JR East’s freight-only Shinkansen train goes into service

East Japan Railway Co., or JR East, started operating a freight-only Shinkansen bullet train on Monday (March 23), transporting goods from Morioka, the capital of Iwate Prefecture, northeastern Japan, to Tokyo.

The seven-car train, converted from an E3 series passenger train that had been used for the Yamagata Shinkansen line, will be operated on weekdays and carry up to about 1,000 containers of goods on each trip.

It has a maximum loading capacity of 17.4 tons.

On Monday, the freight-only train, coupled with a Yamabiko train, left Morioka Station on the Tohoku Shinkansen line shortly after noon.

It arrived at Tokyo Station three hours and 15 minutes later.