July 3, 2009

• Bullet Trains

  The Japanese Shinkansen is the world’s busiest high-speed rail line. Carrying 151 million passengers a year, it has transported more passengers (4.5 billion) than all other high speed lines in the world combined.
  
  Though it is largely a long-distance transport system, the Shinkansen also serves commuters who travel to work in metropolitan areas from outlying cities. This train is the most relaxing way to travel I have ever experienced.
  
  
  
  There is no baggage check-in, no security lines, no seat belts, you walk on and bingo always right on time the train pulls out. I always took the 7:04 to Osaka from Tokyo…7:05 you missed but between Tokyo and Shin Osaka, the two largest metropolises in Japan, they have ten trains per hour with long trains, 16- cars each (1,300 seats capacity) running in each direction with minimum 3 minutes frequency.

  It is clean of course (it is Japan) and it runs clean using electric power.

  It is great. I was able to go to the Winter Olympics each day from Tokyo to Nagano door to door in about 90 minutes,

  Where is our American ingenuity? GE helped Japan with its rail system let’s get them on the stick for our Eastern Seaboard. We need this train!

  • 10:54 am
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