Mini-shinkansen

An E3 series mini-shinkansen train on the Akita Shinkansen in March 2014

Mini-shinkansen (ミニ新幹線) is the name given to the concept of converting 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in) narrow gauge railway lines to 1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) standard gauge for use by shinkansen train services in Japan. Unlike the high-speed Shinkansen lines, the mini-Shinkansen lines have a maximum speed of only 130 km/h (80 mph). Two mini-Shinkansen routes have been constructed: the Yamagata Shinkansen and Akita Shinkansen.[1]

  1. ^ Semmens, Peter (1997). High Speed in Japan: Shinkansen - The World's Busiest High-speed Railway. Sheffield, UK: Platform 5 Publishing. ISBN 1-872524-88-5.