VOL.201 MARCH 2025
Traditional knowledge and skills of sake-making with koji mold in Japan [Discovering Japan Through the Eyes of Japanese Influencers] Japan’s Extensive Railway Network

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Shinkansen bullet train: The photo shows a running Tokaido Shinkansen N700S.
©Central Japan Railway Company

MIYAMURA Kazuo is professor emeritus at Tokyo University of Science and also has an in-depth knowledge of Japan’s railways. In this month’s issue, we asked him to talk about the appeal of railway network in Japan.

Japan’s railways have a history of more than 150 years and comprise a vast network of over 27,000 kilometers in length, connecting the four main islands that make up the country’s territory (from east to west: Hokkaido, Honshu, Shikoku, and Kyushu) via undersea tunnels and long-span bridges.¹ Running throughout the Japanese archipelago—a string of islands that extends from north to south—Japan’s rail network is characterized by the diversity of its routes and the accuracy of its timetables. Its extensive network includes tracks running along the various seas surrounding the country (the Sea of Okhotsk, the Sea of Japan, the Pacific Ocean, the East China Sea, the Seto Inland Sea, etc.), tracks winding their way between 3,000-meter-high mountains, as well as Shinkansen bullet train lines linking large cities and various suburban railways.

JR Shinkansen (bullet trains)

It has been more than 60 years since the Shinkansen, a high-speed railway that connects major cities, began service between Tokyo and Osaka in time for the TOKYO 1964 Olympic Games. Today, it is possible to travel from Hokkaido in the north to Kyushu in the south entirely by rail, passing through two undersea tunnels along the way. Currently, there are four Shinkansen lines departing from Tokyo, Japan’s transport hub: the Tohoku & Hokkaido Shinkansen heading north, the Joetsu Shinkansen and Hokuriku Shinkansen heading toward the Sea of Japan, and the Tokaido Shinkansen heading toward Kyoto and Osaka. The Sanyo Shinkansen and Kyushu Shinkansen lines extend further west from Osaka, and the distance of approximately 2,300 kilometers from Hokuto City in Hokkaido in the north to Kagoshima City in Kyushu in the south can be covered in as little as 12 hours by transferring between Shinkansen lines. Although major cities have airports in addition to Shinkansen stations, the Shinkansen is a common means of transportation between metropolitan areas.

Suburban railways and tramcar/subway networks

In metropolitan areas such as Tokyo and Osaka, suburban lines connecting the city center with the suburbs serve the needs of commuters travelling to and from work and school in the city center. Such city centers have well-developed networks of subway and tramcar lines, which are the main means of transportation for residents because of the short time intervals between trains. However, in Tokyo and Osaka, due to the large population, trains are extremely crowded during the weekday morning and evening rush hours (generally from 7:30 to 9:30 in the morning and from 5:00 to 7:00 in the evening). People visiting Tokyo and Osaka from other countries will want to be prepared for overcrowded trains or consider alternative means of transport during these rush hours.

Sightseeing railroads

Japan also has a well-developed network of railways that offer scenic journeys along beautiful seaside and mountain landscapes or to famous tourist spots and hot springs. Firstly, there are many cities that are home to fascinating tourist attractions and also have Shinkansen stations. These include Kyoto, which has many component parts of the property, an UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Site, including Kiyomizu-dera Temple and Kinkakuji Temple,² and Himeji in Hyogo Prefecture, which is home to Himeji Castle,³ also a World Cultural Heritage Site. Such places are easily accessible by Shinkansen and can be visited on a day trip, depending on your departure point. Tourist destinations that are far away from the cities can also be reached by train. Such destinations include the Kushiro Shitsugen marsh in Hokkaido, Mt. Fuji,⁴ Kurobe Gorge⁵ in Toyama Prefecture, Ise-Shima⁶ in Mie Prefecture, the Shimanto River⁷ in Kochi Prefecture, and Mt. Aso⁸ in Kumamoto Prefecture. Among sightseeing trains, which take passengers to tourist destinations in the countryside, offer luxurious on-board facilities and spectacular views, making the train journey itself a delightful experience (see photos).

MIYAMURA Kazuo
Professor emeritus at Tokyo University of Science. Holding a Doctor of Engineering degree from the University of Tokyo, he has appeared on NHK’s Radio Midnight News with Tecchan-sensei no tabi no susume (“Dr. Tecchan’s Travel Recommendations”) and is known as a train enthusiast. His major publications include ‘Noritetsu’ kyoju no tokoton tetsudo tabi (“Professor Noritetsu’s Complete Railway Journey”) (Ushio Publishing Co., Ltd., 2021) and Zero kara manabu genso no sekai (“Learning the World of the Elements from Scratch”) (Zero kara manabu series, Kodansha Scientific Books, 2006).
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• 1. Long-span bridges are bridges with a span of 100 meters or more.
• 2. Kiyomizu-dera Temple and Kinkakuji Temple are among the most famous Buddhist temples in Kyoto. They were inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1994 as Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto.
• 3. A famous castle representing Japan in Himeji City, Hyogo Prefecture built in the early 17th century, which was inscribed as Japan’s first World Heritage Site in 1993. See “A Castle Reborn” in the September 2015 issue of HIGHLIGHTING Japan
• 4. An active volcano that straddles Shizuoka and Yamanashi Prefectures. It was inscribed on the World Cultural Heritage List in 2013.
• 5. One of the most-famous deep gorges in Japan. It was designated as a Special Place of Scenic Beauty and a Special Natural Monument by the Japanese government in 1964.
• 6. An area in the southeastern part of Mie Prefecture on the eastern coast of the Kii Peninsula, comprising the cities of Ise, Toba, and Shima, and the Watarai District.
• 7. A 196-kilometer-long river located in the western part of Kochi Prefecture. It has been selected as one of the 100 Best Water Sources of Japan by the Japanese Government’s Ministry of the Environment and also as a Cultural Landscape by the Agency for Cultural Affairs with the designation, “Cultural Landscape of the Shimanto River Basin.”
• 8. A mountain range of five peaks (“Aso Gogaku”) that stretches from east to west in Aso City, Kumamoto Prefecture. See “Managing Aso Grasslands for Sustainable Agriculture” in the August 2021 issue of HIGHLIGHTING Japan

By MIYAMURA Kazuo
Photo ISHIZAWA Yoji; Central Japan Railway Company; PIXTA

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