) Nodatsui Tunnel (8970 m) 203.0 Shin-Yakumo ( 新 八 雲 ) Yūrappu-gawa Tateiwa Tunnel (16,980 m) Horonai Tunnel (0.5 km) Toyono Tunnel (1.7 km) Kunnui Tunnel (1.3 km) ← Hakodate main line 236.1 Oshamambe ( 長 万 部 ) → Hakodate main line ← Muroran main line Uchiura tunnel (15,560 m) Konbu tunnel (10,410 m) Miyata Tunnel (0.1 km) Niseko Tunnel (2.3 km) Gishigishi Tunnel (9,750 m) → Hakodate main line 290.2 Kutchan ( 倶 知 安 ) → Hakodate main line Futatsumori Tunnel (12,630 m) Shiribe Tunnel (17,975 m) 328.2 Shin-Otaru ( 新 小樽 ) Asari tunnel (4330 m) Teine tunnel (18,750 m) → Hakodate main line → Sasshō line Sōen ( 桑園 ) 360.2 Sapporo ( 札幌 )

The Hokkaidō Shinkansen ( Japanese 北海道 新 幹線 ) is a partially operating high-speed line in Japan . It is 148.8 km long and currently connects Aomori in the north of the main island of Honshū with Hakodate in the south of the island of Hokkaidō . The line is operated by the Hokkaido Railway Company (JR Hokkaido). The first phase of construction between Shin-Aomori and Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto stations was opened on March 26, 2016. The standard-gauge high - speed trains use the Seikan tunnel under Tsugaru Street , which opened in 1988 and is equipped with three - rail tracks . The second section between Hakodate and Sapporo is currently under construction , which will be 211.3 km long and should open in March 2031.

history

The first geological investigations into tunneling under the Tsugaru Strait began in April 1946. The sinking of the ferry Tōya Maru in September 1954 led to intensification of planning. Construction began in May 1964, but dragged on for over two decades. The decision to build the Hokkaidō Shinkansen goes back to the law passed by the Japanese Parliament in May 1970 to develop the national Shinkansen network (全国 新 幹線 鉄 道 整 備 法, Zenkoku shinkansen tetsudō seibihō , Nationwide Shinkansen Railway Development Act ). With the construction of more high-speed lines, the great success of the Tōkaidō Shinkansen should be tied in with. The development plan for the Hokkaidō Shinkansen was approved in November 1973, but the strong yen and the oil crisis meant that no funds were available for the project.

In 1982, given the disastrous budget situation of the Japanese State Railways, all new Shinkansen construction projects were put on hold. In August 1988 the government decided to continue only with the first construction phase of the Hokuriku Shinkansen . The Seikan tunnel, which opened on March 13, 1988, was also affected by the planning changes; Shinkansen trains could not travel through it as planned from the start; At first it was only connected to the rest of the rail network by the Cape-gauge Kaikyō line . The government announced in February 1994 that the planning of the Hokkaidō Shinkansen should be resumed. Four years later, extensive investigations into possible routes and stops began.

The results of the environmental impact assessment were available in January 2002. Finally, in April 2005, construction began on the first stage from Shin-Aomori to Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto. The Kaikyō Line and the Hokkaidō Shinkansen share the same track bed between Naka-Oguni and Kikonai over a length of 82 km . This section had already been completed in 1985 according to the Shinkansen requirements and now received three-rail tracks . The remaining 67 km had to be completely rebuilt. The most important individual structure was the 6190 m long Tsugaru-Yomogida tunnel, which leads largely through loose sandstone; its breakthrough took place in October 2012 after four and a half years of construction.

Test drives began in December 2014, initially at the northern end of the route, and were gradually extended to the south. The official opening took place on March 26, 2016.

business

Two types of trains run on the Hokkaidō Shinkansen: Hayabusa trains with few stops and Hayate trains that stop more frequently .

The timetable valid from March 26, 2016 provides for the following train routes: Ten Hayabusa train pairs daily from Tokyo to Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto , one Hayabusa train pair daily from Sendai to Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto; One pair of Hayate trains runs daily from Morioka to Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto and from Shin-Aomori to Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto.

