1 photo from Wikimedia Commons · credits & licences
- 1. JNR shinkansen 961 sendai: spaceaero2· CC BY 3.0
what is it?
The Class 961 (961形) was a 6-car experimental Japanese Shinkansen train operated by Japanese National Railways (JNR) between 1973 and 1981.
who runs it
base stats
Bars compare against all trains: 600 km/h (maglev), 1,700 seats; power, weight and number built on a log scale up to 20 MW, 1,000 t and 20,000 built.
fun facts
- First built 53 years ago, in 1973.
- Top speed is 2.0× a car on the Dutch motorway (130 km/h).
- At full speed it would cover Amsterdam–Utrecht (≈ 40 km) in 9 minutes.
- 6.6 MW is about 78 family cars (~85 kW each) flat out.
- 25 m long: about 6 cars parked nose to tail.
- Served for 8 years (1973–1981).
high-speed train: Built for 200–350 km/h on dedicated lines, like the TGV, ICE or Shinkansen.
spec sheet
- built
- 1973
- in service from
- 1973
- retired
- 1981
- status
- retired
- number built
- 6
- kind
- high-speed train
- traction
- electric
- origin
- 🇯🇵 Japan
- builders
- Hitachi, Kawasaki Heavy Industries, Nippon Sharyo
- operators
- Japanese National Railways
- top speed
- 260 km/h
- power
- 6.6 MW
- gauge
- 1,435 mm standard gauge
- electric system
- 25 kV AC, 50/60 Hz overhead catenary
- formation
- 6 cars
- length
- 25 m
From the Wikipedia infobox and Wikidata. Blank means the sources don't say.
Sources: Wikidata Q5127954, Wikipedia: Class 961 Shinkansen (CC BY-SA 4.0).Updated 2026-10-25.