By AYATERU HOSOZAWA/ Staff Writer
October 1, 2024 at 13:51 JST
East Japan Railway Co. plans to develop a cargo-only car—and possibly an entire train—for its Shinkansen services to increase freight transportation capacities, offering a speedy and expanded delivery service.
JR East, which operates the Tohoku, Joetsu and Hokuriku Shinkansen lines, is considering incorporating around two cargo-only cars into a train, company sources said.
The freight-only cars will have no passenger seats and feature larger doors that allow for smoother loading and unloading operations.
In the future, the company may introduce a Shinkansen consisting exclusively of cargo-carrying cars, the sources said.
“The Shinkansen has advantages in transporting high-value-added items such as luxury foods and precision machinery because it can carry goods quickly and almost without shaking,” a senior company official said. “Transportation capacities will dramatically increase if dedicated cars are developed.”
No cargo-only Shinkansen car has been put into service since the Tokaido Shinkansen Line, Japan’s first bullet train service, opened in 1964.
A key technological challenge will be maintaining the strength of the car body to withstand high-speed operations when the doors are enlarged, Shinkansen engineers said.
The freight-only car may be designed as the first car so that passengers will not have to pass through it, the sources said.
JR East started the Hako-byun freight transportation service using conventional bullet trains in 2021 after passenger numbers sharply fell during the novel coronavirus pandemic.
Other JR companies have followed suit. Now, freight transportation services are offered across the nationwide Shinkansen network from Hokkaido to Kyushu.
But only goods in about 40 cardboard boxes can be handled at a time because the services utilize spaces outside the seating areas of Shinkansen, in principle.
JR East, which developed a cargo platform that fits between the seats, has been experimenting with transporting goods in the passenger cars since fiscal 2023.
Even so, cargo sizes are limited, and loading and unloading operations are time-consuming.
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