Hokkaido Shinkansen

The dual-gauge Kaikyo Line near Kikonai Station in March 2016

In preparation for the opening of the Hokkaido Shinkansen, the Seikan Tunnel (Kaikyō Line) and associated approaches (approximately 82 km or 51 mi in total)[5] were converted to dual gauge, with both the Shinkansen 1,435 mm (4 ft 8 ¹⁄₂ in) standard and 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in) narrow gauge tracks.[6]

Upon the opening of the Shinkansen line the section of the conventional (narrow gauge) Esashi Line approximately paralleling the same route between Goryōkaku and Kikonai was transferred from the control of JR Hokkaido to a newly established third-sector railway operating company, South Hokkaido Railway Company, becoming the Isaribi Line.[7]

All services are formed of 10-car JR East E5 or JR Hokkaido H5 series trainsets.[8]

In February 2014, JR Hokkaido placed an order for four 10-car H5 Series Shinkansen trainsets for use on Hokkaido Shinkansen services from March 2016.[12] Based on the E5 series trainsets operated by JR East since 2011, the order for 40 vehicles cost approximately 18 billion yen.[12] The first two sets of the order are scheduled to be delivered to Hakodate Depot by road from Hakodate Port in October 2014, with test running commencing before the end of the year.[13] The remaining two sets on order are scheduled to be delivered in 2015.[13] The vehicles feature the usual upper green and lower white livery, with a purple stripe in the middle. The color purple was chosen to represent the purple flowers of Hokkaido: lilacs, lupine and lavender. Inside, the ordinary-class cars feature wood paneling and carpet with a snowflake motif. Green class features cream-colored walls representing the local dairy industry and carpet with a drift-ice motif. Gran class features dark blue carpets, said to be modeled after the shimmering lakes and bodies of water along the route.[14]

• 
  A JR East E5 series train
• 
  A JR Hokkaido H5 series train in March 2016

A chart showing proposed journey times between Tokyo and Sapporo as the Hokkaido Shinkansen is extended.

In the early 1970s, two other Shinkansen routes were proposed for Hokkaido: Sapporo – Asahikawa (Hokkaido Shinkansen extension) and Oshamambe – Muroran – Sapporo (Hokkaido South Route). There were also further unofficial plans to connect to Abashiri, Kushiro and Nayoro/Wakkanai. These plans have been indefinitely shelved.

On 1 November 2014, a ceremony was held at Kikonai Station to mark the completion of track-laying for the line between Shin-Aomori and Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto.[15] Test-running on the Hokkaido Shinkansen tracks within Hokkaido commenced from 1 December 2014, initially at low speeds, with the speed raised to the maximum of 260 km/h (160 mph) later that month.[16] Test-running was extended through the Seikan Tunnel to Oku-Tsugaru-Imabetsu in December 2014.[17] Test-running south of Oku-Tsugaru-Imabetsu commenced on 21 April 2015, with the first train reaching Shin-Aomori Station from the north in the early hours of 24 May.[17]

JR Hokkaido is extending the Hokkaido Shinkansen from Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto to Sapporo, planned to open by 2030.[3] Tunneling work on the 5,265 m (3.272 mi) Murayama tunnel, situated about 1 kilometer (0.62 mi) north of Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto station commenced in March 2015, and is scheduled to be completed by March 2021. The 211.3 km (131.3 mi) extension will be approximately 76% in tunnels, including major tunnels such as Oshima (26.5 km or 16.5 mi), Teine (18.8 km or 11.7 mi) and Shiribeshi (18 km or 11 mi).[18] When the section to Sapporo opens, the estimated journey time from Tokyo to Sapporo will be at most 5 hours and 1 minute, but the goal is for it to be below 4 hours.[19]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Hokkaido Shinkansen.

• JR Hokkaido: Hokkaido Shinkansen (in Japanese)
• Federation of Hokkaido Chamber of Commerce and Industry (in Japanese)
• Overview of the waystations by the Yakumo City council
• Shinkansen related links poseted by the Yakumo city council