Avsnitt
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Japan has revolutionized train-travel once again
Dogs, who usually have to sit in cages on trains, can now enjoy the window seat together with their owner on luxurious Shinkansen seats.
This is a proof of concept organized by Japan Railways (JR) named "Woof! Application" and its Japan's first demonstration experiment of a Shinkansen dog-train. The travel fee is high as 106,000 yen for 2 people per trip.
The biggest selling point is that the dog can be taken out of its cage for about 40 minutes on the outbound Shinkansen.
This seems like an easy thing to administer if only dog lovers could board, but for regular routes, many problems had to be solved. This is because the vehicle will be used to carry ordinary passengers again after being chartered. Passengers may have an allergic reaction due to dog hair, etc., and how to remove all those pesky dog particles is a major issue.
Therefore, this time, a vehicle was put in the boarding station at about 30 minutes before the departure time, and careful preparations were made. Staff put vinyl covers on all seats to prevent hair from sticking to the fabric. In addition, with the cooperation of Panasonic, an extra powerful air purifier was installed. All of these measures were formulated under the guidance of veterinarians.
Why would JR put so much effort into dog trains?
The reason why this proof of concept is done even with so much effort is the potential demand: Japan is the only country in the world where pets outnumber babies! (source)
Also, dog owners really want the best for their dogs. "My dog is a member of my family. I don't want to be put in a cage, so why should my dog have to?" asks a participant in the dog-train.
In the future, present issues such as cleaning and operation will likely be streamlined and prices are likely to fall to levels not too far from present levels.
For now though, all dog-lovers can hope for is that this trend catches on enough for JR to put some serious effort into the project.
And who knows, maybe future Shinkansen trains will have dogs in the seats and us sitting in cages.
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I begrudgingly have to admit that train manufacturer have a lot to learn from the car industry.
The futuristic concept cars, incredibly slick commercials, showrooms where we can touch, smell and feel the cars… These are all incredibly efficient and slick ways car makers have managed to make us long for $40k+ metal boxes that destroy the planet!
So how are train models being marketed? I bet you’ve seen more images of train crashes than train models…
Part of this fact is that trains are sold to companies and governments, and not to people like you and me. Hence, instilling a sexy image of trains does not matter as much to train makers.
However, at the end of the day regular people are the ones who will ride the trains and pay the price for them. If people don’t want trains, government and companies won’t buy trains, and train-makers wont be able to sell them!
There are so many politicians that have managed to promote a much more expensive highway extension over a new train line because people just see cars as sexier than trains…
Therefore, I think it is crucial for train-makers to create the same appeal for trains as car makers have done for cars!
There is hope!
There is one company that has truly taken this lesson to heart: the Bahn Berlin!
Now, they do not make the trains, but they know the importance of selling them to the public.
So together with the Swiss train-maker Stadler, in preparation for their new S-Bahn train fleet, they have created some truly impressive marketing material. Check these out:
For even more sexy material on the new Stadler S-Bahn trains, click on the link below:
S-Bahn Berlin Vehicle Fleet
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Saknas det avsnitt?
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Imagine you’re on a fully packed train platform during peak rush-hour. You’re standing in front of the line while looking your phone screen, completely engulfed in replying to a work email. Out of the blue, you feel a forceful push on your right shoulder!
You spasm and completely lose your balance! Suddenly, you feel a hard object hitting your knees and your chest… You realize you have have fallen right onto the train-tracks!
What do you do now?!
The answer isn’t simple, but the split-second decisions in that situation could be the difference between life and death. Also, depending where you are in the world, the answer will be very different.
Either way, here are the most common things you should do if you fall onto the train tracks:
Watch the third rail
Before doing anything, watch out for a third rail on either side of the main running rails! Many tracks are lined with a lethal third rail, which powers subway cars with enough electricity to kill a person in an instant.
Emergency stop button
Probably the most familiar of safety features is the emergency stop button. As you might imagine, this is a big red button installed on columns at intervals on the platform and is often labeled “SOS” and “Emergency (train stop) button”. If you fall, other people have likely seen it and if the platform has such a button, they should press it right away.
Climb back onto the platform if possible
If there is no emergency button, or the train is too close to stop, the best way to safety is to climb back onto the platform. The height varies vastly by country, but is usually roughly 1 meter off the track bed. However, many people are not tall or limber enough to hoist themselves to safety. Sometimes, there are steps or ladders at the end of every city train platform. If someone who falls to the tracks knows which direction the train is coming from, they should walk between the running rails in the opposite direction toward the platform edge. But if you run towards the train, and it comes around a bend into the station, you’re dead…
Other areas of refuge
Riders who end up on tracks shouldn’t try to find cover in the space beneath a platform. Some of them have enough space to avoid being struck by a train, but some are smaller and people who duck under could be killed by metal shoes on trains’ exteriors that plug into the third rail.
However, if getting onto the train platform is not an option, many metro lines have dedicated shelter under some platforms. Sometimes these shelters take the form of a cubby hole carved out of the platform. In other cases, you may find that the top of the platform juts out over the rest of the platform, providing a space under the platform and away from the tracks.
