Double-decker trains are to disappear from Japan’s Shinkansen networks.
East Japan Railway Company says it will decommission its double-decker super-express trains over a 4-year period from next April.
The trains were introduced 20 years ago on the Joetsu Shinkansen Line, which connects Tokyo with Niigata, a city on the Sea of Japan coast.
The 16-car trains can carry more than 1,600 passengers.
Japan’s first double-decker bullet trains began operating in 1985 on the Tokaido Shinkansen Line.
JR East says it will replace the double-deckers with E7 series trains, which are already in use on the Hokuriku Shinkansen Line. Some of the new trains will have luxury compartments.
JR East also says it will expand its bullet train services to maintain capacity after the double-deckers have been decommissioned.
Source and image: NHK
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