Jōetsu Shinkansen

Jōetsu Shinkansen
E4 series on a Max Toki service, January 2006
Overview
Native name	上越新幹線
Type	Shinkansen
Locale	Japan
Termini	Ōmiya Niigata
Stations	10
Operation
Opened	15 November 1982
Owner	JR East
Depot(s)	Niigata
Rolling stock	E2/E4 series
Technical
Line length	269.5 km (167.5 mi)
Track gauge	1,435 mm (4 ft 8 ^1⁄2 in)
Electrification	25 kV AC, 50 Hz, overhead catenary
Operating speed	240 km/h (150 mph)
Route map

The Jōetsu Shinkansen (上越新幹線) is a high-speed shinkansen railway line connecting Tokyo and Niigata, Japan, via the Tōhoku Shinkansen, operated by the East Japan Railway Company (JR East).

Train services

• Toki, Tokyo - Niigata (limited-stop)
• Max Toki, Tokyo - Niigata (limited-stop)
• Tanigawa, Tokyo - Echigo-Yuzawa (all-stations, since October 1997)
• Max Tanigawa, Tokyo - Echigo-Yuzawa (all-stations, since October 1997)

Discontinued services

• Asahi, Tokyo - Niigata (discontinued December 2002)
• Max Asahi, Tokyo - Niigata (discontinued December 2002)

Stations

Station name	Japanese	Distance (km)	Transfers	Location
Tokyo	東京	0.0	Tokaido Shinkansen Chuo Main Line Keihin-Tohoku Line Keiyo Line Yokosuka Line Sobu Line (Rapid) Tokaido Main Line Yamanote Line Tokyo Metro Marunouchi Line (M-17) Tokyo Metro Tōzai Line (Ōtemachi, T-09)	Chiyoda	Tokyo
Ueno	上野	3.6	Joban Line Keihin-Tohoku Line Takasaki Line Utsunomiya Line Yamanote Line Keisei Main Line (Keisei Ueno) Tokyo Metro Ginza Line (G-16) Tokyo Metro Hibiya Line (H-17)	Taitō
Ōmiya	大宮	31.3	Tohoku Shinkansen Keihin-Tohoku Line Saikyo Line Shonan-Shinjuku Line Takasaki Line Utsunomiya Line ■ Kawagoe Line ■ New Shuttle Tobu Urban Park Line	Ōmiya-ku, Saitama	Saitama
Kumagaya	熊谷	67.9	■ Chichibu Main Line ■ Takasaki Line, Shonan-Shinjuku Line	Kumagaya
Honjō-Waseda	本庄早稲田	88.0		Honjō
Takasaki	高崎	108.6	Hokuriku Shinkansen ■ Joshin Electric Railway Line ■ Agatsuma Line[* 1] ■ Hachiko Line ■ Joetsu Line ■ Ryomo Line[* 1] ■ Shinetsu Main Line ■ Takasaki Line, Shonan-Shinjuku Line	Takasaki	Gunma
Jōmō-Kōgen	上毛高原	150.4		Minakami
Echigo-Yuzawa	越後湯沢	182.7	■ Joetsu Line ■ Hokuetsu Express Hokuhoku Line ■ Gala-Yuzawa Line	Yuzawa	Niigata
Urasa	浦佐	212.3	■ Jōetsu Line	Minamiuonuma
Nagaoka	長岡	245.1	■ Shin'etsu Line ■ Joetsu Line[* 2]	Nagaoka
Tsubame-Sanjō	燕三条	268.7	■ Yahiko Line	Sanjō
Niigata	新潟	300.8	■ Shin'etsu Line ■ Hakushin Line (including Inaho Limited Express) ■ Echigo Line ■ Ban'etsu West Line[* 3]	Chūō-ku, Niigata

1. Although the official terminus of the Ryōmō Line is at Shin-Maebashi and that of the Agatsuma Line is at Shibukawa, trains on both lines run through to Takasaki.
2. Although the official terminus of the Joetsu Line is at Miyauchi, trains on the line run through to Nagaoka.
3. Although the official terminus of the Ban'etsu West Line is at Niitsu, most trains on the line run through to Niigata.

The Gala-Yuzawa Line is a 1.8 km branch from Echigo-Yuzawa to Gala-Yuzawa Station. It operates in the winter months only, serving the adjoining ski resort.

Rolling stock

As of March 2013, the following train types operate on Joetsu Shinkansen services.

