Where the facts come from
Every factual claim on this site links to its source. This is the full list.
How we checked
Each fact was written in our own words alongside its source. Our build script stores the text of every source and, for each fact, checks that the key words and figures really appear in it. 100 of 100 checks passed when this site was last built (10 November 2026). Where we couldn’t find a named source saying something, we left it out. Where good sources disagree, we say so and give both.
Where sources differ
- The first journey time. 4 hours at opening in 1964 (Embassy of Japan; Japan’s transport ministry; JR Central), later 3 hours 10 minutes (JR Central), or “a little over three hours” (Science Museum Group).
- Bullet trains outside Japan. The York car is “the only bullet train outside of Japan” (Science Museum Group catalogue) or “one of only two” (National Railway Museum).
All sources (15)
- Britannica: Shinkansen (with Britannica’s maglev article, on the same page) (29 facts)
- Science Museum Group Collection: West Japan Railways Shinkansen ‘Bullet Train’, 1976 (object 2001-7500) (11 facts)
- National Railway Museum: Shinkansen: High-speed revolution (9 facts)
- Central Japan Railway Company (JR Central): About the Shinkansen (8 facts)
- JR Central SCMAGLEV: frequently asked questions (7 facts)
- Japan for Sustainability: “Shinkansen Technology Learned from an Owl?” The story of Eiji Nakatsu (2005) (7 facts)
- Embassy of Japan in the UK: Shinkansen and the Legacy of Tokyo 1964 (2021) (6 facts)
- Central Japan Railway Company (JR Central): Company history (5 facts)
- Central Japan Railway Company (JR Central): Integrated Report 2024 (PDF) (4 facts)
- JR East: Tohoku Shinkansen route and train information (4 facts)
- Guinness World Records: Fastest maglev train (3 facts)
- The Asahi Shimbun: Doctor Yellow train retires after over 20 years of service (30 January 2025) (3 facts)
- Railway Gazette International: JR East introduces 320 km/h running (19 March 2013) (2 facts)
- Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (Japan): Council for Transport Policy report, chapter 1 (1 fact)
- The Japan News (Yomiuri Shimbun): Rail fans flock to see JR Tokai’s retiring Doctor Yellow (30 January 2025) (1 fact)