New bullet train model hits record speed in Japan test run

The energy-efficient 'supreme' shinkansen hits record speeds of 360 kph

(FILES) In this file photo taken on May 9, 2019, JR East's new test bullet train "ALFA-X" is seen in Rifu, Miyagi prefecture. A prototype of Japan's next-generation Shinkansen bullet train, set to be the fastest train on wheels when it enters service, reached speeds of 320 kilometres (198 miles) per hour on a test run on May 16. The train, code-named ALFA-X, will eventually hit 360 kilometres per hour when it begins to take passengers in about a decade, according to East Japan Railway. - Japan OUT
 / AFP / JIJI PRESS / JIJI PRESS
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A new bullet train set to enter service ahead of the Tokyo Olympics hit a record speed of 360 kilometres per hour in a test run, operator JR Central said.

The N700s – the suffix stands for "supreme" – is the first new model of bullet train on Japan’s busiest line for almost a decade. The train is lighter and uses less energy than existing designs, as well as boasting additional safety features in case of earthquakes.

The record was achieved on Friday on tracks linking Maibara and Kyoto, said Central Japan Railway, better known as JR Central. It is the fastest speed a commercial model of shinkansen bullet train has ever achieved, although the train is expected to run at the line's current top speed of 285 kph when it enters service.

JR Central is spending ¥240 billion (Dh8.06bn) on the introduction of the train series, and will continue tests at the top speed until mid June.

Japan’s bullet trains, which debuted the same year as the 1964 Tokyo Olympics, are famed for their reliability and safety. Japan is pitching the trains for export, with JR Central aiming to sell the Supreme model to Texas and Taiwan.

Another JR company, East Japan Railway, is testing the Alfa-X, which will operate at 360 kph when it is introduced in 2030 on lines linking Tokyo to the northern island of Hokkaido.