Next-Generation Experimental Shinkansen Takes Shape

This photo, taken on 12 December 2018, shows the bodyshell of a Class E956 end car of the ten-car experimental ALFA-X Shinkansen train being built for JR East. The other end car will have a nose cone of a different shape, the objective being to assess performance with the two end car designs, and to develop and verify new train design for the Tōhoku and Hokkaidō Shinkansen lines. Test runs with the train are to be made at speeds up to 360 km/h. The ALFA-X will also be used to evaluate other technological innovations and features. This end car has a nose cone length of 16 m - 1 m longer than those on the Class E5/H5 Shinkansen trains currently operated by JR East and JR Hokkaido.