| Abstract |
High-speed trains have a great impact on economic society. Energy efficient railways are highly competitive with airplanes when a travel time is within three hours. High-speed trains using rail wheels will make a distance of 1000 km within three hours in the near future. For the Tokyo – Nagoya – Osaka route, Central Japan Railway announced on December 25th, 2007 to open a central linear Shinkansen line between Tokyo and Nagoya by around 2025 in addition to the existing narrow-gauge lines and standard-gauge Shinkansen lines. Use of this technology will make a distance of 1500 km within three hours and 2000 km within four hours from an early stage. This document gives an overview and prospect of latest Shinkansen technology and magnetic levitation technology that has been developed in Japan. |
