Tuesday 20 August 2013

Reunion with the Shinkansen 100 Series

EMU Shinkansen 100 series is exhibited in SCMAGLEV and Railway Park
 
What is a requirement for a good looking woman? Perhaps a long nose is essential for a beauty. As the saying goes, if Cleopatra's nose had been shorter, the whole face of the earth would have changed. It is the same with a train. The EMU Shinkansen 100 series has a long nose; meanwhile, the 0 series is cob-nosed. The 100 series is more beautiful than the 0 series, isn't it?

The EMU Shinkansen 100 series was launched in 1985 as the second generation Shinkansen train by Japanese National Railways. A total of 66 sets, 1056 units had been manufactured for seven years by Kawasaki Heavy Industries and the other makers. The purpose of the introduction of the 100 series was to replace the degraded first generation Shinkansen train, the 0 series, which had been operated since 1964.

The most outstanding feature of the 100 series was its exterior appearance. The design of the frontal mask became sharper than that of the 0 series. The shape of the front lights was also changed from round to horizontally long. The specification of the trains was also upgraded. As a result, the maximum speed of the 100 series was raised up to 230 km/hour.

Unfortunately, the 100 series was retired by 2012 to be replaced by new models. Currently, you need to visit SCMAGLEV and Railway Park in Nagoya City, if you wish to reunite with the 100 series. She is still as beautiful in the park as it was operated on the tracks.

 
EMU Shinkansen 100 series (left) and 0 series (right)