Photo/Illutration The driver keeps his hands off the lever for acceleration and deceleration during an automated driving test on May 11. (Provided by Central Japan Railway Co.)

SHIZUOKA--Railway officials deemed a self-driving Shinkansen test as successful here, in a step toward having automated high-speed bullet trains debut in Japan in 2028.

The driver pressed a button in the cab of the newest N700S Shinkansen train at Hamamatsu Station in Shizuoka Prefecture shortly after midnight on May 11.

The automatic train operation (ATO) system took over and the train started driving itself before arriving 26 minutes later at Shizuoka Station.

It stopped only 9 millimeters from the correct location at the station platform and was only 2 seconds late, according to Central Japan Railway Co. (JR Tokai), which operates the Tokaido Shinkansen line.

The driver was ready to take control of the train at any time, but he didn’t need to.

The ATO system managed to spontaneously respond to a random task given during the test, too.

When engineers ordered the ATO to slow at a specific part of the track ahead, the system quickly accelerated from approximately 250 kph to just under the speed limit of 285 kph to make up for the upcoming delay.

Train operators that include Tokyo Metro Co. utilize the ATO.

Human drivers normally accelerate, decelerate and stop the Shinkansen at the right place at the station platforms.

The automatic train control (ATC) system currently in place supports the driver by determining the optimal speed limit according to data such as the distance from the train ahead.

The ATC automatically applies the brakes if the train is moving too fast.

JR Tokai has been testing fully automatic Shinkansen operations since November 2021.

Drivers will be able to check the platforms and open and close the doors while the train is in automatic mode, according to Atsushi Tsujimura, a JR Tokai senior official. Train conductors currently perform those duties.

“Our train conductors would then be able to spend more time helping customers and strengthen railway security,” said Tsujimura. “It will help improve our customer service.”

Other railway operators are developing similar systems to address the expected labor shortage.

East Japan Railway Co., for example, plans to introduce driverless trains in its Joetsu Shinkansen line by the mid-2030s.

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