• E2 series: Toki / Tanigawa (since January 2013)^[1]
• E4 series: Max Toki / Max Tanigawa (since October 1997)

• 
  E2 series shinkansen train
• 
  E4 series, July 2008

Types no longer used

• 200 series: Toki / Tanigawa (until March 2013)
• E1 series: Max Toki / Max Tanigawa (until September 2012)

• 
  200 series on a Tanigawa service, January 2011
• 
  E1 series on a Max Asahi service, June 2002

History

The program to build the new line was initiated in 1971 by Niigata-born prime minister Tanaka Kakuei; one popular anecdote is that Tanaka determined the line's routing by drawing it on a map with a red pencil.^[2] Built at a cost of $6.3 billion,^[3] it was built "to establish closer ties with Tokyo and promote regional development".^[4]

Trial runs over the line began in November 1980, and regular service began on 15 November 1982. The line was initially planned to terminate at Shinjuku Station, but economic considerations pushed Japanese National Railways (JNR) to merge the line with the existing Tōhoku Shinkansen line at Ōmiya.

In September 1991, a 400 Series Shinkansen train set a Japanese rail speed record of 345 km/h (214 mph) on the Jōetsu Shinkansen line, and in December 1993, the STAR21 experimental train recorded 425 km/h (264 mph). The maximum speed for regular services on the line is 245 km/h (150 mph) except for the section between Jomo-Kogen and Urasa which is 275 km/h (170 mph) for E2 series trains travelling towards Niigata. The urban section between Tokyo and Ōmiya is 110 km/h (70 mph).^[5]

The Basic Plan specifies that the Jōetsu Shinkansen should actually start from Shinjuku, which would necessitate building 30 km of additional Shinkansen track from Ōmiya. While some land acquisitions along the existing Saikyō Line were made, no construction ever started.

The Niigata prefectural government has proposed building a new multi-modal terminal to directly connect the Shinkansen to the port of Niigata, potentially allowing direct transfers to ferries and cruise ships, and to potentially allow direct access between the Shinkansen and Niigata Airport. However this plan is foreseen to be completed only by the mid-2040s.^[6]

Special event train services

On 17 November 2012, a special Joetsu Shinkansen 30th Anniversary (上越新幹線開業30周年号」 Jōetsu Shinkansen Kaigyō 30-shūnen-gō) service ran as Toki 395 from Omiya to Niigata using 10-car 200 series set K47.^[7]

Also on 17 November 2012, a special Joetsu Shinkansen 30th Anniversary (上越新幹線開業30周年号」 Jōetsu Shinkansen Kaigyō 30-shūnen-gō) service ran from Niigata to Tokyo using E5 series set U8, with a special ceremony at Niigata Station before departure.^[8][9] This was the first revenue-earning service operated on the Joetsu Shinkansen by an E5 series trainset.^[9]

References

1. Ｅ２系車両を上越新幹線に投入！ [E2 series trains to be introduced on Joetsu Shinkansen] (PDF). News Release (in Japanese). Japan: East Japan Railway Company. 16 November 2012. Archived from the original (PDF) on 19 November 2012. Retrieved 16 November 2012.
2. "実に地球３００周…雪国駆けた「丸顔の美人」　さらば新幹線２００系". MSN Sankei News. 15 March 2013. Retrieved 20 January 2014. 最後の活躍の舞台となった上越新幹線。その誕生には、田中角栄元首相が赤鉛筆で線を引きルートを決めたとの逸話も残る。
3. Hayes, Louis D. Introduction to Japanese Politics, p.107.
4. Takashima, Shuichi. Railway Operators in Japan 3: Tohoku and Niigata Region. Japan Railway & Transport Review No. 29 (pp.40–49)
5. "300km/hのトップランナー" [300 km/h Top Runners]. Japan Railfan Magazine. Vol. 52 no. 612. Japan: Kōyūsha Co., Ltd. April 2012. p. 14.
6. "新潟の西港区に新幹線、　県が30年後構想". Nihon Keizai Shimbun. 16 April 2014. Retrieved 16 April 2014.
7. "とき"395号「上越新幹線開業30周年記念号」運転 [Toki 395 "Joetsu Shinkansen 30th Anniversary"]. Japan Railfan Magazine Online (in Japanese). Japan: Koyusha Co., Ltd. 18 November 2012. Retrieved 18 November 2012.
8. おかげさまで上越新幹線開業３０周年 [Joetsu Shinkansen 30th Anniversary Celebrations] (PDF) (in Japanese). Japan: East Japan Railway Company, Niigata Division. 12 September 2012. Archived from the original (pdf) on September 20, 2012. Retrieved 15 September 2012.
9. "団体臨時列車「上越新幹線開業30周年記念号」，E5系で運転" [Special "Joetsu Shinkansen 30th Anniversary" runs using E5 series]. Japan Railfan Magazine Online (in Japanese). Japan: Koyusha Co., Ltd. 18 November 2012. Retrieved 18 November 2012.

External links

• JR East website (Japanese)