60 Japan Railway & Transport Review • April 1997

Japanese Railway History 10

Ja p a n eseRa il way H i sto r y

Copyright © 1997 EJRCF. All rights reserved.

Railway Modernizationand Shinkansen

Yasuo Wakuda

Progress of Electrificationand Diesel Conversion

In the late-1950s—some 10 years afterWorld War II—Japan's economy had re-covered to the pre-war level and startedremarkable growth. The share of railwaysin the domestic transport market was stillso large that the economic growth calledfor increased passenger and freight ca-pacities. Heavy investment was made inthe 1960s to hasten modernization oftrunk lines.Up to the war’s end, the Japanese gov-ernment railways (JNR after 1949) had re-lied on steam power, whereas private ur-ban railways had already been electrified,and small and medium-sized local privaterailways were using rail-cars more-and-more. Electrification of government lineswas limited to the Tokyo and Osaka areasand sections containing long tunnels.Many of the private railways nationalizedduring the war had been electrified linesand in 1950, JNR’s electrified lines ac-counted for 1659 km (8%) of the totalroute length of 19,786 km. Most were1500-volt DC systems.After the war, electrification was pro-moted chiefly on the major trunk lines.The Tokaido Line between Tokyo andOsaka was completely electrified in1956, followed by the Sanyo Line run-ning to the western tip of Honshu (themain island) in 1964, the Tohoku Linerunning to the northern tip of Honshu in1968, and the Kagoshima Line runningto the southern tip of Kyushu in 1970.The total length of JNR’s electrified sec-tions increased from 2699 km (13%) in1960 to 6021 km (29%) in 1970, and to8414 km (39%) in 1980.In addition to the 1500-volt DC systemused on the Tokaido and Sanyo lines, etc.,the AC system, which became commonin post-war Europe, started being adoptedin Japan in the late 1950s. Japan has twopower frequency zones: the Tohoku Linein the east, mostly uses 50 Hz, 20 kV,

while the Kagoshima Line in the west,operates on 60 Hz, 20 kV. Trunk routesrunning along the Sea-of-Japan coast, hadto use three different electrification sys-tems, including the 1500-volt DC systemin the intermediate sections.In addition to locomotive-hauled trains,EMUs also began operating on the elec-trified lines. JNR's first long-distanceEMU started operation on the TokaidoLine between Tokyo and Numazu in1950. In 1958, JNR started operatingexpress trains with a maximum speed of110 km/h between Tokyo and Osaka.Due to Japanese track standards, the mul-tiple unit system with motor cars coupledto form a train, was preferred over the

system using a heavy locomotive at thehead of the train. From the viewpoint ofterminal capacity, suburban EMUs alsohad the merit of dispensing with shunt-ing of the locomotive. While major trunklines were electrified, DMUs with under-floor diesel engines were put into opera-tion on sub-trunk lines and secondarylines. This was made possible by the de-velopment of a power transmission sys-tem using a torque converter. A nation-wide service of express trains with DMUsor EMUs was formed after JNR’s firstDMU made its debut in 1960.For freight traffic on non-electrified lines,steam locomotives kept playing a sub-stantial role through the 1960s because

JNR Rolling Stock

Steam Electric Diesel Passenger FreightFY locomotives locomotives locomotives EMUs DMUs cars cars

1950 5,102 356 0 2,657 123 11,271 105,862

1960 3,974 794 218 4,534 2,227 11,412 118,729

1970 1,601 1,818 1,447 12,582 5,371 8,711 149,485

1980 5 1,856 2,109 17,696 5,038 6,176 99,562

Moha 151-series express EMU used on the electrified Tokaido Line (Transportation Museum)

61Japan Railway & Transport Review • April 1997Copyright © 1997 EJRCF. All rights reserved.

development of high-powered diesel lo-comotives was slow due to the severelimitations on axle loads of the Japanesenarrow-guage system. Steam locomo-tives did not go out of daily use until 1976(see table).

