#4003
Class 951 Shinkansen
🇯🇵 Japan ·built by Kawasaki Heavy Industries· from 1969· experimental Japanese high speed train
2 photos from Wikimedia Commons · credits & licences
- 1. 951-1 RTRI Kokubunji 199711: DAJF· CC BY-SA 3.0
- 2. 951-1 Kokubunji Hikari Plaza 20210410: Nishifutsu· CC BY-SA 4.0
what is it?
The Class 951 (Japanese: 951形) was an experimental Japanese Shinkansen train built to test the technology for future high-speed trains operating at speeds of up to 250 km/h (155 mph) following the opening of the Tokaido Shinkansen in 1964.
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 57 years ago, in 1969.
- Top speed is 1.9× a car on the Dutch motorway (130 km/h).
- At full speed it would cover Amsterdam–Utrecht (≈ 40 km) in 10 minutes.
- 2 MW is about 24 family cars (~85 kW each) flat out.
- 25 m long: about 6 cars parked nose to tail.
- Served for 39 years (1969–2008).
high-speed train: Built for 200–350 km/h on dedicated lines, like the TGV, ICE or Shinkansen.
spec sheet
- built
- 1969
- in service from
- 1969
- retired
- 2008
- status
- retired
- number built
- 2
- kind
- high-speed train
- traction
- electric
- origin
- 🇯🇵 Japan
- builders
- Kawasaki Heavy Industries, Nippon Sharyo
- operators
- Japanese National Railways
- top speed
- 250 km/h
- power
- 2 MW
- gauge
- 1,435 mm standard gauge
- electric system
- 25 kV AC, 60 Hz overhead catenary
- formation
- 2 cars
- length
- 25 m
- capacity
- 50 passengers
From the Wikipedia infobox and Wikidata. Blank means the sources don't say.
Sources: Wikidata Q5127953, Wikipedia: Class 951 Shinkansen (CC BY-SA 4.0).Updated 2026-10-25.