Japan Transportation Guide
Seibu Railway has announced that from January 1, 2024, all of its trains will run on electricity from 100% renewable sources and that it will operate with effectively zero CO2 emissions. According to the railway company, the reduction in CO2 emissions will be equivalent to the amount produced by 57,000 households.
Seibu Shinjuku Line 30000 series train. All Seibu trains will run on renewable energy from January 1st
Hankyu Railway will introduce a new seat reservation service on the Hankyu Kyoto Line from the summer of 2024. This will be Hankyu’s first seat reservation service and will be available on limited express, commuter express and semi-express trains that run between Osaka and Kyoto.
A design image of the new Hankyu Railway PRiVACE car
Three colorful new trains are now running on the Namboku Line in Osaka Prefecture in advance of the line’s extension to the city of Minoh next year. The trains are designed to help promote the charms Minoh – which is particularly famous for the beautiful scenery of its forested park and waterfall.
Two of the colorful new train designs inspired by Minoh City
This summer, Okinawa Urban Monorail, commonly known as “Yui Rail”, introduced new three-car trains to ease over-crowding on the increasingly popular line.
Yui Rail train departing from Naha Airport Station
JR Shikoku are giving their #8000 series limited express trains a complete upgrade to increase passenger comfort and add a dash of style.
A design image of car 1/8 on the renewed #8000 series
The #8000 series was JR Shikoku’s first limited express train and was first introduced in 1992. Currently it is used for Shiokaze services that run between Okayama and Matsuyama and Ishizuchi services that run between Takamatsu and Matsuyama. [Read more…]
Japan’s first new tram service in 75 years has now been up and running since August 26th, but has up till now faced one tiny problem — too many names.
Japan’s newest tram service is called the Lightline
In a joint statement, JR East and JR West announced on August 30th that the Hokuriku Shinkansen extension will open between Kanazawa in Ishikawa Prefecture and Tsuruga in Fukui Prefecture on March 16th, 2024. Currently, the Hokuriku Shinkansen runs between Tokyo and Kanazawa, but the eventual plan is to have the line extended to Osaka.
Osaka Metro has decided the name of the new subway station that will serve Yumeshima Island in Osaka — the designated site for the Osaka World Expo in 2025. The station, like the island, will be called “Yumeshima”. Osaka Metro have also released some design images of the new station.
A design image of the new Yumeshima Station entrance at Osaka Expo 2025 site
The snack cart has long been a familiar sight on the bullet train service that runs between Tokyo and Osaka.
A snack cart on the Shinkansen
Since the Tokaido Shinkansen route opened in 1964, hungry and thirsty passengers have been able to buy sandwiches, hot coffee, beer, bento lunch boxes, snacks and ice creams from carts pushed by super polite staff through the train cars. [Read more…]
Kyoto’s Keifuku Electric Railroad will introduce seven new tram cars on the Randen Tram Line in 2024.
A design image of the new Kyotram