Increasing Capacity ofTrunk Lines

Before World War II, most JNR trunk lineswere single track except the Tokaido andSanyo lines which connected Tokyo withwestern Honshu. In addition, many lineshad gradients of 1/40. These factors se-verely limited the capacity of trunk lines,and in the late 1950s, JNR set aboutdouble-tracking and regrading sectionsof its major trunk lines.In particular, the Hokuriku Line—a partof the trunk route along the Sea-of-Japancoast—was in need of greater capacityto allow industrial development along theline. In 1962, JNR opened a new double-track line with the 13.9-km HokurikuTunnel (Japan's longest tunnel in thosedays). This, together with the AC electri-fication started from 1957, marked an ep-och in this line’s improvement.The Shinetsu Line—a trunk line crossingcentral Honshu—had a steep gradient of1/15 at the Usui Pass. It was one of thefew trunk lines in the world using the Abt

rack-and-pinion system. The work toswitch to a new line without rack-and-pinion over the steep grade was com-pleted in 1963. The Joetsu Line, anothertrunk line crossing central Honshu, hadtwo spiral loops and the Shimizu Tunnel(9.7 km, single track) to conquer the el-evation. The New Shimizu Tunnel (13.5km; single track) was built at a lower el-evation than the old tunnel and the linebecame double-tracked in 1967 using thetwo tunnels.Railway transport in northern Japan wasreinforced significantly with the totalelectrification and double-tracking ofthe Tohoku Line by 1968 and the puttinginto operation of seven large train ferriesconnecting Honshu with Hokkaido in

1964–66.The ferries were scaled-up to increase thetransportation capacity and to learn thetragic lesson of the Toya-maru, whichsank in a typhoon in 1954 (a maritimedisaster, second only to the Titanic, claim-ing about 1400 lives including passen-gers of other sunken ferries).Fatal rail accidents also occurred in 1962and 1963. In both cases, EMUs collidedwith a derailed freight train in the Tokyosuburbs, killing 160 in the first accidentand 161 in the second. After these acci-dents, JNR implemented extensive safetymeasures, including the installation ofautomatic train stopper devices (ATS) onall its lines.

DD51 Diesel locomotive—principal trunk-line loco (Transportation Museum) EF63 Electric loco used exclusively on steep grade at Usui Pass(Transportation Museum)

Kiha 81-series express DMU used on Joban and Tohoku Lines (Transportation Museum)

62 Japan Railway & Transport Review • April 1997

Japanese Railway History 10

Copyright © 1997 EJRCF. All rights reserved.

Construction ofTokaido Shinkansen

The coastal plain between Tokyo andOsaka is the centre of Japanese popula-tion and industry, and demand for trans-port in this area was ever expanding.Scheduled flights were already in service,and a motorway was also planned be-tween Tokyo and Osaka. The double-track Tokaido Line was reaching its ca-pacity limit. A government panel estab-lished in 1958 discussed measures to

tackle the problem, such as quadruplingthe existing line, constructing a separatenarrow-gauge line, and constructing aseparate standard-gauge line. Eventually,the panel decided to recommend con-struction of a standard-gauge shinkansen.The decision was endorsed by a report ofthe Railway Technology Research Institutethat a high-speed EMU on standard gaugecould connect Tokyo and Osaka in 3hours. Shinji Sogo, the JNR President, alsostrongly supported the idea.According to the original standards,

Seikan Tsugaru-maru ferry (Transportation Museum)

the minimum radius of curves was2500 m, the steepest gradient was 1/50,and the top speed was 210 km/h (270km/h today). The electrical system is 25kV AC, 60 Hz, and the entire line isgrade-separated from roads. Advancedsafety systems, including cab signallingand automatic train speed control (ATC),are used.Construction of the Tokaido Shinkansenwas started in 1959 and the line wasopened on 1 October 1964 in time forthe Tokyo Olympic Games. For the firstt ime in the wor ld , the Toka idoShinkansen routinely topped 200 km/hand demonstrated the high safety levelof railways. Previously, Japanese railwaytechnology had not been highly rated in-ternationally, partly because of its nar-row-gauge limitations. However, withthe success of the Tokaido Shinkansen, itbegan to attract global attention.From 1965, the Hikari trains covered the515 km between Tokyo and Osaka in 3hours and 10 minutes. At first, only twotrains, including the stopping Kodamaoperated each hour, but the operating fre-quency was increased year-after-year.The Tokaido Shinkansen became the fore-runner of high-speed railways worldwide,such as the French TGV. Although theconstruction was financed mostly byloans (partly from the International Bankfor Reconstruction and Development),strong demand ensured its business suc-cess.

