Tōkaidō Shinkansen (東海道新幹線) is the original Shinkansen line that opened in 1964 between Tokyo and Shin-Osaka. It is operated by the Central Japan Railway Company.

History

The Tokaido Shinkansen line was originally conceptualized in 1940 as a 150 km/h dedicated railway between Tokyo and Shimonoseki, which would have been 50% faster than the fastest express train of the time. The beginning of World War II stalled the project in its early planning stages, although a few tunnels were dug that were later used in the Shinkansen route.

Construction of the line began in 1959 and completed in 1964, with the first train travelling from Tokyo to Shin-Osaka on October 1 of that year. The opening was timed to coincide with the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, which had already brought international attention to the country.

The line carried its 100 millionth passenger in 1967, and its billionth in 1976.

Trains

There are three types of trains on the line: from fastest to slowest, they are the Nozomi, Hikari, and Kodama. Many continue onward to the Sanyo Shinkansen, going as far as Fukuoka's Hakata Station.

Train sets on the line include:

• 300 Series Kodama/Hikari
• 500 Series Nozomi
• 700 Series Nozomi/Kodama/Hikari Rail Star

Stations

• Tokyo (東京)
• Shinagawa (品川)
• Shin-Yokohama (新横浜)
• Odawara (小田原)
• Atami (熱海)
• Mishima (三島)
• Shin-Fuji (新富士)
• Shizuoka (静岡)
• Kakegawa (掛川)
• Hamamatsu (浜松)
• Toyohashi (豊橋)
• Mikawa-Anjo (三河安城)
• Nagoya (名古屋)
• Gifu-Hashima (岐阜羽島)
• Maibara (米原)
• Kyoto (京都)
• Shin-Osaka (新大阪)