r/japanrail

train made a brief stop at 4pm on Sunday, presumably heading back to the train depot.
couldn't take pictures of the interior since all the windows were covered by curtains.

Japan does not have a very favorable environment for static or dynamic preservation of railway vehicles due to legal and tax issues, and railway companies do not actively preserve them. Only a small number of vehicles can be placed in railway museums. In particular, in recent years, the dismantling of valuable vehicles stored in depots has been progressing.

Very random observation but I am on the train right now and noticed this. I did not realise the middle seat was wider

Hi guys, please go support the Sakura Express Shinkansen on bricklink ! Link : [The Sakura Express] [BrickLink]

You may have recognized it, the Sakura Express is a modified version of my Shinkansen N700S, designed to better fit the rules of the contest. My previous N700S design was judged too close to the real prototype (I take it as a compliment haha !) so the bricklink team asked to change its livery. That explains the pink stripe, and the flower logo on the side, that I linked to the cherry blossoms (Sakura in japanese).

The interior of this train is so nice! The wood is gorgeous - i wish this was more common across Japan! It feels like a nice attention to detail and I will say the seats are the most comfortable I have sat on in a Shinkansen. a nice way to reduce plastic usage too

I had over a full week off for Golden Week, so I spent it taking mostly local trains on a very circuitous route down to Oita & Miyazaki Prefectures. When a ticket includes so many transfers onto different lines that their computers (MARS) can't print the distance/fare automatically, JR employees calculate it by hand, call you a few days later when it's ready for pick-up, and then give you a hand-written 出札補充券 ticket, shown here!

I carried this with me all week, making various stopovers (indicated by the scattered oval-shaped stamps of various colors), exploring small towns while waiting on connections and sparse timetables, and staying the night in various cities on my way down – Himeji, Tsuyama, Hiroshima, Sanyo-Onoda, Fukuoka, Oita, Nobeoka, and Miyazaki.

It was a blast to ride new local lines & see the scenery of Chugoku/Kyushu, learn about regional foods and obscure mascot characters, and talk with residents & other travelers on the way. I drew out the route that this ticket covers on a map, and figured that people here might be interested in seeing it, and to know that long, multi-day journeys can be covered with just a single base fare ticket thanks to our wonderfully weird and remarkable rail system!

Trying to think of all the railway operators that operate between (or run in multiple) different regions of Japan. I'm talking about tracks & stations that they own, like what is legally considered part of "their railway network", not through-service to other companies' lines or whatnot.

Here are the ones I have so far:

• All JR Group companies
• JR Hokkaido (Hokkaido–Tohoku)
• JR East (Tohoku–Kanto–Chubu)
• JR Central (Kanto–Chubu–Kansai)
• JR West (Chubu–Kansai–Chugoku–Kyushu)
• JR Shikoku (Shikoku–Chugoku)
• JR Kyushu (Kyushu–Chugoku)
• Kintetsu (Kansai–Chubu)
• Chizu Express (Kansai–Chugoku)
• Yoro Railway (Chubu–Kansai)
• Izuhakone Railway (Chubu & Kanto, two separate lines)
• Yagan Railway (Kanto–Tohoku)

Any others I'm missing?

Official press release: https://www.city.osaka.lg.jp/hodoshiryo/seisakukikakushitsu/0000669428.html

The list comprises the following projects:

Naniwasuji - Shin-Osaka Connector: Led by Hankyu, this is an extension of the Naniwasuji line from the original terminus of Umeda to Shin-Osaka. Currently services are expected to share the Osaka-Higashi tracks, and this alternate route would help to relieve some of the pressure on that bottleneck. There will also be an additional stop at Hankyu's Juso hub, which is undergoing urban redevelopment.

JR Sakurajima line extension: This would extend the JR line to the casino being constructed at Yumeshima. It will provide a second access to the site after the Osaka Metro Chuo line, which was extended for the World Expo in 2025.

Keihan Nakanoshima line extension: This would extend Keihan's Nakanoshima spur line to Kujo. The line has been underperforming since its opening in 2008, and it is hoped that this extension would help to draw some traffic from casino-goers.

Overall it represents a shift in focus from expanding coverage to building relief corridors serving key hubs. 11 million yen has been budgeted by the City, with additional contributions expected from the Prefecture and private operators.