2 photos from Wikimedia Commons · credits & licences
- 1. Shinkansen E8 series test: Pierre Colson· CC BY-SA 4.0
- 2. JR東E8系G2編成: みどりがおか· CC BY-SA 4.0
what is it?
The E8 series (Japanese: E8系) is a Japanese Shinkansen high-speed train type operated by the East Japan Railway Company (JR East). It operates exclusively on Tsubasa services on the Yamagata Shinkansen, a mini-Shinkansen line between Shinjo in Yamagata Prefecture and Fukushima, at speeds of up to 130 kilometres per hour (81 mph). From Fukushima, services continue to and from Tokyo on the Tōhoku Shinkansen, where E8 series trainsets are typically coupled to or uncoupled from Yamabiko services operated by E5 series trains.
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 3 years ago, in 2023.
- Top speed is 2.3× a car on the Dutch motorway (130 km/h).
- At full speed it would cover Amsterdam–Utrecht (≈ 40 km) in 8 minutes.
- Seats 355: 7 full city buses (~50 seats each).
high-speed train: Built for 200–350 km/h on dedicated lines, like the TGV, ICE or Shinkansen.
spec sheet
- built
- 2023
- in service from
- 2024
- status
- in service
- number built
- 66
- kind
- Electric multiple unit
- traction
- electric
- origin
- 🇯🇵 Japan
- builders
- Hitachi Rail, Kawasaki Railcar Manufacturing, Kawasaki Heavy Industries
- designer
- Ken Okuyama
- operators
- East Japan Railway Company
- top speed
- 300 km/h
- power
- —
- gauge
- 1,435 mm standard gauge
- electric system
- Overhead line:, 3, 3
- formation
- 7 cars per trainset
- capacity
- 355 passengers
From the Wikipedia infobox and Wikidata. Blank means the sources don't say.
Sources: Wikidata Q86964377, Wikipedia: E8 Series Shinkansen (CC BY-SA 4.0).Updated 2026-10-25.