As a last resort, get under the train
If a train is barreling toward you, an effective, albeit frightening option can be used: If you lay down flat between the two rails where the trains run, turn your head to the side, the train will pass right over you. This is not always the case, but for most trains, there’s enough clearance between that space, called the trough, and the bottom of a train.
This is definitely not a recommended tactic, but it has saved lives in the past. On the New York City Subway, a man named Wesley Autrey jumped to rescue a 19-year-old man who had a seizure and fell to the tracks. Autrey rolled the teen into the trough and lay on top of him. There was enough space for both to fit beneath as the train passed above them.
Equipped with the knowledge of these safety features, hopefully we can worry a little less and just enjoy the ride.
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This article was originally published on April 5, 2022.
It starts of with a calm buzzing from the electric wiring as the train depart from the station. Then it slowly builds up to a hissing sound of metal screeching that just gets more and more unbearable…
For a subway system that is likely the quietest in the world, the Toei Oedo line sticks out like a sore thumb!
The main reason for the sound is more complicated that you’d think. It is actually due to a number of rather cool factors:
You see, the construction of the Toei Oedo line started relatively late in Tokyo’s subway history (which dates back to 1927) and it opened on December 12, 2000, to get the magical date of 12/12/12 in the Japanese calendar (which is the 12th year of the period corresponding to the reign of Emperor Akihito). This forced the subway tunnels to be constructed below existing subway lines, which lead them to be built deep underground, with stations as deep as 42 meters below ground.
To save cost, the planning team decided to make the tunnels smaller than on conventional subway lines, and consequently smaller train-cars had to be used. In fact, the Oedo line’s train-cars had to be so small that conventional engines would not fit in them. Instead, a new technology at the time was used, Linear Induction. This technology works with magnetic fields created by a linear induction motor inside the train and a third rail under the train with an opposite magnetic field that propels it forward.
Linear induction motors themselves are not that noisy, but a combination of the increase maintenance cost of the train-cars (which decentivizes regular maintenance or upgrades) and the many sharp turns the smaller tunnels require have led it to be perhaps the noisiest train line in Japan.
On top of this, the depth, unique train technology and maintenance costs have made the Toei Oedo line is the most expensive subway line ever built!
Will the Noise Ever get Better?
Modern train-cars can reduce the noise substantially. Many new train-cars’ wheels rotate independently on the left and right side, which reduces any screeching sound substantially. An additional solution that is already used on similar lines in Japan is to lubricate the train tracks.
However, the Toei Oedo crew does not seem keen to introduce lubricant to its already ballooning maintenance costs, and its rolling-stock is relatively new so there are no plans to replace it yet.
So until further notice, all you can do is to pray that you will never be forced to commute on this line…
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The Yamanote Line is going full self-driving
Japan Railway Co (JR) said Tuesday it will carry out test runs of automated trains with passengers aboard on Tokyo's Yamanote loop line for two months starting around October.
JR has been testing the automated system on out-of-service trains on the line since 2018, and the operator intends to implement the technology around 2028.
When using the automated operations system, drivers simply push a button to speed up the train to depart. It also automatically slows itself down upon drawing close to a station, meaning drivers will manually operate services only in emergencies.
The system's development is expected to reach its final stages once the tests end, with carriage improvements slated from around spring 2023 to achieve the targeted 2028 implementation.
Development is progressing on a system to detect obstructions on the tracks, and JR intends to create a high-level system that can also handle emergency stops by the 2030s.
Why is JR automating such a complicated train line?
The move to achieve full autonomy for the Yamanote line is surprisingly to decrease fatalities or improve reliability.
It’s actually part of measures to stem a possible shortage of drivers amid the nation's shrinking population.
Under the plans, train crew would no longer need driver accreditation. Instead, their duties would involve responding to customers and training staff.
The accreditation needed to be a train-driver in Japan is one of the strictest in the world, and any measures to decrease the need for licensed train-operators would decrease the cost and
Also, a fully automated train-line have the potential to make the world’s most reliable transit network even more reliable, and it increases the possibility to run the Yamanote line on a 24h a day schedule (today it “only” runs on a 18h schedule).
Lastly, fully automating the Yamanote line would be a huge feather in JR’s hat and a true showcase that Japan still is the world’s No.1 train-country. JR has long been trying to export their know-how and tech to other countries, and they hope that this breakthrough will help them further.
What does this mean for train-lines worldwide?
Simply put, if the world’s busiest train line can function as a fully autonomous rail-service, there are no excuses for train-lines all around the world to not do the same!
For Japan, automated trains have limited benefits because the infrastructure surrounding them are already so good. But for the rest of the world, autonomous trains could substantially increase reliability, safety and comfort of their train lines; all while decreasing maintenance- and operational costs.
If the automation of the Yamanote line is successful, it’s one more step step in making trains and metros the main way people travel, all around the world.
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In this audio version of my article, I argue for why the Tokyo metro is the greatest metro system ever conceived. Full article here:
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On Thursday Feb. 24, Kyiv’s mayor, Vitali Klitschko, imposed a curfew and ordered all public transit to be halted so that the metro stations could be used as bomb shelters against the incoming air raids.
Turns out that Kyiv’s metro system was built to serve this very purpose…
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