Train on Train

"Train on Train" (トレイン・オン・トレイン, Torein on Torein) is a concept for piggybacking (that is, carrying narrow-gauge wagons on broader-gauge flatwagons) by the trainload rather than one wagon at a time.

A "Train on Train" experimental mockup at Naebo Works, October 2008
Mock-up wagons at Naebo Works, April 2007

The need arose when Japan's Hokkaido Railway Company (JR Hokkaido) was planning for standard-gauge Hokkaido Shinkansen high-speed trains to operate in the undersea Seikan Tunnel from 2016. The problem was that narrow-gauge freight trains did not operate at high speeds. Since the tunnel is 53.85 km (33.46 mi) long, incorporating slower trains into the timetable would significantly disrupt high-speed services. The solution was to mount narrow-gauge freight trains on to faster standard-gauge freight trains.[1]

Development

When the Hokkaido Shinkansen opened between Shin-Aomori and Shin-Hakodate in 2016, high-speed Shinkansen trains would need to share the dual gauge tracks through the Seikan Tunnel linking the main island of Honshu with Hokkaido. While in the tunnel, freight trains on the narrow-gauge 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in) rails were limited to 110 km/h (70 mph). The "Train on Train" concept involved loading narrow-gauge KoKi 100 container wagons on to specially built standard-gauge wagons to allow operation at speeds of up to 200 km/h (120 mph).[1] As of 2020, although the plan had not been implemented, speeds were reported as having been increased to 160 km/h (99 mph) after extensive testing.

Piggyback by Trainload concept
Piggyback by Trainload concept

The "Train on Train" concept was announced in 2006[2] and a full-size mockup vehicle was built and demonstrated at Naebo Works in 2007. The next phase was to build a prototype train for actual operation.[1] JR Freight was developing new Class EH800 20/25 kV AC electric locomotives to haul these and other trains through the tunnel.[3]

A "Forum 2050" presentation by JR Hokkaido in 2010 stated that using a "double traverser" arrangement would allow an entire train to be transferred to and from the Train on Train wagons in approximately 10 minutes.[4]

See also

References
  1. 独自の研究開発 人と物流 高速化に活路 [Own R&D leading to increased speed]. Hokkaido Shimbun (in Japanese). Japan: The Hokkaido Shimbun Press. 20 December 2008. Retrieved 30 September 2009.
  2. ＪＲ北海道坂本会長 在来線使い、札幌経由で [JR Hokkaido chairman Sakamoto: Using conventional lines via Sapporo]. Tokachi Mainichi Newspaper (in Japanese). Japan. 26 April 2006. Archived from the original on 5 July 2009. Retrieved 30 September 2009.
  3. "JR貨物 新幹線との供用走行専用の新型機関車を導入" [JR Freight to introduce new locomotives for inter-running with shinkansen]. Tetsudō Daiya Jōhō Magazine. Vol. 41, no. 337. Japan: Kōtsū Shimbun. May 2012. p. 70.
  4. 在来線貨車を１０分で新幹線に積み替え可能 [Narrow-gauge wagons to be transferred to shinkansen in 10 minutes]. Hokkaido Shimbun (in Japanese). Japan: The Hokkaido Shimbun Press. 1 February 2010. Archived from the original on 4 February 2010. Retrieved 2 February 2010.
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