International Railroad Discussion > Seikan Tunnel problem / possible solution

I stumbled upon this article about the possibility of freight containers being blown off of the narrow gauge trains in the Seikan Tunnel.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Train_on_Train
...Lorenzo

567Chant Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I stumbled upon this article about the possibility
> of freight containers being blown off of the
> narrow gauge trains in the Seikan Tunnel.
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Train_on_Train
> ...Lorenzo

Interesting! Thanks for the link.

Railroads in Japan, especially the JR Groups (and in the past, JNR the government-run version) have continuously been tackling the problems from Shinkansen tunnel shockwave or "Tunnel Boom." The complex curves and sometimes strange-looking noses from the modern Shinkansen train sets are examples of that.

As a little aside, I watched a Shinkansen documentary made in the 1960s recently, and there was an instruction to tell passengers to wait for the air to decompress before hand-opening the vestibule doors. That's an example of JNR trying to minimize passenger discomfort (especially ear pain) by sealing each car as best they could, especially when the trains meet inside a tunnel.

That instruction is no longer given, since all doors (vestibule and exit doors) are sensor-triggered and automatic. Next time when you detrain from a Shinkansen, observe how the exit doors open - you'll see the door move away or toward you to decompress ("whooosh") before it opens.

Until Shinkansen construction started recently, the Seikan Tunnel had double tracks of 3'6" gauge (1067 mm). However, the planners envisioned running Shinkansen through it, so the tunnel was constructed wide enough to host dual gauge tracks of 1067 mm and global standard 4' 8.5" (1435 mm) gauges. I guess the planners didn't envision the aerodynamic problems - mother nature (and laws of physics) always have the final word!

There are several high priority freights that run through the Seikan Tunnel per day. Seems the Japanese concluded that creative scheduling wasn't good enough to satisfy both the JR East/JR Hokkaido passenger loads and the JR Freight traffic.

The Shinkansen "tunnel boom" is a pretty impressive thing even from onboard the train. Not surprised it would knock an adjacent freight over. No ear discomfort or anything, they seem to have everything sealed up tight these days. (I've ridden multiple times since 2001, nothing before that) did not think about moving between cars at that time though.

Everything about riding the Shinkansen is like flying low. The superelevated curves, ultra high speeds, shockwave bangs when you enter tunnels...

then you go back to the US and ride Amtrak and feel a little deflated...heh.

-M

Mike Massee
Tehachapi, CA
Photography, Railroading and more..



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/20/14 21:05 by Harlock.