Train type	number	T	U	O	...	S.	F.	KK	I.	ME	K	SH	M.	IN	N	H	ST	SA	OI	Ki	SHH
Hayabusa	10 pairs of trains	●	△	●	-	●	-	-	-	-	-	-	●	△	△	△	△	●	△	△	●
Hayabusa	1 pair of trains					●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	-	-	●
Hayate	1 pair of trains												●	-	●	●	●	●	●	●	●
Hayate	1 pair of trains																	●	●	●	●

T = Tokyo / U = Ueno / O = Ōmiya / S = Sendai / F = Furukawa / KK = Kurikoma-Kōgen / I = Ichinoseki / ME = Mizusawa-Esashi / K = Kitakami / SH = Shin-Hanamiki / M = Morioka / IN = Iwate-Numakunai / N = Ninohe / H = Hachinohe / ST = Shichinohe-Towada / SA = Shin-Aomori / OI = Okutsugaru-Imabetsu / Ki = Kikonai / SHH = Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto
● all trains stop △ only some Trains stop - no stop

The maximum speed on the approximately 82 km long section with three-rail tracks (including the Seikan tunnel) is currently 140 km / h. Around 50 freight trains run on this section every day, which is why it would not make sense to only run them during the nightly Shinkansen break. For this reason and also due to weather-related factors (strong winds and snowfall), the fastest journey time between Tokyo and Shin-Hakodate is currently 4 hours and 2 minutes, from Shin-Aomori it is 61 minutes.

route

Shin-Aomori - Okutsugaru-Imabetsu (Honshū)

North of Shin-Aomori, the Hokkaidō Shinkansen was built as an independent route over a length of 29 km . It then runs on a shared route with the Tsugaru Line and the Kaikyō Line . The Tsugaru line will continue to operate after the Hokkaidō Shinkansen has opened. As this, in contrast to the Shinkansen network, has a cape gauge of 1,067 mm , the common route was built as a three -rail track .

Oku-Tsugaru Imabetsu - Kikonai (Seikan Tunnel)

Entrance to the Seikan tunnel, already equipped with a three-rail track and double overhead lines (2007)

A three-rail track was also retrofitted in the section between the Okutsugaru-Imabetsu and Kikonai stations, as Cape-gauge night trains and freight trains continue to run through the Seikan tunnel together with the Shinkansen trains. The power supply is a particular challenge here, as it has to be shared by Shinkansen trains and the conventional network. To do this, the overhead line had to be modified and the operating voltage increased from 20 to 25 kV.

In preparation for the high loads after the Shinkansen went into operation, the Seikan tunnel , which opened in 1985, was subjected to extensive investigations and renovations from 2008. Due to the very high humidity and the high salt content of the air, the tunnel structure had already shown some signs of wear. When the Seikan tunnel was built, the requirements of the Shinkansen network had already been taken into account. The maximum gradient had been reduced from 20 to 12 per thousand so that there would be no speed restrictions. The clearance profile and the tracks were designed for the later construction of the Hokkaidō Shinkansen. The three-rail track ends shortly before Kikonai.

Kikonai - Shin-Hakodate Hokuto (Hokkaidō)

Between Kikonai and Shin-Hakodate Hokuto, the Hokkaidō Shinkansen is run according to the Shinkansen standard, i.e. on its own route and mostly elevated. There are six tunnels in this section. The intermediate terminal station Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto is located around 18 km from the city center of Hakodate; there, passengers have to transfer to the Hakodate main line in the city center and in the direction of Sapporo .

The Hokkaidō Shinkansen depot was built in Hakodate on an area of ​​360,000 m².

Further planning

The Hokkaidō Shinkansen should only bring serious benefits for traffic when Sapporo , the capital of Hokkaidō, is connected. The Japanese government approved the construction of the second section in July 2012. Originally, the construction time was to be extended from the usual 10 to 24 years in order to reduce the budgetary burden. This would have meant that the section between Shin-Hakodate and Sapporo would not have gone into operation until 2035. In January 2015, the second Abe cabinet announced that construction would be accelerated and the opening would take place by the end of the fiscal year 2030 (March 2031).

