# 700 Series Shinkansen
The **700 Series Shinkansen** (新幹線700系電車) is a Japanese high-speed train type jointly developed by Central Japan Railway Company ([JR Central](https://www.edgepedia.org/jr-central)) and West Japan Railway Company (JR West), placed in commercial operation on the Tokaido and Sanyo Shinkansen in March 1999 as the successor to the Series 300.[1](https://global.jr-central.co.jp/en/company/about/history.html) • [2](https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1243/0954409001531261) • [3](https://jr-central.co.jp/news/release/nws001330.html)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Entered service | March 1999, on "Nozomi" services of the Tokaido Shinkansen[1](https://global.jr-central.co.jp/en/company/about/history.html) |
| Operators / developers | JR Central and JR West, joint development[3](https://jr-central.co.jp/news/release/nws001330.html) |
| Service speed | 270 km/h on the Tokaido and Sanyo lines, with 285 km/h over some track sections[4](https://iricen.gov.in/iricen/books_jquery/highspeed020609.pdf) • [2](https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1243/0954409001531261) |
| Train set weight | 708 tons per 16-car set[4](https://iricen.gov.in/iricen/books_jquery/highspeed020609.pdf) |
| Power and acceleration | Total output 13.2 MW; maximum acceleration 2 km/h/s[5](https://www.railjournal.com/in_depth/shinkansen-half-a-century-of-speed/) |
| Nose length | 9.2 m, against 6.0 m for the Series 300[6](https://by.genie.uottawa.ca/~mcg3341/AerodynamicsOfHighSpeedTrains.pdf) |
| Preservation | Prototype head car 723-9001 displayed at the SCMaglev and Railway Park, Nagoya, since January 2014[7](https://japanrailatlas.com/rolling-stock/series-700) |
## Design purpose
The design brief was balanced rather than record-chasing. Unlike the 500 series, a record-chasing design that JR West had brought out in 1997, the 700 series was intended to boost overall speeds on the Tokaido and Sanyo Shinkansen and to deliver a smoother, quieter ride than its predecessor, the 300 series—a train whose weight-reduced body had been pushed too far, resulting in noise and vibration—all without driving up construction or upkeep expenses.[7](https://japanrailatlas.com/rolling-stock/series-700)
Development was announced in 1996, and the type was initially designated "N300 series".[8](https://japanrailatlas.com/ja/rolling-stock/series-700) The design integrated technology acquired from the 300X experimental train, with which JR Central had begun test running in January 1995 and which set a [Shinkansen](https://www.edgepedia.org/shinkansen) speed record of 443 km/h in July 1996.[9](https://www.ejrcf.or.jp/jrtr/jrtr64/pdf/18-27_web.pdf) • [5](https://www.railjournal.com/in_depth/shinkansen-half-a-century-of-speed/)
## Aerodynamics
**Aerodynamic refinement was the type's defining engineering work.** The Series 700 concentrated improvements on the nose shape, the area around the carbody, the car coupling areas, the pantograph, and the pantograph cover.[2](https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1243/0954409001531261) The configuration of the carbody, pantograph, and the extra voltage bus line was reshaped specifically to reduce aerodynamic noise.[10](https://zhgdjt.cbpt.cnki.net/portal/journal/portal/client/paper/7eaa306b3b25b3e1f45c39d189f79c2f)
The nose illustrates the approach. The 700 series nose is 9.2 m long, more than half again the 6.0 m of the Series 300, a shape studied to reduce aerodynamic noise and the pressure pulses produced when a train enters a tunnel.[6](https://by.genie.uottawa.ca/~mcg3341/AerodynamicsOfHighSpeedTrains.pdf) These changes produced lower wayside noise and pressure fluctuations, improved riding comfort in tunnels, reduced power consumption, and an increased speed of 285 km/h over some track sections, measured against the Series 300.[2](https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1243/0954409001531261)
## Service record
The first sets entered "Nozomi" service on the [Tokaido Shinkansen](https://www.edgepedia.org/tokaido-shinkansen) in March 1999, six years after the Series 300 had opened the same service grade.[1](https://global.jr-central.co.jp/en/company/about/history.html) • [2](https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1243/0954409001531261) JR West applied its own variant, the 700-7000 series, to the "Hikari Rail Star" service with 2 x 2 seating in ordinary cars.[8](https://japanrailatlas.com/ja/rolling-stock/series-700)
JR Central refined the fleet in service: between October 2008 and June 2009 it modified its sixty 700 series sets to raise acceleration from the original 1.6 to 2.0 km/h/s on the Tokaido Shinkansen, giving the timetable more flexibility.[7](https://japanrailatlas.com/rolling-stock/series-700) The type's 13.2 MW total output and 2 km/h/s maximum acceleration sit below the later N700 and N700A, which deliver 17.08 MW and 2.6 km/h/s.[5](https://www.railjournal.com/in_depth/shinkansen-half-a-century-of-speed/)
A single example survives: car 723-9001, manufactured in 1997 by [Kawasaki Heavy Industries](https://www.edgepedia.org/kawasaki-heavy-industries) and once part of the C1 prototype set, has been on display at Nagoya's SCMaglev and Railway Park since January 2014. It is the mass-production prototype head car that began commercial operation in March 1999, and it replaced the Series 300 car J21 previously shown there.[7](https://japanrailatlas.com/rolling-stock/series-700) • [3](https://jr-central.co.jp/news/release/nws001330.html)
## References
1. [Company History, Central Japan Railway Company](https://global.jr-central.co.jp/en/company/about/history.html)
2. [M. Ito (2000). Improvement to the aerodynamic characteristics of Shinkansen rolling stock. Proc. IMechE Vol. 214, Issue 3.](https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1243/0954409001531261)
3. [JR Central news release on the Series 700 prototype head car display](https://jr-central.co.jp/news/release/nws001330.html)
4. [Specifications of Shinkansen Rolling Stock, IRICEN high-speed rail text](https://iricen.gov.in/iricen/books_jquery/highspeed020609.pdf)
5. [Shinkansen: half a century of speed, International Railway Journal](https://www.railjournal.com/in_depth/shinkansen-half-a-century-of-speed/)
6. [Aerodynamics of High-Speed Trains, University of Ottawa course text](https://by.genie.uottawa.ca/~mcg3341/AerodynamicsOfHighSpeedTrains.pdf)
7. [700 Series Shinkansen: History & Facts, Japan Rail Atlas](https://japanrailatlas.com/rolling-stock/series-700)
8. [新幹線700系電車 ― 歴史・基礎情報, Japan Rail Atlas (Japanese)](https://japanrailatlas.com/ja/rolling-stock/series-700)
9. [JRTR No. 64: 50 Years of High-Speed Railways, EJRCF](https://www.ejrcf.or.jp/jrtr/jrtr64/pdf/18-27_web.pdf)
10. [智慧轨道交通: aerodynamic noise reduction in the Shinkansen 700 series](https://zhgdjt.cbpt.cnki.net/portal/journal/portal/client/paper/7eaa306b3b25b3e1f45c39d189f79c2f)
11. [高鐵技術哪一國？700T為何一列車兩套系統, APPI News](https://appi.news/articles/thsr-technology-origin/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Technology and the built world › Transport and spaceflight › Rail transport › Rail vehicles and rolling stock › Multiple units and railcars › High-speed and tilting trainsets › Shinkansen trainsets*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 19, 2026; Oct 15, 2026 · Edited: Sep 19, 2026; Oct 15, 2026 · Last review: Oct 15, 2026*
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