Current Events > New bullet train connects tokyo cutting 50 minutes off comute fuck american trai

(+) Yeah! (+)

The new Hokuriku Shinkansen bullet train is taking off in style giving people more access to remote areas and cutting the commute of existing destinations by 50 fucking minutes.

https://youtu.be/pVxb7RLvOgU

https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20240316_06/

New bullet train extension comes into service

The first train for the newly extended Hokuriku Shinkansen line left Tokyo Station early on Saturday.
The line now connects Tokyo and Tsuruga in Fukui Prefecture. The new section covers 125 kilometers and six stations between Kanazawa in Ishikawa Prefecture through Tsuruga.
East Japan Railway Company President Fukasawa Yuji celebrated the departure of the first train at Tokyo Station with a ribbon-cutting ceremony.
He expressed his sympathy for people affected by the powerful earthquake on New Year's Day. The tremor hit some areas that the train line covers.
He also said he expects the extension of the service to boost the flow of people to the Hokuriku region from the Tokyo metropolitan area and the Shinetsu region, and help movement within Hokuriku.
Kagayaki 501, the first train bound for Tsuruga, departed at 6:16 a.m. following the stationmaster's signal.
A similar ceremony was held at Tsuruga Station at about the same time to celebrate the departure of the first train bound for Tokyo.
West Japan Railway Company President Hasegawa Kazuaki said he expects the new service will have an impact on the hearts of many users from across Japan and overseas, and make a difference for the future.
The new section was completed at a cost of 1.67 trillion yen, or about 11 billion dollars. The launch was delayed for one year due to additional construction work and shortages of workers.
Two types of trains, Kagayaki and Hakutaka, will directly connect Tokyo and Tsuruga stations. The fastest one-way trip between the two takes 3 hours and 8 minutes -- 50 minutes shorter than using a conventional train between Kanazawa and Tsuruga.
A further extension of the Hokuriku Shinkansen from Tsuruga to Shin-Osaka has been planned, but impact assessment procedures for areas along the line must be completed first.

Mean while in America the railway system is being held down by a corrupt railway and construction system that kills any great upgrades it could have to commuters because big business thinks they profit more or just want to be assholes who upgrade their home toy trains more to supposedly have fun mapping out train routes and get faux praise for it at work:

https://youtu.be/AJ2keSJzYyY

I love my homeland. They're always on the cutting edge

man fuck american trains

Yeah but those oil companies give so much money to the parties. Train execs are focusing on removing workers and regulations instead

Fuck yeah Japan.

You could build all the trains you wanted in the US and people wouldn't take it, Americans love their cars and will take planes for longer trips. They'll drive 8 hours just to visit relatives then drive back the next day because they have no vacation time. Japan is about the size of California and has four times its population, and much of it is in a narrow population belt where all the trains are. Lots of people in Japan have cars but mostly just for driving to the store, parking is punishing expensive and tolls on highways are high too, so people take trains to work or for trips. Even the high class bullet trains aren't really that expensive when you consider the distances they travel at, and their speed and convenience. I took the bullet train from Kyoto to Osaka and it took 15 minutes and cost like $12. In a car it would have taken 50 minutes, probably more in city traffic.

It's not just trains. After spending two weeks in Japan and then coming back to the states, it was hard not to be disappointed by just about everything.

High speed rail you say?

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/forum/e/e7e65d69.jpg

sfcalimari posted...

You could build all the trains you wanted in the US and people wouldn't take it, Americans love their cars and will take planes for longer trips. They'll drive 8 hours just to visit relatives then drive back the next day because they have no vacation time. Japan is about the size of California and has four times its population, and much of it is in a narrow population belt where all the trains are. Lots of people in Japan have cars but mostly just for driving to the store, parking is punishing expensive and tolls on highways are high too, so people take trains to work or for trips. Even the high class bullet trains aren't really that expensive when you consider the distances they travel at, and their speed and convenience. I took the bullet train from Kyoto to Osaka and it took 15 minutes and cost like $12. In a car it would have taken 50 minutes, probably more in city traffic.

You don't know what you are talking about. One of the biggest reasons trains aren't upgraded as much is it would cut airline profits and wouldn't give as much profit to train companies since it is vastly cheaper. All big buisness makes more money that way while many have this mind set that Americans prefer those shitty cars and the airlines.

Thats cute.

But you left out the part where California has already spent 9.8 Billion dollars laying the foundation for tracks (apparently)

BewmHedshot posted...

High speed rail you say?

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/forum/e/e7e65d69.jpg

2024
https://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/article/ca-high-speed-rail-100-billion-18979091.php

X8Azazel8X posted...

You don't know what you are talking about. One of the biggest reasons trains aren't upgraded as much is it would cut airline profits and wouldn't give as much profit to train companies since it is vastly cheaper. All big buisness makes more money that way while many have this mind set that Americans prefer those shitty cars and the airlines.

Oh I thought it was because people don't want the construction noise in their neighborhood. Or even the noise of the trains when the system is built in their area. Along with unlike the early 1900s there is a lot of stuff underground like electricity, sewage pipes, etc.

Kinda unfortunate since I think in certain cities it can be agreed having public transit at all has been a good thing. Seattle rejected public transit and Atlanta got it. And Seattle still doesn't have a huge train system to this day.

X8Azazel8X posted...

You don't know what you are talking about. One of the biggest reasons trains aren't upgraded as much is it would cut airline profits and wouldn't give as much profit to train companies since it is vastly cheaper. All big buisness makes more money that way while many have this mind set that Americans prefer those shitty cars and the airlines.

Bro you got a link or are you fucking yapping again

I'd love to have a worthy train system where I live but I live in the Midwest in the middle of cornfields and soybean fields with farms everywhere. The only realistic option is the highway and driving. I never want to live in a big city but if I did live someplace like NYC where public transit was a viable option I would use it.

Alteres posted...

Thats cute.

But you left out the part where California has already spent 9.8 Billion dollars laying the foundation for tracks (apparently)

*Looks at post 8*

Yeah they did a lot with that.

What the fuck is that video showing. Old white people, American coins, what looks like a dead body or sleeping vagrant...

If it was AI generated the program sucks.

X8Azazel8X posted...

You don't know what you are talking about. One of the biggest reasons trains aren't upgraded as much is it would cut airline profits and wouldn't give as much profit to train companies since it is vastly cheaper. All big buisness makes more money that way while many have this mind set that Americans prefer those shitty cars and the airlines.

A much bigger factor is the freight train companies owning all the tracks and refusing to upgrade them for high speed rail or let passenger trains have priority. Never take non-Acela Amtrak because you'll get held up for 8 hours in the middle of nowhere while some 500 mile long freight train that has priority passes you at 10mph taking literal shit to Alabama.

A truly high speed rail system cannot have grade crossings on city streets because you really don't want a 200+mph train plowing through some dudebro's pickup truck that died on the tracks. Brightline doesn't even go that fast but murders people daily because they are forced to use grade crossings.