Linking Four Main Islands

After the success of the TokaidoShinkansen, construction of the SanyoShinkansen was started to extend theshinkansen to the west; it reached Hakata(Fukuoka City) in Kyushu in 1975. Theplanned maximum speed was 260 km/h.So the line standards were revised with aminimum radius of curves of 4000 m anda maximum gradient of 1/67. The lineInauguration of Tokaido Shinkansen on 1 September, 1964 (Transportation Museum)

63Japan Railway & Transport Review • April 1997Copyright © 1997 EJRCF. All rights reserved.

Yasuo Wakuda

Mr Wakuda graduated from the University of Tokyo, Faculty of Law, in 1957 and worked for the

Ministry of Transport until 1984; he served as a board member of the Japan Non-Government Rail-

ways Association, and the Japan Railway Construction Public Corporation, and as president of the

Japan Transport Economics Research Centre. He is currently the Executive Vice-chairman of Japan

Air Charter Co. As a specialist in the history of railways, he is author of 100 Years of Japanese Private

Railways through Men and Events, Private Railways of Japan-Their Networks and Fleets, and other

works.

passes through many tunnels, includingthe New Kanmon Tunnel (18.7 km) un-der the strait between Honshu andKyushu.There was strong national opinion de-manding construction of shinkansen na-tionwide and a new law was enacted in1970. Construction of the TohokuShinkansen to Morioka and the JoetsuShinkansen to Niigata was started basedon this law. Both lines were mostlyopened in 1982 (reaching Tokyo Centralin 1991). The Joetsu Shinkansen runningsouth to north crossing Honshu has manylong tunnels, including the DaishimizuTunnel (22.2 km). On this section, sometrains have operated at the maximumspeed of 275 km/h since 1990.After the Toya-maru disaster in 1954,construction of the Seikan Tunnel underthe Tsugaru strait to connect Honshu andHokkaido was the subject of in-depth in-vestigation. Construction was finallyapproved and started in 1971 with thedesign modified so that it could accom-modate a future shinkansen. Construc-tion of a chain of bridges accommodat-ing road and rail (both narrow and stan-dard gauge) to connect Honshu andShikoku was also started.

Seikan Undersea Tunnel (Japan Railway Construction Public Corporation)

Unlike the Tokaido route, othershinkansen running through low-densityrural areas cannot be profitable, andconsequently, shinkansen expansionslowed down in the 1980s. Although theSeikan Tunnel (53.9 km, double track)was opened in 1988, it only has a nar-row-gauge track because the TohokuShinkansen still ends at Morioka. (Op-eration at a maximum of speed 140 km/hwas started in 1991 in the tunnel.) In thesame year, the bridges connecting Honshuand Shikoku were opened, but only withnarrow-gauge tracks.All four main islands of Japan were joinedby rail at last, but JNR was privatized inthe previous year, and the managementof the new links was transferred to theseparate JR companies. �

� Shinji Sogo (1884-1981)The decision to construct a standard-gaugeshinkansen at the end of the 1950s owed muchto Shinji Sogo, the president of JNR. Aftergraduating from the Faculty of Law at TokyoImperial University in 1909, he entered the Rail-way Agency and advanced through the man-agement. While working for the Agency andthe Teito Reconstruction Agency after the GreatKanto Earthquake of 1923, he was strongly in-fluenced by Shinpei Goto (JRTR 4), the Agencypresident.After leaving the government railways in 1926,he became a director of South Manchurian Rail-ways. After the war, he served as Chairman ofthe Railway Welfare Association until he wasappointed JNR president in 1955.To improve the Tokaido Line, he insisted onadopting the standard gauge despite much op-position. His reason was that he firmly believedthe international standard gauge was indis-pensable for radical improvement of Japaneserailways. In this view, he echoed the ideals ofShinpei Goto who had called for a total changeto standard gauge about 50 years earlier.To ensure government approval for construc-tion of the shinkansen, JNR set the original bud-get on the low side. As the budget shortagebecame clear, he resigned in 1963 to take re-sponsibility. However, much of the credit forthe Tokaido Shinkansen, which opened a newera for the world’s railways, goes to him.

(Transportation News)