Train stations

Surname	km	Connecting lines	location	place
in operation
Shin-Aomori ( 新 青森 )	000.0	Ōu main line , Tōhoku Shinkansen	Coord.	Aomori
Okutsugaru-Imabetsu ( 奥 津 軽 い ま べ つ )	038.5	Tsugaru Line (Tsugaru-Futamata) Kaikyō Line	Coord.	Imabetsu
Seikan tunnel
Kikonai ( 木 古 内 )	113.3	Esashi Line , Kaikyō Line	Coord.	Kikonai
Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto ( 新 函館 北斗 )	148.9	Hakodate main line	Coord.	Hokuto
under construction, opening planned by 2031
Shin-Yakumo ( 新 八 雲 )	203.0		Coord.	Yakumo
Oshamambe ( 長 万 部 )	236.1	Hakodate Main Line, Muroran Main Line	Coord.	Oshamambe
Kutchan ( 倶 知 安 )	290.2	Hakodate main line	Coord.	Kutchan
Shin-Otaru ( 新 小樽 )	328.2		Coord.	Otaru
Sapporo ( 札幌 )	360.2	Chitose Line , Hakodate Main Line, Sasshō Line , Sapporo Subway	Coord.	Sapporo

Rolling stock

Train the H5 Series Shinkansen

All trains on the Hokkaidō Shinkansen consist of ten-car units of the E5 series from JR East or the H5 series from JR Hokkaido . The first train manufactured in Kobe arrived on October 14, 2014 by cargo ship in the port of Hakodate and was transported to the depot on a low-loader. The remaining two units were delivered in 2015.

The vehicles received the usual green and white paintwork, with a purple stripe in the middle. The purple represents typical flowers of Hokkaidō: lilac , lupine and lavender . Second class cars are decorated with wood paneling and carpets with snowflake motifs. The first class has cream-colored walls with stylized depictions of the dairy industry and carpets with drift-ice motifs. In the “Gran Class”, dark blue carpets are predominant, which are modeled on lakes along the route.

Web links

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

Individual evidence

1. ↑ 青 函 ト ン ネ ル の あ ゆ み (完成 前) (History of the Seikan Tunnel before completion). JR Hokkaido, accessed May 22, 2016 (Japanese). 
2. ^ Nationwide Shinkansen Railway Development Act. (PDF; 77 kB) MLIT , accessed on May 22, 2016 (English). 
3. ^ IIASA Collaborative Proceedings Series (1981): The Shinkansen Program. (PDF) International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis, accessed on May 22, 2016 . 
4. ↑ ^{a b c} Shuichi Takashima: Current status of Hokkaido Shinkansen. (PDF, 1.0 MB) (No longer available online.) In: Japan Railway & Transport Review 57th East Japan Railway Culture Foundation, March 2011, archived from the original on March 9, 2015 ; accessed on May 22, 2016 (English). 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.  
5. ^ Keith Barrow: First test run for Hokkaido Shinkansen train. International Railway Journal, December 3, 2014, accessed May 22, 2016 . 
6. ↑ ^{a b} 北海道 新 幹線 新 青森 ～ 新 函館 北斗 間 開業 に 伴 う 運行 計画 の 概要 に つ い て (overview of the timetable after the opening of the Hokkaidō Shinkansen between Sendai and Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto). (PDF) JR East , September 16, 2015, accessed May 22, 2016 (Japanese). 
7. ^ Yoshihiko Sato: Hokkaido Shinkansen prepares for launch. International Railway Journal, February 16, 2016, accessed May 22, 2016 . 
8. ↑ Bullet train linking Tokyo and Hokkaido unable to hit sub 4-hour target. (No longer available online.) Newsonjapan.com, December 4, 2015, archived from the original on May 22, 2016 ; accessed on May 22, 2016 (English). 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.  
9. ↑ Three Shinkansen extensions approved. Railway Gazette, July 19, 2012, accessed May 22, 2016 . 
10. ↑ In-depth studies needed on extended Shinkansen routes. (No longer available online.) Yomiuri Shimbun , February 8, 2012, archived from the original on May 22, 2016 ; accessed on May 22, 2016 (English). 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.  
11. ↑ Japan To Move Up Opening Of New Bullet Train Lines In Hokkaido, Hokuriku. Japan Bullet, January 9, 2015, accessed May 22, 2016 . 
12. ↑ First Series Shinkansen H5 trainset arrives in Hokkaido. Railway Gazette, October 14, 2014, accessed May 22, 2016 . 
13. ↑ Special Preview: Hokkaido Shinkansen - Hopes and Challenges. (No longer available online.) NHK World , January 1, 2016, archived from the original on May 22, 2016 ; accessed on May 22, 2016 (English). 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.  

 Map with all coordinates: OSM | WikiMap